The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are delighted to announce that they have named their son George Alexander Louis.The prince is of course titled Prince of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, but is styled Prince George of Cambridge. The call name George was also what I suggested in my blog article of 3 July 2013, but so did many others as well. I missed out on Alexander and Louis, though, and Prince George "only" got three names and not four, as most people "in the know" expected. The number of names is something the little prince shares with his great-grandmother Queen Elizabeth II, whose full name is Elizabeth Alexandra Mary.
The baby will be known as His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge.
I have too little time right now to comment too much on the names, but just want to say how happy I am that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have chosen such traditional royal names, and that the announcement came so soon and before I have to take a break from my blogging due to my vacation!
What's interesting about the choice of the name George is that it is not only traditional, it is so traditional it was nearing extinction in the English speaking world. I think I could count on one hand all of the Georges I have known or known of born in the last half century to English speaking parents, and it would not take the whole hand. I predict that there will now be a dramatic resurgence of this venerable name!
ReplyDeleteMaybe you you are right about the name George being close to extinction in the *English-speaking world*, but within England and Wales the name seem popular enough:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/vsob1/baby-names--england-and-wales/2011/rtd-baby-names--boys--2011.xls
DTH