When I was a little boy, I went to Awali School. At that time, in the early 1960s, it was run by Bapco and was a grand little school. In the playground there was a random wall. It didn’t connect anything to anything else; it was just there. I remember it as being about six feet tall and about ten yards in length, and of a solid thickness, with a sort of mortar covering. It was a proper wall, but it was of no apparent use. It may still be there, for all I know. We used to use it for shade in playtime, but more commonly to bounce tennis balls off as we played.
In my class was a boy called ‘Dome’. Nobody knew his real name, not even the teachers. I suppose Dome’s name was known by the headteacher, Mr Thompson, and his parents, but everyone just called him Dome, as he had such a big head. He wasn’t ill, or afflicted in any way at all. His head was just larger than could have been reasonably expected. Anyway, one day Dome tripped over and fell into the wall. He went head first into it. We all stopped and rushed over. The teacher on duty was most concerned but here’s the thing: his head was fine, but the wall had a big crack in it. Not only was Dome’s head disproportionately large, it was like ivory! I still wonder what Dome’s name is – and what he’s up to. Is his head still large or did his body catch up?
I have known people over the years who have had nicknames, as I am sure you have. Nearly always the nickname seems to be derived from one of two things: some physical feature or from their name. Examples include the ubiquitous Shorty and Stumpy (who are commonly tall, as is the perverse nature of these things), but I know people with nicknames such as ‘Sticky’ and even ‘Beastie’. Since these two live in Bahrain, maybe you know them too? These are clearly derived from a more obscure source, as with some Army nicknames. I’m not sure why, but in the British Armed forces, it is customary for a new recruit to be handed a different moniker, which often remains with them for life. Without wishing to list too many, I must mention a couple of my favourites; ‘Thrombo’, ‘Minty’ and ‘Leatherman’. Thrombo as he was a slow moving clot (short for thrombosis), Minty, as he only ever appeared after eight and Leatherman – well, I’m sure you can work it out. I know a lady who used to work at an army base in the battle area in Norfolk and all the squaddies called her ‘bakewell’. I’m sure that you will be able to work out why.
Even the officers have nicknames – typically just one – they are known as ‘ruperts’, as the officers, in times gone by, were drawn principally from the aristocracy or at least the upper classes and Rupert is a ‘toff’ name.
So, what was your nickname? When did you get it? Do you like it? Does anybody else know it?