Alec

Alec is a short form of the forename Alexander. 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
Alec	Alexander	informal	Alex, Sandy

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.

A 'smart alec' is a person who tries to be too clever, a 'know-it-all'. Other forms include 'smart aleck', 'smart alick', 'smart Alec', 'smart Aleck', 'smart Alick', 'smart-alec', 'smart-aleck', 'smart-alick', etc. Which 'Alexander' earned this sobriquet is unknown. Cf clever dick.