Game of Thrones: How did Littlefinger get his nickname?

GAME OF THRONES may have come to an end but there are still questions we need answering. For instance, what is the meaning behind Littlefinger’s unusual nickname?

came to an explosive ending last year, leaving fans with mixed feelings on the finale. One character who kept us gripped throughout the majority of the fantasy series was Littlefinger. But how did he get this nickname?

How did Littlefinger get his nickname in Game of Thrones?

Lord Petyr Baelish (played by Aidan Gillen), better known to most as Littlefinger, was head of House Baelish and the Master of Coin.

He grew up alongside Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley), Lysa Arryn (Kate Dickie), and Edmure Tully (Tobias Menzies).

For most of his life, he did everything he could to win the affection of Catelyn who he claimed to love.

And it was actually Catelyn’s brother Edmure who came up with Petyr’s nickname.

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GOT Littlefinger petyr baelish

Game of Thrones: How did Littlefinger get his nickname? (Image: HBO)

GOT littlefinger

How did Littlefinger get his nickname in Game of Thrones? (Image: HBO)

Edmure grew up with Petyr after Lord Tully took him in as his ward.

Petyr comes from The Fingers, a rocky peninsula near the Vale of Arryn.

Petyr Baelish’s father was the lord of the smallest one.

As the lord was also quite small in height, Edmure decided from then on to call him Littlefinger and the rest of the characters followed suit.

Tully got tobias menzies

Edmure Tully gave Petyr Baelish the nickname Littlefinger when they were younger. (Image: HBO)

Sansa littlefinger got

After the death of Catelyn, Littlefinger turned his attention to Sansa Stark. (Image: HBO)

This is a detail which has been confirmed by author George R R Martin.

In the Game of Thrones series, he writes: “Catelyn’s mouth grew tight. 'Littlefinger,' she murmured.

“His face swam up before her; a boy’s face, though he was a boy no longer.

“His father had died several years before, so he was Lord Baelish now, yet still they called him Littlefinger.

“Her brother Edmure had given him that name, long ago at Riverrun.

“His family’s modest holdings were on the smallest of the Fingers, and Petyr had been slight and short for his age.”


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However, everything changed for Petyr Baelish in the third season.

His beloved Catelyn was murdered at the Red Wedding along with Robb Stark (Richard Madden) and his wife Talisa (Oona Chaplin).

Catelyn begs for Robb’s life to be spared but Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon) refuses to listen and kills him anyway.

Shortly after, her throat is slit by Black Walder Rivers (Tim Plester).  

Following her death, Littlefinger’s attention turns to Catelyn’s eldest daughter Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) which eventually led to his downfall.

Besides lusting over her mother for decades, Littlefinger had done many things to betray the Stark family including pretending Arya (Maisie Williams) was in King's Landing in order to free Jaime Lannister(Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and she had finally had enough.

Littlefinger came to his end when Sansa gave violent sister Arya the all clear to slit his throat, ending his manipulative ways for good.

The final season of Game of Thrones is now available on DVD and Blu-Ray.