Folder/File Name "Truncation" or "Wrapping"
With me (El Capitan) the following works fine:

defaults write com.apple.finder MaximumLabelLines 2; killall Finder


On my oldie iBook-G3, Tiger-OS 10.4.11, it is:

defaults write com.apple.finder FXMaximumLabelLines 2; killall Finder


Here's a goodie for "Tigers" who'd like to have icon text to the RIGHT on their desktop, too:

defaults write com.apple.finder DesktopViewOptions -dict-add PropertiesLocation rght; killall Finder


(BELOW is: "botm")

Moreover you can define icons' grid spacing on your Tiger's desktop this way:

defaults write com.apple.finder FXLabelHorizontalPad [# of pixels]; killall Finder
defaults write com.apple.finder FXLabelVerticalPad [# of pixels]; killall Finder


For [# of pixels] insert a number -- try lower ones first (3 - 10) as they add up with lots of icons…