Entertainment Blog: Will & Kate Baby Names

On December 3, 2012, the world received the news we had all been waiting for: the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge announced that they were expecting their first child.  This blog strays from my usual television show obsessions, but Will and Kate are huge in the entertainment world (their wedding was viewed by more than 2 billion people).  While we don’t even know if the Duchess is expecting a boy or a girl (and we won’t find out until he or she is born), we do know that Prince Harry and Pippa Middleton will most likely be the godparents, and of course we can speculate on a possible name for the prince or princess.
 

First of all, this is no Kardashian baby; Will and Kate are very traditional, and the baby will someday rule 16 nations, so the name will not be a typical Hollywood baby name (in other words, Queen Apple will not be running England anytime soon).  The name will likely be a family name in keeping with royal tradition.  If it’s a girl, Elizabeth (after the Queen), Catherine (how original), Alexandra (the Queen’s middle name), or even Diana (after Will’s late mother) are all possible choices.   According to the odds (yes, there are bets on this), Elizabeth (8-1 odds) is the most likely name, but Frances (10-1 odds) and Anne (12-1 odds) are options as well.

If the heir is a prince, possible names include Philip (after the baby’s great-grandfather Prince Philip), Charles (let’s just hope he doesn’t get his namesake’s looks), Henry (after his uncle and other famous ancestors), William (again, how original), or Richard (another family name).  They could also go with George (after the Queen’s father) or Arthur (middle name of both William and Charles).  Another possible choice for a boy would be to simply name the baby Royal, and John (10-1 odds) and Edward (16-1 odds) are both in the mix as well.

In addition to Will and Kate’s chosen name for the baby, Queen Elizabeth will declare the title for the little prince or princess.  Likely, the title will be Wales or Cambridge, following in the footsteps of Will and Kate.  Other than the title, it has been made clear that the Queen will not be in control of the baby name.  Personally, if it’s a girl, my vote goes to Diana.  Depending on whether or not you believe the conspiracy theories about the relationship between Will’s mother and the Queen, this name could be controversial, but I think it would be a beautiful way to pay homage to the late Princess.  If it’s a boy, I’m hoping for Henry (after his fun-loving uncle), but I also like the idea of simply calling him Royal.  We can speculate all we want about the future royal, but all we can really do is wait until July (Kate’s due date) to see what name Will and Kate choose.