Nickname

A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place, or thing, for affection or ridicule.

The term hypocoristic is used to refer to a nickname of affection between those in love or with a close emotional bond, compared with a term of endearment. The term diminutive name refers to nicknames that convey smallness, hence something regarded with affection or familiarity (e.g., referring to children), or contempt.

The distinction between the two is often blurred. It is a form of endearment and amusement. As a concept, it is distinct from both pseudonym and stage name, and also from a title (for example, City of Fountains), although there may be overlap in these concepts.

A moniker also means a nickname or personal name. The word often distinguishes personal names from nicknames that became proper names out of former nicknames. English examples are Bob and Rob, nickname variants for Robert.

A nickname is often considered desirable, symbolising a form of acceptance, but can sometimes be a form of ridicule.

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========================= Story : Eric Olafson, Space Pirate Scene:

>>> He cocked his shrouded head as he always did when he contemplated something and it made me think that he was starting to have individual habits. He then said. “Ah yes, the practice to address friends with nick names is a common one among humans. I am however still not certain when such a nickname is used as sign for affection among friends or when it is used as an insult to those one dislikes. Furthermore one needs explicit permission from a fellow officer to be addressed in such fashion since we have all advanced to this state. Finally I have yet to understand how a Nickname is generated. Some nicknames appear to be a short version of a name, and then there are those that have no bearing on the name. Is there a formula or an equation you use?” I almost laughed out loud as Wetmouth cocked her head. “What an interesting question. No we do not use an equation to come up with nickname. Nicknames are generated by the combination of many factors. I will attempt to make a list of factors by analyzing nicknames and see if it could be expressed in a socio-humanistic formula of some kind.” Narth slightly bowed. “Such an endeavor would be very much appreciated. My previous attempts in addressing others with nicknames were not successful.” Har Hi turned his head and actually had a smile on his usually grim face, as it was imperative for a Dai warrior to always look serious and he said. “I should not ask but I am actually dying, to use a human phrase, to hear of one such incident. Who did you address with a nickname and what happened?” I noticed a feeling of embarrassment from Narth as he said. “I wanted to express my respect to Admiral Stahl as I heard others call him the Eternal Soldier, but since nothing is eternal especially not in the mono directional linear time model you humans use, I called him: Temporal wrong designated person who isn’t actually a Soldier but an Admiral person.” <<<