The Musings of a Linguist

Recipient of a third-degree burn in front of witnesses. IE, "I won't take that shit from a man dressed like a ghostbuster"= "Gostbuster" or "Buster"

A distinctive personal feature or quirk. IE, "Have you noticed how that new guy is always eating bell peppers?" = "Peppers", or "That chick has a massive forehead" = "Forehead".

An embarrassing thing you said or did. IE, "Did you seriously call Dale "Dad"?" = "Junior", "Baby boy", "Sport"

A game of name-mutation telephone. IE, "Donny Clyde" = "Bonnie 'n' Clyde" = "Bonnie" = "Bon-bon".

Irony. IE, calling a tall person "short stack" or a particularly dour person "sunshine".

A 'wrong place wrong time' one-off incident. IE, "He spilled oil on his pants and had to borrow a pair that were way too big and Jim saw him with the waistband pulled up to his nipples and called him 'Parachute'"

A batman-style origin story but not in a cool way: "One time she hit a deer with the company car and when she called the boss to tell her she was crying so hard we thought she was dying" = "Bambi"

The incredibly rare 'admiration' nickname, bourne only once a millennia under the light of the blood moon: "We saw him lift a truck once so now we call him 'iron man'"

+ How Nicknames Stick:

Your fate is determined by The Counsel

You hate it

what if bouba and kiki were miis and wlw

[Image ID: Where do most US state names come from?

Graphic from gzero titled: Origins of the names of the 50 US states.

Key showing: Dark purple: Native American/Indigenous. Orange: English royalty, aristocracy, or place. Beige: French. Green: Disputed/unclear. Magenta: Spanish. Gray: Other.

There is a stripe of orange (English royalty, aristocracy, or place) along the East Coast, and a large swath of purple (Native American/Indigenous) through the center.

Sources of states' names, listed alphabetically:

Alabama: Native American/Indigenous. From the Choctaw word for "thicket-clearers"

Alaska: Native American/Indigenous. Aleut for "the mainland" or the "great land"

Arizona: Native American/Indigenous.

Arkansas: Native American/Indigenous.

California: Spanish.

Colorado: Spanish.

Connecticut: Native American/Indigenous.

Delaware: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

Florida: Spanish.

Georgia: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

Hawaii: Native American/Indigenous.

Idaho: Disputed/unclear

Illinois: Native American/Indigenous.

Indiana: Other. Made-up word meaning "land of Indians"

Iowa: Native American/Indigenous.

Kansas: Native American/Indigenous.

Kentucky: Native American/Indigenous.

Louisiana: French.

Maine: Disputed/unclear.

Maryland: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

Massachusetts: Native American/Indigenous.

Michigan: Native American/Indigenous.

Minnesota: Native American/Indigenous.

Mississippi: Native American/Indigenous.

Missouri: Native American/Indigenous.

Montana: Spanish.

Nebraska: Native American/Indigenous.

Nevada: Spanish. Spanish for "snow covered"

New Hampshire: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

New Jersey: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

New Mexico: Native American/Indigenous.

New York: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

North Carolina: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

North Dakota: Native American/Indigenous.

Ohio: Native American/Indigenous.

Oklahoma: Native American/Indigenous.

Oregon: Disputed/unclear

Pennsylvania: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

Rhode Island: Other.

South Carolina: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

South Dakota: Native American/Indigenous.

Tennessee: Native American/Indigenous.

Texas: Native American/Indigenous.

Utah: Native American/Indigenous.

Vermont: French. "Green Mountain" in French

Virginia: English royalty, aristocracy, or place. After the "virgin queen" Elizabeth I

Washington: Other

West Virginia: English royalty, aristocracy, or place.

Wisconsin: Native American/Indigenous.

Wyoming: Native American/Indigenous.