NED

You looked for Ned, NED or something similar. Ned can be

• an informal shortening of Edward

Ned is a short form of the forename Edward. There are two main types of such shortenings: they are convenient for writing, e.g. in lists; or they are essentially spoken pet-names, and thus informal. (See Conventional abbreviations for forenames.)

Short form	Long form	Informal or written	Other short forms	Remarks
Ned	Edward	informal	Ed; Eddie; Ted; Teddy

There is a list of similar names at Conventional abbreviations for forenames, as well as the category:short names

Note that any informal form may be spelled in different ways. Notably, any spelling listed that ends in '-ie' may be written with the ending '-y', and vice versa.

• NED (all (capitals) is the recognised abbreviation for the New English Dictionary, the publication which in 1928 became the OED.

Less commonly seen are:

• • In Scotland, a ned is slang for 'a hooligan', or 'street lout'. This parallels the term more widely used in other areas, a Ted, or Teddy Boy.
  • Economic historians may come across the informal shortening Neddy, or NED, for the National Economic Development Council, a government organization to develop the British economy which existed between 1982 and 1992.