barraog wrote:
What are possible nicknames for "Cian" in Gaelic? My guess would be "Cianán". How about the name "Barra"?
Putting a "y" sound at the end of a name is a common technique in English for generating a nickname for of a certain first name, for example: Peggy, Mickey, Johnny, Hughie, Jenny, Paddy. What are the practices in Gaelic and do they differ across dialects?
How about surnames? Does "Ó Gríofa" have nickname form for example?
Well, roughly, the Irish equivalent of the English diminutive "y" is "-ín" or "-án," depending on whether the name has a broad or slender ending. So "Cianán" would make sense. The diminutive of "Peig" is "Peigín." And so on.
I'm not sure with a name ending in a vowel. I think that "Barra" is itself a nickname for "Fionbharr."
Wait for more input.
Redwolf