Given name & surname
Shorty
“a man who is small in stature”
Shorty is used as a given name, a surname, and a nickname. One American interpretation is “a man who is small in stature.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One American interpretation is “a man who is small in stature.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is American.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1916. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Shorty through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 30
- 30 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1916
- 7 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 5 in 1932. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 7 in 1916. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 406 as a first name in 2020; 1,445 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Shorty’s family of names
Shorty has a related form in Shortea. Shorty has a related form in Shortee. Shorty has a related form in Shortey.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 5
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Similar names
If you love Shorty, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Gusty
“of the wind; a revered man”
>99% boys
Moral
“an upstanding man”
>99% boys
Lagrand
“a majestic man”
>99% boys
Moody
“a tempermental man”
>99% boys
Chick
“a fun-loving girl”
>99% boys
Hobart
“having a shining intellect”
>99% boys
Doctor
“a physician; one who heals others”
>99% boys
Hinton
“a wealthy woman”
>99% boys