"Brud" and Other Family Nicknames

Henry “Brud” Wright (1941-2024)

My cousin Brud died recently.  Brud was his nickname.  He got it from his four-year-old sister, Pudgy, when he was born.  She could not say brother.  She said brudder.   Over the years, it was shortened to Brud.

Brud’s real name was Henry Wright Jr.  Henry Wright Sr. was my mother’s brother.  His nickname was Dee.  Sometimes we called him Uncle Dee.  I have no idea why.

Pudgy’s real name was Evelyn.  She outgrew her pudginess, but the name stuck and was shortened to Pudge.

I never knew Pudge and Brud’s real names until I was an adult.

My family was big on nicknames.  I had an Uncle Bump and an Uncle Bunch.

Uncle Bump was my father’s brother.  His real name was Hubert, but he got hit in the head with a baseball bat when he was nine years old.  It was an accident during a baseball game.  The bump on his head earned him the nickname.

I don’t know how my Uncle Bunch got his nickname.  His real name was Everett.  He was my Aunt Alice’s husband.

Aunt Alice was my mother’s sister.  Her nickname was The Cantor.  I don’t know why she was nicknamed The Cantor, but my mother’s family grew up in a predominantly Jewish neighbourhood.

My Uncle Frank, Mom’s youngest brother, was nicknamed Hoonttala.  No idea why.

My mother’s other older brothers were John and Willie (William).  Uncle John’s nickname was Boab, and Uncle Willie’s nickname was Kingfish.  Again, I have no idea why.

My mother’s name was Minnie.  Her nickname was Stiff.  I don’t know how she got it, but she did not like it.

My Uncle Dee, Brud’s father, used to call Mom Stiff at family functions.  He knew she did not like the name, and he loved to stir things up.

My father’s real name was Roy, but everyone knew him as Chic.

My grandmother used to slaughter and prepare chickens for family meals.  She would give the chicken feet to her children to play with.

When Dad was five, my grandmother gave him the chicken feet when it was one of my uncles’ turn.  She gave it to Dad because he was sick.  My jealous, angry uncles called him, “Chicken!  Chicken!  Chicken!”  As he grew, the nickname was shortened to Chic.

My sister Randi’s nickname is Madame Butterfly.  As a child, she flittered from one thing to another, never staying with anything long.

My brother Ron’s nickname is Chawda.  I thought he got it because he used to chew food with his mouth open:  Chaw Chaw Chaw.  But he says he got it because he liked a song with the lyrics, Chawda, Chawda, Chawda would a bing bing bing.  

Stinky is my sister Debbie’s nickname.  Once upon a time, there were only cloth diapers that you washed out by hand.  Mom used to wait for Dad to come home from work to give him Debbie’s dirty diapers to wash.  Thus, Dad dubbed Debbie Stinky.

I used to love to scare people.  I would hide somewhere.  When someone got close, I would jump out and yell, “BOO!”

Mom called me Booaz during my childhood and teen years.  But once I was an adult, Mom called me Mr. Brown Man.  I could never figure out why.  My sisters still call me Mr. Brown Man.

I am going to miss Brud.  He used to tell stories about the family that happened before I was born.  I always looked forward to visits with Brud because I always came away learning something new about our family.

We will celebrate Brud’s life on Wednesday, November 27th, at the Metropolitan Community Church, 115 Simpson Avenue, Toronto.

Godspeed, Brud.  Godspeed.

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