English
nickname
Nickname comes from Middle English neke name, a rebracketing of an ekename, from ek ‘also’ + name, and ultimately from Proto-Germanic *auk ‘also’.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*auk1‘also’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*auk2‘also, too’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150ēac1‘also’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ek2as eke‘also’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ekename2‘nickname’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500neke name2‘nickname’
- Englishearliest quotation 1945nickname2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Middle English ek
- 2 Wiktionary, English nickname
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1945, Elizabeth Gidley Withycombe, Introduction: “[…] Plato, who was named Aristocles after his grandfather,…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*aukWiktionary, Middle English ek‘also’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*aukWiktionary, English nickname‘also, too’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150ēacWiktionary, Middle English ek‘also’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ekWiktionary, English nicknameas eke‘also’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ekenameWiktionary, English nickname‘nickname’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500neke nameWiktionary, English nickname‘nickname’
- Englishearliest quotation 1945nicknameWiktionary, English nickname. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1945, Elizabeth Gidley Withycombe, Introduction: “[…] Plato, who was named Aristocles after his grandfather,…”
The story
For other similar cases of incorrect division, see also apron, daffodil, newt, orange, umpire.
Word family
English words that share an ancestor with nickname, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂ewg- ‘to increase, to enlarge’
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew ‘away, again’
- autism ← Autismus ← αὐτός
through Middle English ek ‘additional’
18 more relatives in the full family tree
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Today it means
noun A familiar, invented name for a person or thing used instead of the actual name of the person or thing, often based on some noteworthy characteristic.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “nickname”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Middle English ek. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *auk / nickname