Forum: Author Hangout

Pet names

Soronel 🚫

In a story I'm working on one character has a pet name for another. The full name is Marisa, while the pet name is Risa. I'm wondering if the first time "Risa" is used whether I should have a leading apostrophe so that it is very clear that the intermixing is deliberate and not some screw-up like I changed the name partway through and didn't find all uses. I might use the leading apostrophe in all cases but I am blind and don't like how my speech synthesizer treats that so would really rather not.

If it matters to the answer there is a huge power differential between the pair, the one using the pet name is a captured princess reduced to concubine while the other is a literal slave. The princess would be a slave too except that the victorious captor can't afford that for political reasons.

Replies: Redsliver Switch Blayde Catman richardshagrin awnlee jawking

Redsliver 🚫

@Soronel

You can call a Marisa Risa or 'risa, whichever you prefer. Both get there. But in other circumstances, say when you diminutize Elizabeth into Liz, Beth, or Zabe, you normally wouldn't use an apostrophe.

Replies: Dominions Son Dicrostonyx

Dominions Son 🚫

@Redsliver

diminutize Elizabeth into Liz, Beth, or Zabe

That's one I haven't seen before. Interesting.

Replies: Grey Wolf

Grey Wolf 🚫

@Dominions Son

Zabe is new to me, too. It's both cute and weird.

I'd have gone with Eliza, Betty, and maybe Bet (which I have seen).

Dicrostonyx 🚫

@Redsliver

Also Buffy, which derives from a child's attempt to say Beth.

Switch Blayde 🚫

@Soronel

No apostrophe. If he calls her "Risa" write "Risa." Just like if someone calls "Benjamin" "Ben." It's a nickname.

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Switch Blayde

No apostrophe. If he calls her "Risa" write "Risa." Just like if someone calls "Benjamin" "Ben." It's a nickname.

That would be my approach too, although the authors should make clear at the first usage that 'Risa' is in fact the same person as Marisa.

But the apostrophe is not wrong - it indicates elided text. Even today a few purists write 'bus. But in popular literature it comes across as affected because it's so archaic.

For anyone who wants to be bewildered, read Michael Loucks' Good Medicine series. A number or primary characters are referred to by a wide variety of names eg Mike and Petrovich, Clarissa and Lissa ;-)

AJ

Replies: CB LupusDei

CB 🚫

@awnlee jawking

I just explain it with dialog. She smiled at my use of her pet name.

LupusDei 🚫

@awnlee jawking

number or primary characters are referred to by a wide variety of names eg Mike and Petrovich,

That's a pathronymic, as in, according to just this Mike's father is alleged to have been named Peter. Hypothetical sister would be Petrovna, in addition to whatever other names she's been given, inherited or married into.

I'm no expert on this, but among Russians (and probably more broadly orthodox) the use of patronymic is widespread in everyday communication and, I believe, somewhere inbetween surname and first name in formality, although would most likely be used in conjunction with the formal/plural you (as opposed to singular/intimate you a first name would).

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@LupusDei

That's a pathronymic, as in, according to just this Mike's father is alleged to have been named Peter.

That's the derivation, but the Clarissa character uses it as a pet name.

AJ

Replies: LupusDei

LupusDei 🚫

@awnlee jawking

derivation

I shouldn't even start what Latvian derivative diminutive grammar can do to a name (or any noun at all for that matter).

Anna
Anniņa -- lovable little (young) cute Anne
Annīte -- lovable little (small) cute Anne
Annele -- slightly derisive, lowly, unworthy, defective, but nevertheless lovable (also, out of a classic national literally character fame an independently calendar listed variation)
Annēns -- child instance of Anne-kind (grammatically masculine)
Anņucis, Anņuce, Anņuks -- Anne-toy, Anne to be played with

And that's before I start stacking diminutives, because using one of world's diminutive heavy languages I of course can do just that:

Annenīte
Annelīte
Annēniņš (rather indeed a diaper baby, but why not)
Annelēns
Anņucīte, Anņucītis
Annītēns, Annītiņa (okay, those two already a bit artificial, haven't heard in the wild)

Yes, I can do triple-diminutive:

Anniņucīte
Annenītiņš
Annelītēns
Annelēnīte -- won't use, the ending forms word "slow" by accident

...

Quad:

Annelītēntiņš -- okay, that's already just silly, but still correct grammar.

But with just a bit artistic license I could go on and on if so desired.

Replies: richardshagrin

richardshagrin 🚫

@LupusDei

Latvian

Letts, known also as Latvians, the indigenous people of Latvia.

So Lett me alone.

Catman 🚫

@Soronel

I knew a girl named Zabby. I don't know if it was her real name.

richardshagrin 🚫

@Soronel

I had a Sable Burmese cat with a Pedigreed name of Wickham's Sable Burmese Sitbo Shagrin. Sitbo is Burmese for Officer. Who would want an enlisted cat? He was called Bo.

Replies: Dominions Son

Dominions Son 🚫

@richardshagrin

Who would want an enlisted cat?

What about an unlisted cat?

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Soronel

A question on jargon - is 'pet name' the correct word for what we're discussing?

Most of the names appear to commonly-known abbreviations or contractions, something you might be comfortable with allowing your boss to use.

When I think 'pet name', I think of names that are more intimate, like 'Tiger', 'Squidgy', 'Snuggle Bum, 'Sucky Toes', names that would only be used between people who are very close and never in public.

AJ

Replies: helmut_meukel Soronel

helmut_meukel 🚫

@awnlee jawking

When I think 'pet name', I think of names that are more intimate, like 'Tiger', 'Squidgy', 'Snuggle Bum, 'Sucky Toes', names that would only be used between people who are very close and never in public.

I just reread EB's Clan Amir stories.
In Book 1 – A Fighting Heritage, in its last chapter "On Leave" is the scene at The Landing's Field, where Jessica Tandar meets Margi Newhouse (maiden name Margita Medlik) which tells the story of her brother Stephan who fell at Marley's Landing and her wish to know his last words. Jessica says "Margi, his last words were: 'Tell Butter I'm sorry and I love her'."
Margi later explains "No one but Stephan called me Butter, my friends all called me Marg. He hated that, I didn't like Margita, and Butter was his joke on my not being a Marg."

AJ, would 'Butter' meet your definition of a 'pet name'?

HM.

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@helmut_meukel

"No one but Stephan called me Butter, my friends all called me Marg. He hated that, I didn't like Margita, and Butter was his joke on my not being a Marg."

AJ, would 'Butter' meet your definition of a 'pet name'?

Yes.

Note that I once made the mistake of pronouncing 'Marg' as 'Marge' and the woman ripped me a new one :-(

AJ

Soronel 🚫

@awnlee jawking

I tend to think of "pet name" as a name that only one particular person will use of another, but I do not have your "not in public" requirement at all. A name that multiple people use may be a nickname or it may be some kind of shortening (whether standard or not).

As for my originally posted question, I've decided to turn the introduction around:

Risa (really Marissa, I just called her Risa) ran past the soldier and hid behind me.

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Pet names

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