In the days when babies were born at home (1889), my Irish great grandfather took my grandmother (#11 of 13) down to the church to be Baptized. Upon his return, my English great grandmother asked “What did you name the baby?” “Bridget Amelia” replied my great grandfather. “I’ll not have a child named Bridget” replied my English great grandmother, so we’ll call her “Meelie” (short for Amelia) and to differentiate from my great grandmother whose name was also Amelia.
When grandma got to school, the nuns did not like nicknames, so they changed her name to Mildred, and she used that name the rest of her life. I know this is true because a few years ago I looked up her Baptismal certificate in the church records in central Pennsylvania, and there it was, written in Latin, of course.
Funny thing...several of her sisters also were Baptized with the name Bridget. I wonder if Great Grandmother ever knew?
My dad had a nun in school once who insisted his name was “Jerome.” He went by “Jerry,” after his middle name “Gerald.”