The Nature of a Nickname

I find it very interesting to learn that nicknames have been around since the fourteenth century. This is when the term “eke name” was first used. The actual meaning of “eke name” is to have an additional name. Now, one thing I am sure of is that here in the South, we take our nicknames very seriously, and boy do they stick- whether good or bad. And they’ll stick when you least expect it. Personally, it is rare that I even hear my true name anymore, and when I do, it is usually in a business setting or with people that have not known me too long.

We’ll start with that- the given name Susannah is a long one, especially for kids. So, from the time I was born, I was only referred to as SuSu by my family members. To this day, my cousins from good ole Taylorsville, Mississippi, will only call me SuSu, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. If that nickname is used, then I know the person has known me an extremely long time. I even hope that my grandchildren will refer to me by that first nickname I was given, but maybe they will make up something even better. Eventually, SuSu died out by the majority, but only because we moved next door to a lady named SuSu Anderson when I was four, and it was confusing. Two SuSus on the same block was simply too much.

I gained many more monikers throughout my life- Suz, Suzy, Suzy Q, SuzJ555 (yes…my AOL screen name has stuck with me since eighth grade), Suzy Jay…the list keeps going. Perhaps two of the most unique ones that stuck with me were Rannah and Screwzy Louise…or Screwzy for short. In high school, I was always known for staying busy by running errands. When my friends called and asked what I was doing on a random afternoon, I would respond, “I’m out running errands.” Well, one Friday night, one of my funniest friends was overserved and randomly named me “Rannah Rannah ran some errands”, and the rest is history. Even parents started calling me Rannah. Then, when I went to college, yet another friend was overserved (I can see the common denominator of drunken creativity here) and named me Screwzy Louise. I honestly wasn’t too keen about the name Screwzy as I was worried it may make people think I was loose or had bad morals, but nevertheless, Screwzy stuck.

Speaking of nicknames started in college, there are quite a few that make me laugh when I think about them. I refer to two of my friends (Ann and Lindsey) as Thu. Both of them are Thu. This is because, when we were in college, Ann and Lindsey were having a conversation with a girl named Sue while I was nearby. Now, Sue just happened to have an extremely unfortunate lisp, and when she told Ann her name, it came out as Thu. Ann, being ever so lovely and friendly, went on about the conversation, honestly and loudly referring to the new girl as Thu, all while Lindsey watched in horror. It was hilarious, and pretty sad, but to Ann’s defense, that mother should have gotten Sue into speech therapy before she went to college.

Another name that unfortunately stuck is that of my friend Scrat. We were returning from a rehearsal dinner one night and she was trying to take a “nap” on my shoulder after a long night of eating, drinking, and awkward speech giving. The whole car full of girls had the giggles, and out of nowhere I said, “this scrat is trying to take a nap on me!” I still have no idea where it came from.

In response, my friend G (another nickname because her last name was complicated and started with the letter G) asked, “What is a scrat?”

I simply replied, “Well, it’s a mixture between a squirrel and a rat I guess?” The car busted out laughing, and from then on, the former Ole Miss Homecoming Queen, who I assure you does not look like a squirrel nor a rat, became the one and only Scrat.

I could go on and on about the nicknames originated after a boozy night in college. There’s Little Killa from Brandon- a petite brunette with a rambunctious zest for life, Dirty Dizzle- the organized friend from Meridian who knows every word to every rap song and has over twenty speeding tickets, Dusty Cat- the refined Nashvillian who I swear was born with exquisite taste and a string of pearls around her neck, and Rita- the small-town beauty queen from Corith, Mississippi, who never leaves home without her lipstick perfectly applied.

Now, in the South, the men’s nicknames can get tricky. People start getting very creative with the third or fourth Williams or Johns, but nothing screams a true southern nickname like good ole Bubba. I know the name can get a bad rap, but I have known some pretty great Bubbas out there…especially in Mississippi. Fun fact- the term or name, Bubba, originated in 1873 in South Carolina. It’s obviously been around for a while, and I don’t think it’s going anywhere anytime soon.

My husband has an interesting name given to him by some of his camping buddies. He is lovingly referred to as Meat because during all their adventures in the wilderness, he is the one put in charge of cooking the protein over the campfire. My best friend’s husband swears that all the great nicknames come from East Tennessee. He grew up in Knoxville and doesn’t have a friend they refer to by their God-given name. He is known as Wet Bird because his hair tends to get greasy, and his friends think he looks like a wet bird half the time. Another one is called Tuna because the first time he showed up to go deep sea fishing, he wore an extremely loud shirt made from a somewhat tacky tuna print fabric. That poor guy just thought he was dressing the part, and now he’s stuck with the nickname Tuna for the rest of his life! There are a few others who were gifted the names Spike and Sparrow, too. And finally, one of my favorite male nicknames is that of my children’s grandfather- Sugarman. Yep, my father-in-law has a sincere love of all things sweet and sugary. He is known to keep all types of sugar from cookies to candy to ice cream sandwiches in his pockets, drawers, car, refrigerator, and cabinets, causing him to gain the fitting name of Sugarman.

So, don’t forget, we can all go along our life being called by our God-given name, but I guarantee you at some point, if you haven’t gotten one already, someone will give you a nickname that sticks when you least expect it. It may be when you wear a certain piece of clothing to dress the part or when you simply try to take a nap on your friend’s shoulder. The nickname game is bound to happen, not matter what. And if you don’t believe me, just ask my friend Randy Long Legs.

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