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I know that Dick is another name for Richard. But Why? They don't seem to even be plays off of the same name, nor do they sound the same at all. It's like if a
by olyjohn 5y ago
I know that Dick is another name for Richard. But Why? They don't seem to even be plays off of the same name, nor do they sound the same at all.
It's like if another name for John was Frank. It makes zero sense.
- NoMoreNicksLeft 5y agoThe nickname for John is Jack, actually. Jack and Dick both belong to a class of nicknames that all end in "ck" or "k" sounds, but for which the original doesn't have a k sound. * Jack * Dick * Rock from Roland * Hank from Henry * Chuck from Charles
- mod50ack 5y agoIt comes from Middle English rhyming slang. Rick -> Dick; Rob -> Bob.
- E4YomzYIN5YEBKe 5y agoIt likely originated in rhyming slang where words that rhyme are used as replacement[0]. It isn't the only example in nick names. Bill is a nickname for William and Bob is a nickname for Robert. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhyming_slang https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhyming_slang
- Beldin 5y agoWait till you find out about "Buffy". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffy
- jodrellblank 5y agoWait till you find out about "Tiffany" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LMr5XTgeyI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LMr5XTgeyI (CGP Grey) (spoiler: he couldn't find out where it came from, and did this video on his research to explain more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEV9qoup2mQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEV9qoup2mQ )
- thaumasiotes 5y agoThe standard of counting as "Tiffany" is strange. He's not happy with Θεοφανώ or Theophania, but he's perfectly happy to count (French) Tiphaine, Thifaine, Thiephaine, and (English) Tephany as being "obviously" the modern name. But the difference between Tephany and Theophania is down to the "Th" at the beginning. Why agonize over the difference between the very well-attested Greek Theophania and modern Tiffany if it's so clear that medieval Tephany matches the modern form? It's a better match for the Greek form!
- smhenderson 5y agoDid you know people often use Jack as a shorthand for John? JFK was often, famously, referred to as Jack Kennedy when he was alive...
- gambiting 5y agoMy wife's name is Aleksandra, but the short version of that is Ola. Similarly, Olek is a short for Aleksander. Also no idea why.
- melissalobos 5y ago> Olek is a short for Aleksander. Very likely this is due to both being transliterations from Cyrillic.
- aleksiy123 5y agoThis is correct. Oleksander is Ukranian form of Aleksander.
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- PeterisP 5y agoThe O/A phonetic distinction in Russian and related languages is tricky, with some dialects making a distinction and some not (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowel_reduction_in_Russian https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowel_reduction_in_Russian and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akanye https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akanye) If someone would pronounce Alek and Olek the same, the chosen transcription of the shortened nickname is pretty much arbitrary.
- mechanical_bear 5y agoOr the diminutive is Sasha. For reasons?
- bregma 5y agoWait until you find out what Peggy, Betty, or Tina are short forms of.
- sokoloff 5y agoAnother name for John is Jack, though.