Nickname

Historical characters

The nickname was of an everyday usage at time of the ancient Rome, it bore then the name of Cognomen .

The nickname can be also added to the proper name of an individual, and thus distinguish it from those which are called like him. Many a Souverain S of Europe for example bore the same names at close times, also is it necessary to know quickly of which one speaks. Ex: Louis VI '' the Large ''. Moreover, other historical characters being itself particularly illustrated, in good or evil, in various fields, received a nickname immortalisant their actions or qualities. One can thus quote, among good of others:

for a physical characteristic: Pip '' the Brief '', Berthe '' with the Large Foot '';

for a moral quality or contrary a defect: Charles '' Bold the '', Philippe '' Bold the '', Napoleon '' Small the '' (according to Victor Hugo);

for a brilliant deed: Charles '' Martel '', etc If the Marshal Philippe Pétain is known like the “saver of Verdun”, it acts there of a Périphrase.

Popular culture

One should not confuse the nickname and the Pseudonyme or pen name (e.g.: Richard Bachman for Stephen King), the Name of use (chosen, in France, according to family ties or of a union) and the name of artist (e.g.: Johnny Hallyday for Jean-Philippe Smet), which for their part is chosen deliberately by their carrier. Indeed, the nickname can be useful, within a community, to nominate a person without the knowledge of the latter.

In addition to the historical formation of the nickname as described above, this one can also be of nature Phonétique, deforming the first name or the Patronyme of the person for (S) making resemble another word, which can be a feature of humor without direct link with the character of the person or a form of Insulte.

The nickname can be a simple way of shortening a first name or a name, giving him a more familiar and/or friendly consonance then. One can use an existing first name, shorter, sharing a phonetic resemblance to the real first name. Ex: Julien will be able to become Jules, Julot, etc It is then a Diminutif.

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