What's In a Name: Baby Name Advice for Prince William and Kate Middleton
Okay, so all you future people who are reading this blog and already know what Kate Middleton's baby's name is, don't ruin the moment for me, guys.
So, like the rest of the world, I am super-duper excited about Kate and William's new baby! Anyway, my friends and I are having an ongoing discussion about what the baby's name is going to be, because, when your kid is the future king of England, you can't name him just anything. Like, no one is going to bow down to the king if his name is North. No, there has to be some precedent for the baby's name.
I am almost 100% certain that they are going to name him something super traditional that other kings have been called before. That's a pretty limited list. The way I figure it, Will and Kate's options are:
I think Albert is pretty much out because it's a little old fashioned. I also think that William, Henry, and Charles are out because that would make things really confusing at Christmas time. I suppose it's equally likely that the baby could be a John or a James (although the last King John really screwed things up and neither king James was very popular). It could however, be an Edward. There hasn't been an Edward since the Edward who abdicated the throne, but I don't count him as a king because he was never crowned. So, the last Edward was Queen Victoria's son, Albert, who took the regnal name Edward, so it would be a good revival of the name. I don't think Kate is going to name her son after anyone living in the family because she seems like a modernizer who would want her son to have a unique identity. You have to be really careful when you're naming a king, because the name has different connotations based on the kings who have had that name before. I like the idea of bringing George back into the mix because, hey, George Harrison.
I suppose the other possibility is that they give the baby a really ridiculous name and then he'll have to pick a regnal name when he becomes king. I mean, that is what George VI did and it worked out well for him (Albert, cough, cough, too German for WWII, cough, cough). So, theoretically, Will and Kate could name their kid Blanket, Bear, or Apple or something else equally Hollywood worthy. I know what the Queen would say to that.
We are not amused.
Just sayin'
Update: They just announced that the baby's name is George Alexander Louis; right on, Slayer, right on.
So, like the rest of the world, I am super-duper excited about Kate and William's new baby! Anyway, my friends and I are having an ongoing discussion about what the baby's name is going to be, because, when your kid is the future king of England, you can't name him just anything. Like, no one is going to bow down to the king if his name is North. No, there has to be some precedent for the baby's name.
I am almost 100% certain that they are going to name him something super traditional that other kings have been called before. That's a pretty limited list. The way I figure it, Will and Kate's options are:
- William (so, the baby would be King Jr.)
- Charles ( King Charles I lost his head to Cromwell, so that's bad karma)
- George (a good, solid Hanoverian name that is also the name of one of the patron saints of England - St. George the Dragonslayer (they could call the baby Slayer for short)
- Edward (there hasn't been an Edward in a while, but the last one was not horrible, so it's a fair choice)
- John (the last King John signed the Magna Carta and screwed things up for all of his successors)
- Henry (the last King Henry was Henry VIII who beheaded two of his wives, so, not the most PC of choices)
- James (not a bad choice, however, the last King James was run out of England for being a Catholic, so not the best of track records there. The first James, however, reigned during Shakespeare's most productive period, so we like him)
- Albert (there has never been a king Albert, but there have been several Alberts in that family, so it's not impossible)
I think Albert is pretty much out because it's a little old fashioned. I also think that William, Henry, and Charles are out because that would make things really confusing at Christmas time. I suppose it's equally likely that the baby could be a John or a James (although the last King John really screwed things up and neither king James was very popular). It could however, be an Edward. There hasn't been an Edward since the Edward who abdicated the throne, but I don't count him as a king because he was never crowned. So, the last Edward was Queen Victoria's son, Albert, who took the regnal name Edward, so it would be a good revival of the name. I don't think Kate is going to name her son after anyone living in the family because she seems like a modernizer who would want her son to have a unique identity. You have to be really careful when you're naming a king, because the name has different connotations based on the kings who have had that name before. I like the idea of bringing George back into the mix because, hey, George Harrison.
I suppose the other possibility is that they give the baby a really ridiculous name and then he'll have to pick a regnal name when he becomes king. I mean, that is what George VI did and it worked out well for him (Albert, cough, cough, too German for WWII, cough, cough). So, theoretically, Will and Kate could name their kid Blanket, Bear, or Apple or something else equally Hollywood worthy. I know what the Queen would say to that.
We are not amused.
Just sayin'
Update: They just announced that the baby's name is George Alexander Louis; right on, Slayer, right on.
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