Prince Harry and the former Meghan Markle left a few big questions in the wake of their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey in which they revealed, among other things, the baby they are expecting this summer is a girl. The most fun of those questions: What will they name Archie's baby sister?
More than one royal watcher is rooting for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to name their daughter Diana after Prince Harry's late mom. In fact, according to the Daily Mail U.K., bookies in the United Kingdom have started taking odds, and Diana is winning the popular vote along with Alexandra, Florence and Amelia.
But Nameberry senior editor Sophie Kihm isn't betting on the obvious answer. She believes if the couple does wish to honor Princess Diana, they'll do it with more subtlety — maybe through a middle name, as they did when they gave Archie the middle name Harrison as a nod to his dad.
And now that they live on this side of the pond, Kihm thinks their baby name choice might reflect their new address. "I do think that this baby’s name will be more 'Americanized' than Archie, since Harry and Meghan are now Californians," she told TODAY Parents.
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Though she believes the chances of the couple using a "uniquely American name such as Kennedy or Nevaeh are very very low," Kihm predicts they will choose a name either fashionable or up-and-coming in both the U.S. and the U.K. "The stylish names with traditional roots that they seem to be drawn to tend to rank higher in Britain," she noted.
So what will it be? Kihm has some ideas:
Names with a nod to Diana
Harry and Meghan could pick a name that would connect their baby girl to her People's Princess grandmother.
Kihm's picks include Spencer, Princess Diana's maiden surname, a fresh choice for a girl.
Other less recognizable options include Phoebe, which, like Diana, is an epithet for the Greek goddess of hunting, Artemis, and Sloane.
Names with history — real or fictional
Kihm has a personal favorite name for the young Mountbatten-Windsor: Cleo.
"If it were up to me to choose a name for Archie’s sister, I’d go with Cleo," she said. "Cleo is such a strong name for a girl — particularly with its connections to Cleopatra — and strength was something Meghan and Harry cited as a reason for choosing Archie’s name. It means 'glory,' which feels equal in gravity to Archie’s meaning, 'truly brave.'"
Cleo is already popular in the U.K., but starting to rise in popularity in the U.S. as well. "This is important, because Harry and Meghan would not choose a name that is considered unfashionable in one of their home countries," said Kihm.
A trendier option would be Daphne, a name that recently gained attention as that of the romantic heroine in the wildly popular first season of "Bridgerton" on Netflix.
Names with classic charm and style
Kihm thinks several other classic names with European influences could make the short list, like Sylvie, Millie, Evie and Margot.
But her prediction for the name Harry and Meghan are most likely to choose is one fans of "Little House on the Prairie" might find problematic: Nellie.
"I love Nellie and Archie together — they’re both traditional nicknames that stand independently and have a vintage yet current feel," Kihm said. "It is one of the fastest-rising names in the U.S. and the U.K. Of course, if Harry and Meghan use it, it will become even trendier."
One influence Kihm did not include in her predictions was Markle's mother, Doria.
"Unfortunately, Doria is a very unstylish name right now," she said. "It was given to fewer than five baby girls in 2019. Similar names and variations such as Dorie and Doriana are not faring any better."
Kihm noted that the famous fish from "Finding Nemo" has prevented or at least postponed any comebacks for the nickname Dorie/Dory/Dori as well.
"I suppose Harry and Meghan could go with something like Dorothy or Isadora, but those just don’t seem like their style," she said. "If anything, I think they will honor a family member with the baby’s middle name."
