All of the speculation was correct! The new Prince of Cambridge, heir to the throne behind his grandfather and father, is named George Alexander Louis.
It’s a conservative name, a safe and likeable choice. But it isn’t an entirely traditional one. While there have been plenty of kings who reigned as George, neither Alexander nor Louis have been in heavy use by the British royal family.
It’s also a short name. William and his brother both have four names each, as do Prince Charles and his siblings. though the current queen is simply Elizabeth Alexandra Mary – but then, as the daughter of a younger son, she was fairly far down the line of succession when she was born in 1926.
Here’s a quick breakdown on the history of the names:
- The most recent king to wear the same name was George VI, dad to Queen Elizabeth II.
- Alexander has history as a royal name in Scotland. It’s also related to Queen Victoria’s given name, Alexandrina.
- Louis is one of dad’s middle names – William Arthur Philip Louis. The name Louis has never been much used by English kings, but Lord Mountbatten was uncle to Prince Philip, the current prince consort. He was said to be a huge influence on the current Prince Charles.
We all knew the prince wasn’t going to be Spencer or Jayden. But I do think there’s a certain style and even modern sensibility to the name. Seven syllables wouldn’t be out of place on a regular, non-royal child.
So what do you think of the future monarch’s name? Will it be influential? Which names – the first, one of the two middles, or all three? How about feminine forms of the names – will Georgia and Louise see a rise?
My daughter is five weeks older than the prince and her name is Georgia! We live in the US and it isn’t a very popular name here, so it would be fun if its popularity did get a little boost. I can honestly say I picked it before it was all the rage!
I think the royal family will give a little boost to a name that was about to soon reverse its down-streak regardless. I see good things for George. Any negative association is negated by a positive one. George was once like John in this country, constantly in the top 5.
Personally my favorite from the list is Louis. Louis is a name I wanted for my son before I even became pregnant with him, but my husband was never on board. I like how Louis is an underused classic, and I really love the pronunciation or nickname “Lewie”.
I like Louis. It’s a family name on my mom’s side. (She insisted that my red-faced, dark-haired daughter looked like Uncle Louie. She has since told me that all babies look like Uncle Louie.) My hesitation is that it’s all Lewie to me, too, and loo IS is slightly more common in the US. The only little Louis I know pronounces it with an s … which is just not for me, even if my last name didn’t start with an S.
I like it a lot, although I am one of those slightly discomfited parents who had pretty much decided on George if we ever had a boy.
Now everyone I speak to tells me what an “awful” name George is (I live somewhere where they would have much preferred Spencer or Kai, something stylish and modern), so it’s been quite difficult hearing about the awfulness of “ugly old-fashioned” George everywhere I go.
As George is in a similar style to our daughters’ names, now I wonder what they say behind our backs ….
Oh dear! Well … chances are that familiarity with a cute baby George could change that. Once upon a time, we were probably calling Ruby ugly and old-fashioned, too …
And yes, several people have said, “Didn’t you think they were going to use Spencer?” To which I can only reply, “No. No I didn’t think Spencer had a shot.”
No, Spencer never had a chance! lol
As George is already quite popular here, if people already hate it it, I’m not sure another George is going to turn it around for them … but you never know. It sure seems awkward to introduce one to everyone now.
Aww, we can relate to that! My husband had a coworker talk about what an ugly name George is and how she hoped they didn’t choose that one for the prince – only to remember that one of our kids is named George.
Oh no … foot in mouth syndrome! I love George, anyway, and now it has a royal seal of approval.
I think it is a safe choice, but quite nice. Pleasantly royal, but not stuffy or over the top. Alexander is lovely, and my favourite boy name and I am (a really shock to me) really liking Louis in this combo. I have never been a fan of “Loo-ee”, but I can definitely get behind that being what the little prince will be called.
Reading the royal baby’s second middle name, I said “LOO-is” but have since heard the name announced on NPR and CBS as “LOO-ee”. …I just googled Louis Mountbatten, the source of the name Louis for the royal family, and apparently his name was pronounced as “LOO-ee” and the new baby’s name is too. (I’m sure I’ve heard it pronounced as “LOO-is” Mountbatten… ) So apparently the royal baby is
George Alexander “LOO-ee”. That makes the name even cooler!
https://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/07/24/205171157/royal-baby-gets-a-name-george-alexander-louis
Oh, it is definitely LOO ee … that’s how I’ve always heard William’s extra middle pronounced, too.
So it seems the same pronunciation as the French (loo-EE), but with the accent on the first syllable, English style. Louis is pretty cool (when pronounced LOO-ee). I wonder if that might be the baby’s nickname, with the intent that he would rule as George VII — unless his grandfather Charles chooses that ahead of him. I recall reading speculation — years ago — that Charles might choose his 3rd middle name, George, as his reigning name, just as his grandfather George VI — first name Albert and known as “Bertie” — ruled as George, his last middle name. That’s the big name question now: what will Will and Kate actually ‘call’ their son?
…Oh look, in 2005 Charles denied he would rule as George VII and will stick with his first name — and that of three previous King Charles, all who disgraced the name in some way: https://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2005/dec/27/monarchy.michaelwhite
So apparently all is cool with this baby being Prince George, presumed future — far, far in the future — King George VII. (But if Charles changes his mind, little “Louis” can just be George VIII.)
I absolutely love this name. I was expecting that they would call their son George, so no surprises there – it is a great name, though. Alexander was one that I was hoping for but didn’t really expect. And Louis is a such classic, gentle name. Again, I am really happy to see this name for our little prince.
George hasn’t fared as well in the USA in recent years as in the UK, with the name ranking at 166 in 2012. George hasn’t been in the US top 100 since 1992, but was in the Top 10 from 1880 (and no doubt before) through 1937. I think the choice of George for the new little Prince of Cambridge, heir to the throne, will improve the perception of the name George in this country and that George will increase in popularity, eventually returning to the top 100. But I’d be surprise if the female versions of the name follow along in the US. In 2012 Georgia ranked 298, but Georgina, Georgiana and Georgie didn’t make the SSA top 1000.
Perhaps Alexander is a nod to the Queen too, with Alexandra as her second name:
George Alexander ……Louis
Elizabeth Alexandra …..Mary
Alexandra was the betting public’s favorite if the baby had been a girl, so perhaps there’s a connection there too.
As for female versions of the name, each name has several so lots of possibilities. I’ve read that some UK parents whose babies were born within the last few weeks have waited to name their child (you have 6 weeks to do so in the UK) until the royal baby was born and named. I would expect lots of girl babies named Georgia or maybe Georgina (my favorite of the two). I think if parents want to give their baby girl born the same year as Prince George a name clearly commemorating that, they would be most likely to use one of the female George forms rather than a from of the second or third names. Present (2011) rankings for those names in England/Wales:
Georgia 60
Georgina 157
Georgie 205
Georgiana 858
A very good point, Patricia – thanks for pointing it out.
I like it, especially for the nod to Elizabeth’s father.
It seems a perfect name for this Boy who would be King! There was a lot of speculation that his name would be James. But although I prefer James to George, I never thought that would be: William has a 5-year-old cousin named James (child of Prince Edward), and Kate’s only brother is James — and I don’t think they’d want the public to think they’d named the future king after a commoner. George is not only non-controversial but a wonderful ‘gift’ to Queen Elizabeth to have this baby named after her father (whose full name was Albert Frederick Arthur George). George is Prince Charles fourth name (Charles Philip Arthur George), and Louis is Prince William’s fourth name (William Arthur Philip Louis), so little Prince George Alexander Louis’s name honors his great-grandfather, grandfather and father.
Will and Kate did break with the modern tradition of 4 names for a royal baby, and with their limited list of approved names, came up with something that sounds both traditional and current. All three names are in the Top 100 for England/Wales: George, ranking at 12; Alexander, at 23, and Louis at 68. I applaud their choice of names and that there are only three — so much easier for everyone to remember!