a reduction (in English) of a longer word to a single syllable, then adding -yor-ie to the end, such as movie ("moving picture"), telly ("television") or Aussie ("Australian").
a contracted form of a personal name, such as Tony from Anthony, Rosy and Rosie for Rosemarie, Rosalie, Roseann, or Rosalind (among many others) or Vicky from Victoria.
ababy-talk form approximating the name's pronunciation, such as Bess for Elizabeth,orBubba for brother.
a personal name with a diminutive suffix; in some languages diminutive forms of names are used primarily when referring to children, and the meaning can oscillate between tenderness and condescension when used for an adult.
-(c)ito/-(c)itaor-(c)ín/-(c)inainSpanish, such as Juanita from Juana. Extra consonants may be interposed as in Carmelina and Carmencita from Carmen, or merged, as in Carmina.
-chen, -lein, -(l)i, -(e)le (usually used with names) in German, such as HündchenorHündlein (from Hund, meaning "dog") or Kalli (from Karl, a name) or HäusleorHäusele (from Haus, meaning "house"); a back vowel in the root is normally subjected to umlaut, i.e. shift from u, o, atoü, ö, ä respectively (e.g. Hund → Hündchen, Arm → Ärmchen, Holz → Hölzchen).
the usual hypocoristic endings in Dutch are in both words and personal names alike: -tje, -ke. When the name ends in a b, a d or a t the ending is then a -je (e.g. Bert → Bertje). If the final consonant of a name is m, the ending is then -pje (e.g. Bram → Brampje), -metje (Bram → Brammetje) or -mie (Bram → Brammie). For the other consonants the hypocoristic form is -tje. In the southern parts of the Netherlands and the northern part of Belgium the hypocoristic form is often -ke (e.g. Peer → Peerke). Also in Frisian the usual hypocoristic ending is -ke (e.g. Ype → Ypke). But this form, and others like -ske and -tsje, often makes the name feminine (e.g. Jetse → Jetske) as they do in Dutch (e.g. Jan → Jantje, Hans → Hansje). There is another productive hypocoristic ending: in the eastern part of the Netherlands (mostly in the province Drenthe), the female form is -chien Examples are Anne → Annechien, Lammert→ Lammechien.
a parallel construction in Portuguese, with -(z)inho/-(z)inha, as in Aninha from Ana and Joãozinho from João.
same in Italian and Italian regional languages, with -ino/-ina and -etto/-etta as in Paolino/Paoletto and Paolina/Paoletta from Paolo and Paola. There are also -ello/-ella, as in Donatello/Donatella from Donato and Donata, -uccio/-uccia, as in Guiduccio from Guido and -etto/-etta, as in Giulietta from Giulia. The forms -uzzo/-uzza, as in Santuzza from Santa, are typical of Sicilian.
-ĉj- and -nj- affixes (for males and females respectively) in Esperanto; these replace the last consonant (or consonant cluster) of the root, thus patro → paĉjo (father), patrino → panjo (mother).
-chan, -tan, or -piinJapanese, such as Kana-chan from Kana and Aki-chan from Akihiro. Gemination (doubling) of the consonant or lengthening of the vowel before the -chan to provide two moras is common, such as Settchan from Setsuko and Hii-chan from Hiroki. Many of these are derived from the custom of using Japanese honorifics, even is colloquial language.
reduplication in various languages, such as John-JohnorDidi.
inCantonese and related dialects, the addition of a word-final very high tone, or changed tone sometimes in combination with the addition of the prefix A before the name. The A syllable is also used in other dialects originating in southern China as a term of endearment or closeness.
-ulus/-ulainLatin, most famously in the case of the Roman emperor Caligula, whose nickname means "little boot". He received the name from soldiers in reference to the small army sandals (caligae, singular caliga) he wore when he was young. Likewise the name Ursula is derived from ursa (bear) and means "little she-bear".
-eleh/-lehinYiddish. An example is Leah → Leahleh.
a combination of multiple methods from those described above. For example, in Romanian, Ileana becomes Ilenuța by addition of a diminutive suffix, and Ilenuța becomes Nuți by contraction.
In the Anglo-Saxon language, hypocoristic forms were made by truncating the name and adding '-a' (genitive '-an'); if that '-a' is preceded by a short vowel and then one consonant, that one consonant was doubled; sometimes assimilation happened, e.g. Cēomma for Cēolmǣr. These hypocoristic names are often the first component of a placename, for example Badby, which is recorded in 944 as Baddanbyrig (dative case) = (at/to) "Badda's fort".
As evident from the above-mentioned examples, hypocorisms frequently demonstrate (indirectly) a phonological linguistic universal (or tendency) for high-pitched sounds to be used for smaller creatures and objects (here as more "cute" or less imposing names). Higher-pitched sounds are associated with smaller creatures because smaller creatures can only make such high frequency sounds given their smaller larynxes.
The word "hypocorism" is the noun form in English; "hypocoristic" is the adjective form.
Examples of hypocoristic proper names
Armenian
Անդրանիկ Andranik → Անդո Ando
Հովհաննես Hovhannes → Հովո Hovo
Տիգրան Tigran → Տիկո Tiko
Հայկ Hayk → Հայկո Hayko
Bengali
Anirban → Ani
Debmalya → Debu
Mitalee → Mita
Bulgarian
The traditional hypocoristic forms of Bulgarian masculine names end with "-cho", for example: Ivan - Ivancho - Vancho, Stoyan - Stoyancho, Petur - Peturcho, Angel - Angelcho. The traditional hypocoristic forms of Bulgarian feminine names end with "-ka", for example: Ivana - Ivanka, Snezhana - Snezhanka, Bozhana - Bozhanka. In recent times, however, the hypocoristic forms of many Bulgarian names receive English and Russian endings, for example:
Александър Aleksandar → Сашо Sasho, Алекс "Aleks", Санде "Sande"
Александра Aleksandra → Сашка Sashka
Ангел Angel → Ачо Acho
Антон/Антоанета Anton/Antoaneta → Тони Tony
Апостол Apostol → Апо Apo
Богомил Bogomi → Бого Bogo
Божидар Bozhidar → Божо Bozho, Бого Bogo
Борис Boris → Борко Borko, Боби Bobby
Борислав Borislav → Боби Bobby
Веселина Vesselina → Веси Vessy
Виолета Violeta→ Вили Villy
Владимир Vladimir → Владо Vlado
Георги Georgi → Гошо Gosho, Гоце Gotse, Жорка Zhorka, Жоро Zhoro
Григор Grigor → Гришо Grisho, Гриша Grisha
Дамян Damyan → Даме Dame
Даниел/а Daniel/a→ Дани Danny
Димитър Dimitar → Митко Mitko, Митьо Mityo, Митак Mitak
Евгения Evgeniya→ Жени Zheni, Ния Nia
Емил Emil → Емо Emo
Иван Ivan → Ванко Vanko, Ванчо Vancho, Ванка Vanka, Ваньо Vanyo
Ивайло Ivaylo → Иво Ivo, Ивчо Ivcho
Иванка Ivanka → Ваня Vanya
Йордан Yordan → Данчо Dancho, Дани Dany
Йорданка Yordanka → Данче Danche, Дани Dany
Калоян Kaloyan → Кало Kalo, Кала Kala
Кирил Kirli → Киро Kiro, Кирчо Kircho
Климент Kliment → Климе Klime
Константин Konstantin → Косьо Kossyo, Коце Kotse, Коко Koko
Marie, Mariana, Marina, Marika → Maruška, Mája, Majka
Matylda → Maty, Tylda
Michaela → Míšenka, Michalka
Milena, Miluše, Milada, Miloslava → Míla, Milka
Miroslava → Mirka
Naděžda → Naďa
Pavla, Pavlína → Pája
Petra → Péťa
Růžena, Rozálie, Rosita → Róza
Stanislava → Stáňa
Taťána, Tatiana → Táňa
Vendula → Vendy
Zdeňka → Zdena
Zuzana → Zuzka
Žofie → Žofka
Danish
Male one syllable names are sometimes lengthened
Karl → Kalle
Lars → Lasse
Poul → Palle, Pelle, Polle, Pølle
Female names are sometimes shortened to the last two syllables
Katrine → Trine
Kirstine → Stine
Marie → Rie
Sofie → Fie
Dutch
Increasingly, the official form of Dutch given names as registered at birth is one that originally was hypocoristic. For many of the hypocorisms listed below, a diminutive may be used (e.g. Jan → Jantje, Lotte → Lotje), in particular for children and women. The English forms JohnnyorJohnnie and BobbyorBobbie are quite common in the Netherlands.
Addition of a diminutive suffix, usually -ieor-y, often to an already shortened name. This suffix connotes smallness or endearment. Although most often applied to the names of children, it is not uncommon for an adult to be referred to by the diminutive, especially by family, friends and close acquaintances:
Edwin, Edward, Edmund → Ed → Eddie, Eddy; Ned → Neddy
Elaine → Lainie
Frances → Fran → Franny
Franklin→ Frank → Frankie
Gabriel → Gabe → Gaby
Gary → Gaz → Gazza
Gerald→ Gerry
George → Georgie
Gillian → Jill → Jilly
Grace → Gracie
Herbert → Herb, Bert → Herbie, Bertie
Isabella → Izzy
James → Jamie, Jim →Jimmy
Jane → Janey
Jessica → Jess → Jessie
Joel, Joseph → Joe → Joey
Jonathan → Jon → Jonnie, Jonny
Katherine → Kate → Katie
Kimberly → Kim → Kimmy
Kenneth → Ken → Kenny
Lawrence → Larry, Laurie
Leonard → Len → Lenny
Lillian → Lil → LilyorLillie
Louis → Lou → Louie
Mary → Moll → Molly
Michael → Mick → Micky, Mike → Mikey
Nell → Nellie, Nelly
Nicholas → Nick → Nicky
Oliver → Ollie
Oswald → Oz → Ozzie
Patricia → Pat → Pattie, Patty
Peter → Pete → Petey
Priscilla → Cilla → Cilly
Richard → Rick → Ricky
Robert → Bob → Bobby
Ronald → Ron → Ronnie
Rose → Rosie
Rosemary → Rose → Rosie, Rosy
Sharon → Sher → Sherrie → Sherry
Stephen → Steve → Stevie
Susan → Sue → Susie, Suzy
Thomas → Tom → Tommy
Timothy → Tim → Timmy
Tobias → Toby
Victoria → Tor →Tori, Vick → Vickie, Vicky
Wallace → Wall → Wally
William → Will, Bill → Willie, Willy, Billy
Zebadiah → Zeb → Zebby
A short form that differs significantly from the name:
Ann, Anne, Anna → Nan (from the phrase "mine Ann", an archaic form of "my Ann")
Barbara → Babs
Charles → Chuck, Chaz, Chic
Christopher, Christine → Kit
Dorothy → Dot, Dottie
Edward → Ed → Ned, Ted, Teddy
Eleanor, Ellen, Helen → Nell, Nellie
Elizabeth → Bess, Bessie, Betsy, Betty
Henry → Hal, Hank, Harry
James → Jim → Jimbo, Jimmy
John → Jock, Jack → Jackie
Katherine → Kate, Kitty
Margaret → Meg → Peg, Peggy; Maggie, Madge, Marge, Moll, Greta, Rita, Daisy
Mary → Mae, Minnie, Molly → Polly
Philippa → Pippa, Pip, Pippy
Richard → Rick, Dick
Robert → Rob →Bob, Rob → Robin, Dobbin
Sarah → Sally
Thaddeus → Tod, Todd, Toddy, Ted, Teddy, Edd, Ed
Theodore → Ted, Teddy
Virginia → Ginger, Ginny
William → Will, Willy → Bill, Billy
William Earl → Merle
Also, initials of complex names are often used as the hypocorism, e.g.: Brandon William → B W → B Dub
Esperanto
Esperanto forms nicknames by suffixing-njo (for females) and -ĉjo (for males) to the first letter(s) of the basic name or word.[3] (This is the only situation in Esperanto in which a word root is shortened or otherwise changed in word-building.)
Elizabeto → Elinjo
Mario → Manjo
Sofio → Sonjo
fratino → franjo (sister → sis)
onklino → onjo (aunt → auntie)
patrino → panjo (mother → mom)
Aleksandro → Aleĉjo
Johano → Joĉjo
Petro → Peĉjo
frato → fraĉjo (brother → bro, bub)
onklo → oĉjo (uncle → unk)
patro → paĉjo (father → dad)
French
Informal French has a number of diminutive nicknames, although not as systematically as in English.
InFrench, for both male and female names, hypocorisms are most commonly formed by dropping the last syllable:
Catherine → Cathy
Christelle → Chris
Christophe → Chris
Frédéric, Frédérique → Fred
Grégory, Grégoire → Greg
Jean-Michel → Jean-Mi
Joannie → Jo
Marie-Charlotte → Macha
Marie-Josée → Marie-Jo
Maxime → Max
Michaël → Mic
Philippe → Phil
Stéphane → Steph
Stéphanie → Steph
Dropping the first syllable is also attested:
Christophe → Tophe
Sometimes, only central syllables are kept:
Augustin → Gus
Emmanuel → Manu
Emmanuelle → Manu
Another method commonly used is doubling one syllable of the name:
André → Dédé
Annie → Nini
Augustin → Tintin
Christine → Kikine
Christophe → Totophe
Joseph → Jojo
Julie → Juju
Louis → Loulou
all female names ending in -tine → Titine
For male names, the ending -ot is attested, although its use is rather dated:
Charles → Charlot
Jean → Jeannot
Jules → Julot
Pierre → Pierrot
It was also sometimes (but rarely) used for females:
Marguerite → Margot
The ending -et for males was used around the Renaissance, and is now obsolete:
Henri → Henriquet
Jacques → Jacquet
For female names, the ending -ette was used in the first half of the 20th century, and even often given as the official name:
Anne → Annette
Jeanne → Jeannette
Marie → Mariette
Paule → Paulette
Some names in -ette are not actual hypocorisms, but the only existing feminized form of a male name:
Antoine (male) → Antoinette (female)
Pierre (male) → Pierrette (female)
Nicolas (male) → Nicolette (female) (rare and dated) → Colette
The ending -on is rarer, often dated or obsolete, used for both genders:
Antoinette → Toinon
Françoise → Fanchon
Henri → Riton
Marie → Marion
Louis → Louison
Louise → Louison
The ending -ou is also rare:
Anne → Nanou
A special case is the ending in -ick/ -ic, which is the French writing for the hypocoristic form in Breton "-ig", used for both genders. The "-ig" form in Breton means "Little ...". This diminutive, in its French form of "ick" or "ic", became in vogue for official names in the second half of the 20th century:
Annick (original in Breton: Annaig), from Anne
Soizic (original: Soazig), from Frañsoaz, the Breton writing for the French "Françoise"
Loïc, probably from the French Louis
Yannick (original: Yannig), from Yann, meaning "John" in Breton
In Breton, the diminutive form "...ig" can be given to any kind of names, nouns or adjectives, (un tammig, a few), while in French it relates only to given names.
The name Soazig shows more than the ending "ig". Often in Breton a hypocoristic form of a given name can be made by putting away the first syllable.『Frañsoaz』becomes a familiar "Soaz" then, given to a child, the name is "Soazig", but not as an official name. This is also a difference between French and Breton: the diminutive ending "...ig" in Breton is only used as a temporary form for young children, while "...ick" is official and permanent in French names, and has lost his sense of a diminutive.
For words, French often produces hypocorisms either by truncating a word after the letter o, or by chopping off the end of the word and adding an o: McDo from McDonald's; gynéco from gynécologue; dico from dictionnaire; dodo (childish word for sleep, from dormir, to sleep); écolo from écologiste; coco from communiste; catho from catholique; psycho from psychologie.
The ending -oche (with or without an intervening consonant or phoneme to make it easier to pronounce) is also sometimes used: cinoche (cinéma), MacDoche (McDonalds), fastoche (easy-peezy, from facile, easy). Words or names may also be shortened or abbreviated without an O: fixs from fixations, 'ski bindings'; Jean-Phi from Jean-Philippe; amphi from amphithéatre (large classroom or lecture hall); ciné (another informal word for cinéma). These words are familiar/informal versions of the underlying words.
The connotation of familiarity (my friend Jean-Phi, as opposed to my new colleague Jean-Philippe; cinoche, the place I often go for entertainment, as opposed to cinéma, the neutral word for a movie theater) is what makes them hypocorisms.
German
Hypocorisms of first names are commonly based on truncation, only keeping the first (Max) or last (Hans) syllable(s), sometimes in contracted form as these examples show. Often the ending -i is added to these truncated nameforms. The name might also undergo a sound shift (Sepp). Further diminutives can be added with the suffixes -lein, -(e)lor-chen, e. g. GretelorGretchen as a diminutive for Grete.
Anna, Anne → Anni
Anton → Toni
Elisabeth → Liesl
Franziska → Franzi, Sissi
Georg → Schorsch (mostly Bavarian and Swiss German)
Helene → Leni
Ignaz → Nazi (Bavarian; out of use), Nazl (mostly Bavarian German, still in use)
Johannes → Hannes → Hans → Hansi
Josef, Joseph → Sepp (Bavarian), Jupp (Rhinelandic)
Karl → Kalle, Kalli
Katharina → Kathi
Margarete → Grete, Gretchen
Maximilian → Max
Michael → Michi
Siegfried → Siggi
Sabine → Bini
Susanne, Susanna, Susann → Susi
Therese, Theresia → Resi (mostly Bavarian)
Ulrich → Uli (Ueli in Swiss German)
Wilhelm → Willi
Sometimes female names may have the ending -el instead of -i, or any other shortening, especially in southern Germany:
An ending for nicknames, sometimes considered “typical German” is -z:
Friedrich → Fritz (but compare the much softer Fidi from northern Germany)
Heinrich → Heini, Heinz, Hinz
Konrad → Kunz
Hungarian
Hypocorisms of first names are commonly based on truncation, only keeping the first (Kat-; Jul-) syllable, sometimes in contracted form as these examples show. Often the ending -i is added to these truncated nameforms (Kati, Laci, Julcsi, Ági, Feri). Further diminutives can be added with the suffixes -ka, -ke, -kó, -csi, etc., e. g. Lacika, Ferike, Palkó and Julcsi as a diminutive respectively for László, Ferenc, Pál and Júlia.
Anna (Anne) → Ani(ka), Annácska, Anci(ka), Annus(ka), Panni(ka), Panna, Panka, Nusi(ka)
György (George) → Gyur(i)(ka)
István (Steven) → (P)isti(ke), Istvánka, Pityu(ka)
János (John) → Jan(cs)i(ka), Jankó(ka)
József (Joseph) → Józsi(ka), Jocó(ka), Jozsó(ka), Joci(ka)
Károly (Charles) → Karcsi(ka), Karesz(ka), Károlyka
Margit (Margaret) → Manyi(ka), Manci(ka), Margó(ka), Gitta
Terézia (Theresa) → Trézsi(ke), Terka, Teri(ke), Terézke, Terus(ka), Teréziácska
Vilmos (William) → Vili(ke), Vilmos(ka)
Zsuzsa (Susan) → Zsuzsi(ka), Zsuzska, Zsu
Icelandic
Hypocorisms usually consist of the first syllable of the name with a diminutive suffix ending in -i (masculine) or -aorý (feminine). There are however some exceptions, for example Nonni which is an alternative from for Jón.
Guðmundur → Gummi, Gvendur
Jón → Jónsi, Nonni
Magnús → Maggi
Sigfús → Fúsi
Sigurður → Siggi
Þorbjörg → Tobba
Guðrún → Gunna
Sigríður → Sirrý
Guðríður → Gurrý
Japanese
InJapan, diminutive names are made by adding an honorific suffix to a person's name, or to part of the name. The suffix -chan is typically added to a girl's name as a term of endearment. The suffix -kun is added to a male's name. Outside of family, the suffix -kun typically implies a relationship between an authority (the caller) and a subordinate. Thus, it is often used by teachers calling on male students, and a boss or supervisor calling on male employees.
The term -chan is occasionally added to the name of an effeminate boy or man. While the addition of -chan to a girl's name is endearment and intimacy, when applied to a male's name, it may be either a term of endearment or it may be added as a derogatory taunt, depending on the context and the nature of the relationship.
Female names
Ayaka → Ayaka-chan → Aya-chan
Mako → Mako-chan → Ma-chanorMacchan
Mao → Ma-chan
Reina → Reina-chan → Rei-chan
Male names
Keita → Keita-kun
Kentaro → Kentaro-kun → Kenta-kun
Taro → Taro-kun
Tatsuya → Tatsuya-kun → Tatsu-kun
Nepali
राम Raam → रामे Raamé
पार्वती Paarvatee → पारु Paaru
बिष्णु/बिस्नु Bishnu/Bisnu → बिस्ने Bishné
रुक्मणी Rukmani → रुकु Ruku
Persian
InPersian some of the most used personal names have hypocorisms. Many of these hypocorisms are formed by truncating the name and adding an -i to the end, or by using just a part of a composed name.
بابک Bābak → بابی Bābi (not too common, because it can sound like the English Bobby/Bobbie)
بهناز Behnāz → نازی Nāzi
فرانک Farānak → فری Feri
فرناز Farnāz → نازی Nāzi
فریبرز Fariborz → فری Feri
فاطمه Fātemeh → فاطی Fāti
فریدون Fereydun → فری Feri
فضلالله Fazlollāh → فضی Fazi
گلناز Golnaz → گلی Goli
جهانبخش Jahānbakhsh → جهان Jahān
کامبیز Kāmbiz → کامی Kāmi
کامران Kāmrān → کامی Kāmi
کامیار Kāmyār → کامی Kāmi
کتایون Katāyun → کتی Kati
خشایار Khashāyār → خشی Khashi
کورش Koorosh/Kourosh → کوری Kuri
کیارش Kiārash → کیا Kiā
کیاوش Kiāvash → کیا Kiā
معصومه Ma'sumeh → مصی Masi
منوچهر Manuchehr → منوچ Manuch
مازیار Māziār → ماز Māz
محمد Mohammad → مملی Mamali
محمد Mohammad → ممد Mammad
محمدعلی Mohammadali → مملی Mamali
مرتضی Morteza → مری Mori
مهدی Mehdi → میتی Me(y)ti
مهرانگیز Mehrangiz → مهری Mehri
مهرناز Mehrnāz → نازی Nāzi
نازنین Nāzanin → نازی Nāzi
نیلوفر Nilufar → نیلو Nilu
نیلوفر Nilufar → نیلی Nili
نوشآفرین Nushāfarin → نوشی Nushi
پرستو Parastoo → پری Pari
پریسا Parisā → پری Pari
پروانه Parvāneh → پری Pari
پروین Parvin → پری Pari
پوراندخت Purāndokht → پوران Purān
پوراندخت Purāndokht → پوری Puri
شهربانو Shahrbānu → شهی Shahi; شهشه Sha-sha
شهرزاد Shahrzād → شهی Shahi; شهشه Sha-sha
شهزاده Shahzadeh → شهی Shah; شهشه Sha-sha
سیامک Siāmak → سیا Siā
سیاوش Siyāvash → سیا Siā
سوزان Suzān → سوزی Suzi
یاسمن Yāsaman → یاسی Yāsi
زهرا Zahrā → زری Zari
زرینتاج Zarrintāj → زری Zari
Polish
InPolish, there are multiple affixes used to create the diminutive. Some of them are -ka, -sia, -cia, -unia, -enka, -śka, -lka for feminine nouns and -ek, -uś, -ciek, -czek, -uń, -eńki, -lki for masculine (among others). Some of the stems change, particularly to more archaic forms of the name (e.g. Andrzej → JędrekorAgnieszka → Jagusia). Some masculine names take an -o suffix that is considered archaic form, present in Polish since pagan times. Masculine names occasionally take an -a suffix, which is an archaic Slavic form[citation needed] as in Russian (e.g. Jakub → Kuba). Here is a list of common names with some of them:
Adam → Adaś
Agnieszka → Aga, Agniesia, Agusia, Agunia, Jagusia
Aleksandra → Ola, Oleńka, Oleczka, Olusia, Olka, Olcia
Aleksander → Olek, Alek, Aleks, Oluś, Oleczek, Oleniek
Andrzej → Andrzejek, Jędrek, Jędruś, Jędrulek
Anna → Ania, Anka, Anusia, Aneczka, Andzia, Anulka, Anuśka
Antoni → Antek, Antoś, Antosiek, Tosiek, Tońcio, Toni
Maria → Marysia, Maryśka, Mania, Marysieńka, Marysieczka, Marycha, Majka, Majeczka
Marek → Maruś, Mareczek, Marko
Michał → Michaś, Michałek, Misiek
Mirosław → Mirek, Mireczek, Mirko, Miruś
Paweł → Pawełek, Pawcio
Piotr → Piotrek, Piotruś
Roman → Romek, Romeczek, Romuś
Ryszard → Rysiek, Rysio, Ryniek
Sławomir → Sławek, Sławuś
Tadeusz → Tadek, Tadzio, Tadzik, Tadziu
Tomasz → Tomek, Tomuś, Tomcio, Tomaszek, Tomeczek
Urszula → Ulka, Ula, Urszulka, Uleczka, Uleńka
Władysław → Władek, Władzio, Władzik
Włodzimierz → Włodek, Włodzik
Witold → Witek, Wituś
Wojciech → Wojtek, Wojtuś, Wojteczek
Zofia → Zosia, Zośka, Zocha
Zbigniew → Zbyszek, Zbyszko, Zbychu, Zbycho, Zbyś
Portuguese
InPortuguese, abbreviations of the name are common, such as suffixes for diminutive and augmentative. For males, the suffixes -inho (diminutive) and -ão (augmentative) are the most used. In several parts of Brazil, -inho is informally replaced by -im in diminutive words. The same occurs with hypocorisms as, for example, Luisim instead of Luisinho. For females, -inha (diminutive) is the most used in Portuguese; augmentatives are uncommon. In compound names some mixed forms can occur, such as José Carlos being called Zeca, or Maria Luísa being called Malu.
The phenomenon also occurs with terms of address other than personal names; for example, a cachorroorcão (both meaning "dog") can be affectionately called cachorrinhoorcãozinho (the most common translations of the English word puppy).
Francisco → Chico, Chiquinho, Chicão, Quico, Paco, Fran
Frederico → Fred, Quico
Gonçalo → Gongas, Gonça
Guilherme → Gui
Gustavo → Guto, Guga, Gugu
João → Joãozinho, Juca, Janjão, Ju
João Carlos → Juca, Juquinha, Joca
Joaquim → Quim, Quinzinho, Quincas, Joca
José → Zé, Zezinho, Zezito, Zeca, Zezé
José Carlos → Zeca, Zequinha
Luís → Luisinho, Lula
Manuel → Manel, Manelinho, Mané, Maneco, Nelo, Nelito, Neca
Miguel → Miguelinho, Miguelito, Micas, Guel
Pedro → Pedrinho, Pedrito, Pedrocas, Pepeu, Pepe, Pepas
Raimundo → Mundinho
Ricardo → Ricardinho, Riqui, Cacá, Cardo
Samuel → Samuca
Sebastião → Tião
Female examples
Ana → Aninha, Aninhas, Anita, Anicas
Adriana → Dri, Drica
Alexandra → Xana, Xaninha, Alex
Antónia → Antoninha
Antonieta → Tieta
Aparecida → Cida, Cidinha
Beatriz → Bia
Carolina → Carol
Catarina → Cati
Cecília → Ceci, Ciça, Cilinha
Cristina → Cristininha, Tina, Cris
Eduarda → Duda
Elisabete → Bé, Bete, Beta
Filipa → Pipa, Lipa
Fátima → Fá, Fati, Fatinha
Helena → Lena, Leninha
Isabel → Isabelinha, Belinha, Bel, Bebel, Becas, Isa
Joana → Joaninha, Jô, Ju
Júlia → Julinha, Ju, Juju
Leonor → Nonô, Léo
Letícia → Lê, Lelê
Lúcia → Lu, Lulu, Lucinha, Luci
Luísa → Luisinha, Lu, Lulu, Isa, Lula
Marcela → Marcelinha, Cela, Celinha
Margarida → Guida, Guidinha, Magui
Maria → Mariazinha, Micas, Mia, (in Alentejo) Bia
Renata → Rê, Renatinha
Rita → Ritinha
Rosa → Rosinha, Rosita
Teresa → Teresinha, Teca, Terê
Romanian
Adrian → Adi
Alexandru → Ale, Alex, Alecu, Sandu
Ana → Anița, Anica
Anton → Toni
Andreea → Deea
Cătălin(a) → Cătă
Claudiu → Claudel, Clau, Diu, Diuţu
Constantin → Costică, Costel, Titi
Cristian → Cristi
Daniel → Dan, Dani,Dănuţ
Dorina → Dori, Dana
Dumitru → Mitică
Elena → Ema, Lena, Lenuţa
Eugen → Jenică; Eugenia → Jeni
Fernanda → Anda
Florentina → Ina, Flori
Gabriel → Gabi
Georgeta → Geta
Georgina → Gina
Gheorghe → Georgică, Gică, Gigi, Guţă, Ghio
Horaţiu → Hori
Ileana → Nuţi
Ion, Ioan → Ionel, Ionuţ, Nelu, Neluțu, Nuțu
Marilena → Mari
Maria → Mărioara, Mioara
Mihai → Mișu
Mihaela → Mela, Ela, Eluța, Mica
Monica → Moni
Nicolae → Nicu, Nicuşor, Nae, Niki
Octavian → Tavi
Ovidiu → Ovi
Petre → Petrică, Petruţ, Petrişor
Raluca → Ralu, Uca
Ştefan → Fane, Fănel, Fănică, Ştefănel
Teodor → Teo
Valentin → Vali
Vasile → Lică, Vasilică, Sile
Viorel → Relu
Victoria → Victorița, Vica
Vlad → Vlăduţ, Duțu
Russian
Russian has a wide variety of diminutive forms for names, to the point that for non-Russian speakers it can be difficult to connect a nickname to the original. Diminutive forms for nouns are usually distinguished with -ик (-ik), -ок (-ok), -ёк (-yok) (masculine gender), -чк-/-шк- (-chk-/-shk-) and -оньк-/-еньк- (-on’k-/-en’k-) suffixes. Names can be somewhat more arbitrary, but still follow a loose pattern. A list of common names and their diminutive forms:
Some names can also be modified with a -ka ending to add a further level of familiarity, but are not normally used for adults who are not family members.
Serbian
Aleksandar → Aca, Aco, Sale, Saša, Aleks
Aleksandra → Sandra, Saša, Saška, Aleks, Aleksić, Aleksinka, Aleksica, Acika
In Slovak, feminine diminutives usually end in -ka and masculine in -ko.
Alexandra → Saša, Saška
Mária → Marika, Majka
Jakub → Jakubko, Kubo, Kubko
Jozef → Jožo, Jožko
Kristína → Kika, Kristínka
Martin, Matej → Maťo, Maťko
Natália → Natálka
Rastislav → Rasťo, Rastík
Stanislav → Stano, Stanko
Slovene
InSlovene, diminutives are very common. In many cases they have almost completely replaced their originals (such is the case of Špela for Elizabeta, Branko for Branislav, or Alenka, Majda, and Magda for Magdalena). Especially among female names, the etymological link of the diminutive with the original name has been lost and the diminutive is perceived by most speakers to be a separate name (such is the case for Mojca, deriving from Marija, or Maja and Alenka deriving from Magdalena). In other cases, especially among male names, this link has been kept, but frequently boys are given diminutives as their given names (such as Miha instead of Mihael, Ivo instead of Ivan, or Nejc instead of Jernej etc.)
Spanish forms diminutives by adding one of several diminutive suffixes: -ito/a, -cito/a, -ecito/a, -ico/a, -cico/a -illo/a, -cillo/a, -uelo/a, -zuelo/a, -ete/a, -ín, -iño/a:
Juana → Juanita → Ju
Jorge → Jorgito → Jor
Antonio → Antoñín, Antoñito, Antoñete, Antoñillo, Toño, Toñito
It is common for a person to be known by 2 first names: José Luis, María Teresa, Juan Carlos, etc. Combining the 2 names into one is another common way to form a hypocorism:
Many Spanish nicknames, however, are or can seem very unlike the original name. Notice, however, that the -ch-[tʃ] sound is common in these diminutives:
Male hypocorisms are often based on the first syllable of the name (shortening it if it's long), plus the ending -e. Hypocorisms are almost always two-syllabic with a grave accent.
Anton → Ante
Adam → Adde
Bengt → Bengan, Benke
Bo → Bosse
Daniel → Danne
Filip → Fille
Frans → Frasse
Fredrik → Fredde
Gustav → Gurra
Hans → Hasse
Henrik → Henke
Henning → Henke
Jan → Janne
Joakim → Jocke
John → Jonte
Jonatan → Jonte
Karl → Kalle
Krister → Krille
Kristian → Krille
Kristoffer → Krille, Stoffe
Lars → Lasse
Leif → Leffe
Magnus → Mange
Mikael → Micke
Nils → Nisse
Oskar → Orre, Ogge
Per → Pelle, Perra
Pontus → Putte
Roland → Rolle
Sebastian → Sebbe, Basse
Sigvard → Sigge
Stefan → Steffe
Sven → Svempa, Svenne
Tobias → Tobbe
Tomas → Tompa
Torbjörn → Tobbe
Torsten → Totta
Ulf → Uffe
Viktor → Vicke
Vilhelm → Ville
These forms may be quite old: the oldest possible attestation may be the name Sibbi on the Rök Runestone dating to about 800 AD.
Like male hypocorisms, female hypocorisms tend to be bisyllabic:
Caroline → Carro, Line
Charlotta → Lotta
Katarina → Kattis, Katta
Kristina → Stina, Tina
Magdalena → Malena, Lena
Maria → Mia
Susanna → Sussi, Sanna
Turkish
Abdullah → Apo
Fatma → Fatoş
Hasan → Haso
Hatice → Hatçe
İbrahim → İbo
Mehmet → Memo
Süleyman → Sülo
Muzaffer → Muzo
Welsh
Bronwen → Bron
Catrin → Cadi
David → Dai, Dewi
Elen → Nel, Neli
Elisabeth → Bethan, Beth, Leusa
Esther → Nesta
Geraint → Ger
Huw → Huwcyn
Ioan → Jac
Iorwerth → Iori
Myfanwy → Myfi
Richard → Dic
Siôn → Siôni
Tomos → Tomi, Twm
Yiddish (And contemporary Hebrew)
As rule of thumb, adding the "suffix" 'le, 'ale, 'ele or sometimes simply an "L" to the name makes it diminutive and endearing, for both female and male names. It is also in common practice in Hebrew, mostly by Ashkenazi Jewish people. In most cases, as the names would be spelled using the Hebrew Alphabet, an apostrophe would separate the name from the suffix.
חיה Chaya → חיה'לה Chayale , Chaya'le
משה Moyshe → משה'לה Moyshele , Moyshe'le
דוד David → דוד'לה Davidle , David'le, דוד'ל Davidl
רינה Rina → רינה'לה Rinale , Rina'le
זלדה Zelda → זלדה'לה Zeldale , Zelda'le
דב Dov → דב'לה Dovale , Dov'ale
It can also work with names which are not predominantly Jewish, for example:
Craig → Craigele, Craigale
Gerda → Gerdale
Another suffix used by Yiddish and Hebrew speakers could be 'ke, 'ka and also "inka"/"yinka":
דוד David → דוד'קה Davidke , David'ke
טל Tal → טלינקה Talinka
צבי Zvi → צביקה Zvika
Other diminutive and endearing suffixes in common use by Yiddish and Hebrew speakers are "ush", "chook" and "inyu":
רבקה Rivka → רבקוש Rivkush
גיא Guy → גיאוש Guyush
דן Dan → דנצ'וק Danchook
חן Chen → חנצ'וק Chenchook
בר Bar → בריניו Barinyu
With single syllable names a form of endearment exists where the name is repeated twice consecutively, or with longer names, the last syllable might be repeated, for example:
גיא Guy → גיאגיא Guyguy
דן Dan → דן Dandan
טל Tal → טלטל Taltal
רון Ron → רונרון Ronron
נטלי Natalie → נטלילי Natalilie
Many names have their own versions of nicknames specifically for them which are common in Yiddish, or in contemporary Hebrew:
רפאל Refael → רפי Rafi
יוסף Yosef → ספי Sefi
אברהם Avraham → אבי Avi
אליהו Eliyahu → אלי Eli (The same goes to most names that has the prefix of Eli, like Elimelech, Eliezer, Elisha, etc.)
רבקה Rivka → ריבי Rivi , ריקה Rika , ריקי Riki
שמואל Shmuel → שמוליק Shmulik , מולי Muli
משה Moshe → מויש Moysh , מוש Mosh , מושון Mushon
בנימין Binyamin → בני Beni
דוד David → דודו Dudu
יחזקאל Yehezkel → חזי Hezi
חנה Chana → חני Chani
יצחק Yitzhak → איציק Itzik
ישראל Israel → שרול Srool, שרוליק Sroolik
בלהה Bilha → בילי Bili
גאולה Geula → גולי Guli
References
Look up hypocorism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.