Benny

Meaning of Benny

Benny began life as the cheerful nickname for several classics—Hebrew Benjamin (“son of the right hand”), Latin Benedict (“blessed”), and Germanic Bernard (“bold as a bear”)—and over the decades it’s stepped out from big brother Ben’s shadow to claim a lively identity of its own. Americans first fell for Benny in vaudeville days, and the name still jingles with pop-culture charm thanks to swing king Benny Goodman and the mischievous British comedian Benny Hill. Parents today like its easy-going, baseball-cap feel: friendly on the playground yet grown-up enough for a business card. While it’s been hovering in the middle ranks of the U.S. charts for more than a century, recent upticks suggest Benny is quietly tuning up for an encore—proof that a small name can play a big, feel-good melody in any family.