# Anybody else use the nickname 'Dort' for the name 'Dorothy'? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 5, 2021, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461 "2021-04-05T23:48:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2021, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/1 "2021-04-05T23:48:03Z")
My aunt Dort just passed away, at the age of 93. Healthy and on the go until her last 10 or so days of life, she lived life her way. And part of her way was being called Dort instead of Dorothy. My other aunt Dort passed away about a year and a half ago. She had resigned herself to being called Dot instead of Dort whenever she was in the presence of her sister-in-law Dort, who was the elder. Most of my fellow americans of Netherlands extraction in this area had an aunt/sister/cousin Dort or two. But I’ve not found many outside this area. Anybody out there know a Dort? Next, ask me about my aunt Mip. However, I haven’t found too ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/2 "2021-04-06T00:05:31Z")
Never heard of “Dort.” I’ve heard “Dottie,” but then Dorothy usually clocked the Dottie-er. My father’s side of the family is German-ish, and going back 150 years you would not believe how many "Fredericka"s and "Frederick"s there are; maybe someone lost a bet with Der Teufel. Did Aunt Dort know about the [bridge over the Capital Beltway east of the Mormon Temple](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.washingtonpost.com%2Flocal%2Fsurrender-dorothy-painted-on-a-beltway-overpass--whats-the-story%2F2011%2F06%2F23%2FAGduf6kH_story.html&psig=AOvVaw3xqFnUK3hjBxchbqiHcDFL&ust=1617753722849000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCJirwduo6O8CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD)? There’s even [a beer](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rustycans.com%2FCOM%2Fmonth0917.htm&psig=AOvVaw3CaeVMys4Gbnmjcxl4Apno&ust=1617753897000000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCPiH4oip6O8CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD) named after it. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/3 "2021-04-06T00:06:57Z")
I do wonder if there are any “Dort” bicycle license plates… ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/4 "2021-04-06T00:11:21Z")
Dorothy almost always ends up “Dot,” or “Dotty/ie” in the US, but I knew one who went by “Doro.” She was unusually young to have the name, having been named after a great-aunt with the same birthday. I also knew a “Thea” who was rumored to be a “Dorothy,” but I never had that confirmed. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/5 "2021-04-06T00:36:33Z")
Mommy, mommy buy me a license plate! No. Come along, Dort. Are you talking to me? No, my daughter is also named Dort. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/6 "2021-04-06T04:58:15Z")
I worked with a Dutch female supervisor whose first name was Konstance, but she hated that name and went by “Stans” (pronounced like “Stance”, with the ‘a’ as in “father”). Her surname was clearly Dutch looking, as it had an “ij” in the middle. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/7 "2021-04-06T05:07:20Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > I also knew a “Thea” who was rumored to be a “Dorothy,” but I never had that confirmed. Probably short for Dorothea rather than Dorothy. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/8 "2021-04-06T06:02:41Z")
Not Dort, but I had a Great Aunt Dorrie. Sorry to hear of the passing of your aunt. What a fabulous age. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/9 "2021-04-06T06:48:15Z")
I know a Dutch lady who goes by Dorry, but her full name is Theodora. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/10 "2021-04-06T07:21:04Z")
Funny, I’d never heard “Dort” before but in recent weeks I’ve been in frequent professional contact with a Dort here on Hawai’i Island. She’s got one of those multicultural names that are common here, and to say it’s distinctive is understatement. I’m not doxing her, this example is made up, but her name is something like “Dort Kanahele Acevedo-Parsons.” I gotta admit, I did a double take the first time I saw it. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/11 "2021-04-06T08:56:33Z")
Knowing this woman, it could have been short for Elizabeth, Jennifer, or Kimberly. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/12 "2021-04-06T11:00:45Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Next, ask me about my aunt Mip. Do you call her Auntie M? I think you have theme going. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/13 "2021-04-06T11:38:20Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > Do you call her Auntie M? Nah, she was only ever Mip to me, my most beloved aunt, rest her soul. Her real name was Marian. Mip is a common nickname in dutch, tho often it’s spelled Miep back in the oud land. A la Miep Gies, who hid Anne Frank ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/14 "2021-04-06T13:02:04Z")
My wife had three aunt Dorothies, either nicknamed _Dottie_ or _Dot_ . No _Dorts_ "Dort is a actual obscure word, meaning “to become pettish, or sulk” [dort - Wiktionary](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/dort#:~:text=Verb,-dort%20(third%2Dperson&text=(intransitive)%20To%20become%20pettish%3B%20sulk). ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/15 "2021-04-06T14:04:21Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Dort is a actual obscure word, meaning “to become pettish, or sulk” That’s why Harvey canceled Little Dort’s comic book after one issue. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/16 "2021-04-06T14:05:47Z")
my aunt was dora, german/danish side of the family. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/17 "2021-04-06T14:10:09Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > That’s why Harvey canceled Little Dort’s comic book after one issue. Well, her aunts and uncles wouldn’t have been all that interesting anyway. Like Uncle Eeyore… ---
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/18 "2021-04-06T14:32:46Z")
My mother was a Dorothy, almost always called Dot or Dottie. I’ve never heard ‘Dort’. My grandmother had a Russian accent and pronounced it ‘Dorty’. I’m in the beginning process of building a lightweight foam rowboat that I will be naming Dorty. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/19 "2021-04-06T14:35:45Z")
Or Theadora. Dorothea. Theadora. Dorothea. Theadora. Huh, funny, never noticed that. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2021, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461/20 "2021-04-06T15:29:04Z")
I have found examples of Dorit, Dorrit, Doret as diminutives of Dorothea in Danish. I suspect we just dropped the 2nd vowel to get Dort. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-use-the-nickname-dort-for-the-name-dorothy/939461.md?page=2)