---
id: nicknames
version: "1.0.1"
license: Apache-2.0
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# nicknames — Hand-curated dataset of English names and nicknames.

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 276.9K/mo

## What it is and what it does

Nicknames is a Python wrapper around a hand-curated CSV dataset mapping English given names to their nicknames. It provides two main query methods: looking up nicknames for a canonical name (e.g., 'Alexander' → {'al', 'alex', ...}) and looking up canonical names for a nickname (e.g., 'al' → {'alexander', 'alex', ...}). The package handles case-insensitivity and whitespace normalization automatically. It has no external runtime dependencies, making it lightweight to install and use.

The dataset is curated rather than algorithmically generated, which means it reflects real-world name relationships but is limited to names already in the CSV. The package is useful for applications that need to recognize name variants—such as contact deduplication, user profile matching, or name normalization in data pipelines—where you want to treat 'Bob' and 'Robert' as the same person.

Use it for:

- Deduplicating user records by recognizing that 'Bob Smith' and 'Robert Smith' refer to the same person
- Normalizing contact names in CRM or email systems to group nickname variants under a canonical form
- Validating or enriching user input by suggesting canonical names when a nickname is entered
- Building name-matching logic for data integration or ETL workflows
- Genealogy or family tree applications that need to recognize name relationships

## Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts above — verify before relying.

Provides a curated dataset of English given names and their associated nicknames, accessible via a Python API with methods to look up nicknames for a name or canonical names for a nickname.

Yes. The package is lightweight, actively maintained, has no dependencies, and solves a real problem in data cleaning and name matching. Use it when you need reliable nickname-to-canonical mappings for English names; skip it if you need multilingual support or algorithmic name similarity.

## Install

pip install nicknames
uv add nicknames
poetry add nicknames

## Installing nicknames

Before you install: Low install friction with no runtime dependencies. Actively maintained as of 2026-08-13 with 324 repository stars and recent releases.

License in practice: Licensed under Apache-2.0 (permissive), allowing commercial and private use with minimal restrictions.

Quickstart:

from nicknames import NickNamer

nn = NickNamer()
nicks = nn.nicknames_of("Alexander")
print(nicks)  # {'al', 'alex', ...}

can = nn.canonicals_of("al")
print(can)  # {'alexander', 'alex', ...}

Verify before relying:

- Dataset size and coverage of English names beyond what the description excerpt shows
- Performance characteristics when querying large numbers of names
- Whether custom data loading is practical for non-standard name sets

## Package facts

- License: Apache-2.0 (permissive)
- Python support: supports_current
- Install friction: low
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 276.9K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

name nickname lookup, english names dataset, given name aliases, nickname resolution, name canonicalization, name relationship data, first name variants, name-matching, data-cleaning, reference-data

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