The royals are known for being quite thoughtful and selective when it comes to choosing names for their kids, which is why the public can't help but wonder what the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will call their third child.
Kensington Palace announced Kate Middleton's pregnancy last week, causing bookies to immediately start placing bets on the next royal moniker.
Since choosing a name for a child is such a personal affair, it can be difficult to predict. But according to Christian Turner, the global naming director at New York's Siegel+Gale, the royals choose names that are both traditional and accessible — meaning, they're common enough to be heard in the playground.
This is common of the style of this generation of royals, who want to be more down-to-earth than their predecessors.
"The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will want the fifth-in-line to the throne to bear a name worthy of such weight, and it's therefore likely they will choose a solid, traditional name with strong links to royalty," Turner told Hello! magazine. "At the same time, they won't want to appear old-fashioned or haughty, so choosing a name the public can embrace is equally important."
"This is common of the style of this generation of royals, who want to be more down-to-earth than their predecessors," he added.
That means traditional monikers like Agatha, Blanche, Roger and Octavius are likely out of the running, despite their ties to British royalty.
This time around, bookies are placing high odds on Alice, Victoria, Arthur and Albert. Alice shouldn't come as a surprise, since it's been a top contender since the Duchess' second pregnancy. The moniker certainly fits the bill Turner describes, and a representative of betting company Ladbrokes even deemed it "fairly normal yet regal."
In British royalty, Alice was the name of Queen Victoria's second daughter. She was known as being progressive, considering she shocked her mother by breastfeeding her first child (royals had traditionally used wet nurses, rather than nursing their children themselves). The name Alice also means "noble" and has been one of the top 50 names for girls in the U.K. since 2000, according to BabyCentre U.K.
If the next royal baby is a boy, Arthur and Albert are definitely notable contenders. In fact, it was previously reported that those were the names Prince Charles originally wanted for his sons, William and Harry, but the late Princess Diana nixed them.
As a result, Arthur and Albert were used as each of the prince's middle names: William Arthur Philip Louis and Henry Charles Albert David.
Additionally, Arthur, Albert and Alice are all notable name choices, since none of them belong to Prince William's uncles, aunts and cousins. Turner noted to Hello! magazine that naming the child after one of William's close living relatives is something the Duke and Duchess will try to avoid, which means we can officially rule out monikers like Anne, Edward, Sophie, Beatrice and James.
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