A reader sent me the following amazing email:
“I just finished reading a biography on St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, and it turns out she comes from a family of nicknamers: ‘Catherine was a peaceful baby and like all the Seton children instantly received several nicknames.’
It wasn’t so much Elizabeth’s family that gave nicknames, but her husband’s, so she became a huge nicknamer after she married him. She continued to nickname everyone she kept correspondence with and some of the Sisters of her order after his death, but these are her family nicknames that I thought were so fun.
Elizabeth Seton herself was called Betsy throughout her childhood and when she met her future husband he began calling her Eliza.
Their 5 children all had nicknames:
Anna Maria: Annina
William: Will, Willy, Bill
Richard: Dick, Ricksy
Catherine: Kit/Kitt/Kitty, Kate, Jo (short for Josephine, one of Catherine’s middle names, possibly Confirmation name)
Rebecca: Bec
Her husband’s sisters all went by nicknames:
Henrietta: Harriet, Hatch (She was never Henrietta, though, just Harriet, so Hatch was the nickname for Harriet)
Eliza: Zide
Cecilia: Cecil
One girl who was a student of SEAS was not given a nickname, however. Her name was always the full Mary Diana. For some reason that name has such a fun ring it’s been on repeat in my head for the last few days. I had never heard of Hatch or Zide, and love how spunky they are. I know how much you like nicknames, so I thought you’d enjoy this info! I think St. Elizabeth would make an amazing unofficial patron saint of nicknames 🙂 “
I did indeed enjoy this info! And I love the idea of St. Elizabeth being the “unofficial patron saint of nicknames”! Apparently coming up with nicknames is a holy endeavor. 😉 I can see what this reader means about Mary Diana too, that is a lovely combo.
Have a great Wednesday!
My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon (not affiliate links) — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!
Sancta Nomina 
Mary Diana, Mary Diana, Mary Diana! So fun!
My current hobby is to come up with acceptable nicknames which are not historically connected to the full name e.g. Heloísa nn Lola.
Oh! And my current supervisor José (Spanish pr.) has the nickname Pepe!! 😍😍😍
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Yes! Pepe is a traditional nickname for José in Spanish. You can read more about how it started here: https://www.thecubanhistory.com/2016/08/where-comes-from-jose-the-nickname-pepe-de-donde-proviene-de-jose-el-apodo-pepe/
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Almost all of these names are some of my favorites, and the nicknames are just so much fun! Thanks for sharing this! Also, the use of Henrietta, even though it was so long ago, still makes me so happy; I think it’s a such a sweet, pretty name and wish it were more popularly accepted/used!
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Harriet, Hatch! My STARS I love that. We have a thing about bird nicknames and a little Hatchling would fit right in. My husband loves the name Harriet.
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[…] and surprising info on Japanese and Chinese names; a reader’s suggestion for who should be the patron saint of nicknames; a listing of Saintly place names (one of my favorite categories!); hearing real-life […]
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