Prince Louis! Prince William and Kate Middleton Announce Royal Baby Name

It's completely unexpected!

Prince William Duchess Catherine Louis Hospital
(Image credit: Getty Images)


Update, April 27, 2018. 6:oo a.m.:
 We have a name! Kensington Palace confirmed that the third royal baby is named Louis Arthur Charles. Prince Louis joins siblings George Alexander Louis and Charlotte Elizabeth Diana.

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He will be known as His Royal Highness Prince Louis of Cambridge.

The names of Kate Middleton and Prince William's children hold special significance. His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge is named after his great great grandfather, Queen Elizabeth's father, King George VI, who reigned from 1936 to 1952.

All three parts of Princess Charlotte's name are nods to family members close to Will and Kate. Charlotte is the female version of Charles, the name of Prince William's father. Elizabeth is, of course, the name of Will's grandmother, the Queen, and Diana is for William's late mother, Princess Diana.

Update, April 26, 2018, 1:40 p.m.: Another day has gone by in London, and there's still no baby name. Maybe because Prince William and Kate haven't made up their minds just yet?

According to a tweet from Daily Mail reporter Rebecca English: "Prince William has told me tonight that he is ‘still working’ on the name of his baby."

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In a follow up tweet, she shared a video, and the reporters ask Wills to put them out of their misery. He also had a nice message about being selected as his brother, Prince Harry's best man.

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It seems we'll all be waiting yet another day to find out the new prince's name.

Update, April 26, 2018, 11:50 a.m.: It's been three days since the birth of the new royal prince, and we still haven't heard his name. However, there's been a lot of speculation that the name might be Alexander or Arthur. Today, History Hit's Dan Snow tweeted new information that could possibly verify the name.

He tweeted: "Just walked past Kensington Palace and the guy mowing the lawn shouted at me: 'It's Arthur.'"

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Bookies are also placing bets on the name Arthur. Royal reporter Richard Palmer tweeted: "Bookmakers William Hill have slashed the price of Arthur being the name of William and Kate's third baby after a punter in South London went into a shop requesting £20,000 on the name at 5-2. Was he brushing his cuff links and using the phrase 'if I may say so'?"

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We can't exactly take the guy who mows the royal lawn or a random bookies' words as confirmation, but it does seem likely that the guy cutting the grass could have overheard the name a few times—after all he does work at the palace. Here's hoping they'll announce the name soon!

Update, April 23, 2018, 9:50 a.m.: An easel has been placed outside Buckingham Palace following the announcement of the birth of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's third child.

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Does this mean they'll announce the name soon? One can only hope!!!!!

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Update, April 23, 2018: The royal baby is here! Kate Middleton gave birth to her third child and her second BOY(!) this morning at 11:01 a.m. London time (around 6:01 a.m. EST).

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People are already speculating about the new baby boy's name. According to the BBC, the names Arthur, Albert, and Philip are among the current bookies' favorites, all of which are more traditional names for the royal family.

But experts say the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge could choose a name that reflects the Middleton side of the family.

January 31, 2018: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's upcoming nuptials might be getting the bulk of royal watchers' attention these days, but let's not forget that Prince William is coming up on a pretty big life event himself. In October, Kensington Palace confirmed that he and Kate Middleton are expecting their third child, due in April.

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The royals haven't divulged the exact due date or gender of the baby, but that hasn't stopped the people of the internet (and bookies of London) from speculating about what the kid might be named.

Per Newshub, the frontrunners—if you're a betting person—are Alice for a girl and Albert for a boy. Sounds good, but since the royal family has a well-known tendency to reuse names from yesteryear, we took things a step further and spoke to Boston University Associate Professor of History Arianne Chernock about what other names might be on the table. Her top guesses: Caroline, Alice, or Helena for a girl, and Albert or Alfred for a boy.

According to Chernock, William and Kate will likely look to the 18th century for inspo (it's what they did with both George and Charlotte, after all), making Alice, Helena, Albert, and Alfred strong contenders as they happen to be the names of Queen Victoria's children.

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Queen Victoria and her children.

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And speaking of Queen Victoria, Chernock says it's unlikely William and Kate would name a daughter after the iconic monarch herself. "Some people speculate that if they have a daughter they will go with a name like Elizabeth or Victoria, but I think actually those names are too iconic, too much associated with particular figures," she explains. "And while deferring to tradition, they can't opt for a name that has overwhelmingly negative associations. That's why I think a name like James, while very sweet, will not be what they opt for. King James, especially King James II, has a controversial role in their own family's story."

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Prince William, Kate Middleton, and their children George and Charlotte.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Chernock predicts that Will and Kate will likely look for traditional names that lend themselves to more modern nicknames.

"They need to kind of hit that sweet spot. They need to be deferential to tradition, but not seen as so antiquated that the name appears out of touch," she says. "A name like Alfred, I think, might be a good compromise because it's very traditional, but at the same time, the nickname is quite modern. In fact, if you look at the U.K.'s most popular names right now, Freddie and Alfie are up there—which are both modernizations of very traditional names."

When it comes to honoring the Middleton side of the family, Chernock says we should probably look to the child's middle name—that first moniker will (most likely) be alllll Windsor.

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Kayleigh Roberts
Weekend Editor

Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with more than 10 years of professional experience. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.