# Is The Name 'Barney' Short For Something? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 2, 2003, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138 "2003-06-02T14:49:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/1 "2003-06-02T14:49:35Z")
Most of the men’s names that end with a ‘y’ are foreshortened versions of longer names- Billy, Bobby, Tony, Tommy, Timmy etc. Is the name ‘Barney’ just a shorter version of some other name? If so, what name?? Barnhart? Barnett?? Barnaby??? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![NoGoodNamesLeft](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/8797f3/32.png) [@NoGoodNamesLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoGoodNamesLeft)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/2 "2003-06-02T14:53:02Z")
I’d WAG “Barnes”. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/3 "2003-06-02T14:55:45Z")
Barney is related to [Bernard](http://www.babynamenetwork.com/detail.cfm?name=Barney&gender=Male), and probably comes from there. ---
**Author:** ![stuyguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@stuyguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stuyguy)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/4 "2003-06-02T14:56:39Z")
I’ve got a pal whose name is Barnet. We call him Barney. (But for the record, it’s the only Barnet I’ve ever heard of, and for that matter the only Barney I’ve ever known – except for the purple one and the one who hangs with Fred and Betty.) ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/5 "2003-06-02T15:01:31Z")
Well, on The Andy Griffith Show, Deputy Barney Fife’s full name was Bernard P. Fife. So I’d say Bernard is your answer. ---
**Author:** ![RiverRunner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/977dab/32.png) [@RiverRunner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RiverRunner)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/6 "2003-06-02T15:07:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by spoke- \* > **Well, on The Andy Griffith Show, Deputy Barney Fife’s full name was Bernard P. Fife.** So, what does the “P.” stand for? RR ---
**Author:** ![BF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5ac83/32.png) [@BF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BF)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/7 "2003-06-02T15:14:01Z")
BARNEY m English Pronounced: BAR-nee Short form of BARNABAS, BERNARD or BARNABY From [here](http://www.behindthename.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?terms=barney&nmd=n&gender=both&operator=or). ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/8 "2003-06-02T15:23:57Z")
I have a relative whose name is Barnard. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/9 "2003-06-02T18:18:48Z")
I have a friend named Bonnie and I call her Bonald. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/10 "2003-06-02T18:25:26Z")
I have a colleague called Gary, and I call him Garold. ---
**Author:** ![Dogface](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@Dogface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogface)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/11 "2003-06-02T18:35:50Z")
However, “Barney” need not be short for any name at all. It could be the English spelling of the Scandinavian “Bjarni”, which as far as I know is not short for anything. ---
**Author:** ![Jpeg\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/4bbf92/32.png) [@Jpeg\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jpeg_Jones)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/12 "2003-06-02T19:32:44Z")
My first thought was “Barnold”. I’d like to just say that again. “Barnold”. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/13 "2003-06-02T19:38:14Z")
Don’t forget Pogo 'Possum’s big buddy, Barnstable Bear. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-name-barney-short-for-something/179138/14 "2003-06-02T19:44:14Z")
The “P” stands for **Perforio** , of course. 😃