There’s actually a royal tradition about royal names. For decades in the British royal family, the general public would know a royal figure by their given name (“Prince Edward” or “Prince George”) but they would go by an entirely different name in private, among family and friends. King Edward VIII was known to family and friends as David, which was one of his six middle names. King George VI was known as Bertie to friends and family, a shortened version of Albert, one of his middle names. Prince Charles has sort of broken with that tradition, because his family and friends have always just called him by his first name, the same as everybody else. Same with Prince William – almost everybody calls him Will or William or Wills, not some variation on Arthur, Philip or Louis (his middle names).
I’ve wondered for some time if William and Kate halfway regret naming their firstborn child Prince George. The fact of the matter is… George doesn’t really fit him, does it? So I’ve wondered if they call him something completely different at home. As it turns out, they might? Because George is out there, introducing himself to strangers as “Archie.”
Prince George has told a stranger that his name is Archie – sparking a mystery over whether it’s a family nickname or his own choice. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s five-year-old son was out with his grandmother Carole Middleton when a dog walker came across him playing with his younger sister Charlotte in a stream near the Middleton family home in Berkshire.
The woman, who did not want to be named, said: “I was asked by a police minder not to take a photo of the children, which I didn’t, but George started stroking my dog. Just to be friendly I engaged in a bit of small talk and I asked George what his name was, even though obviously I knew it. To my astonishment he said ‘I’m called Archie’ with a big smile on his face. I don’t know why he calls himself Archie but kids often play with their names and I think it’s lovely.”
George, who is third in line to the throne, already has several nicknames, as do many other members of the royal family. His middle names are Alexander and Louis. When she was pregnant Kate and William referred to him as “our little grape.” At school he is known as PG and his parents then started calling him PG Tips or just “Tips” after the tea.
PG is a cute nickname, as is Archie. He seems more like an Archie than a George, honestly. But I could also see him with one of those British-fratty kind of nicknames when he becomes a teenager, something like Gaz or Porge. Like The Sun, I wonder if George made up “Archie” or if someone else made it up and it just stuck. It doubt Kate made it up, but maybe Carole?
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, WENN.
Archie is interesting to me – wonder where it came from? I could see it for Louis with Arthur Charles as middle names – either calling him Arthie (do people call people that lol) and then it becomes Archie or you have Art-Ch (for Arthur Charles) and then Archie from that.
I wonder if they have code names for security reasons and George accidentally just blabbed his lol.
I’m way overthinking this.
Oh, I like the code name idea! I bet that’s it.
Maybe it’s the name he was told to give strangers should they ever ask and he was delighted to have the opportunity.
I think it’s a nickname or code name that he was pleased to say.I will over think this too,now,but partly bc I have an unusual name situation,and always think the aristo’s kind of have it right with all their names like *Rutherford Howard Gainsfford Billows =Al,or Gif,or Elaine Allison Ruth Borgenhash =Mitzi?*LOL Maybe I’ll pick a snobby nickname for fun!(kidding 😉)
Countess Anastasia Beaverhausen. It’s a joke from Will & Grace. I loved it, so I stole it, though I added the Countess title.
I only see Archie originating from Archibald and thats because my uncle was an Archie(bald). Maybe he has a toy called Archie? Guess we will never know unless its explained to us one day.
I think it’s cute!
Sidenote: I only realized within the last two years that Harry’s first name is actually Henry, not Harold, and it really blew my mind.
I really like the name Henry, but was never a fan of Harry.
Same
George VI’s given name was actually Albert. George was a middle name and the name he chose to reign under. When someone becomes King or Queen they can choose whatever name they want as their official name.
I’ve read this too,and have heard/read when Charles becomes king he may use Arthur.
Yeah, it seems really random … it there perhaps a popular kids’ TV show character or something, named Archie?
I think you are thinking g of Archer, which is a cartoon for adults (and very funny).
Riverdale has archie as a main character
Archie Comics! The show Riverdale is based on the comics. Pretty much anyone growing up in the US has heard of Archie (or you were really living under a rock!). I used to read Archie in the Sunday newspapers when the comics were in color. The comics are definitely geared toward kids and I guess the show towards teens, I haven’t watched it. Sabrina the Teenage Witch also takes place in the same universe and was created by writers/artists who also developed Archie story lines.
Yeah, it seems really random … it there perhaps a popular kids’ TV show character or something, named Archie?
When my son wrote thank-you notes for his sixth birthday party, I saw he wrote “P.S. my name is Will now.” at the end of each one. I asked him about it: he said yes, he prefered that name. After a day, he changed it again. To Spaceship. I think it’s the age.
Haha, is his name actually William? Or was this completely out of the blue?
Kids are hilarious at this age. I remember wanting a different name around that age, as well. But I wanted something super basic like Amy or Sarah because nobody spelled mine correctly, and I couldn’t buy personalized stuff with my name on it unless it was a special order.
I used to refuse to answer my mother until she called me by my “new” name (which I never communicated to her in advance, so I’m not sure how she was expected to know!) when I would change my name as a child. I have a daughter who is 6, and I could definitely see her trying on a new name, and also absolutely DELIGHTING in “tricking” a stranger with it. It’s the age, and the general mischief level. 😉
I sympathize Erinn,people could never say or pronounce my name,and I would daydream of being Amy,or Becky.
I think this is adorable. At first I thought, maybe they told him to tell people his name is Archie so as to keep him incognito but he’s so recognizable, plus a kid his age can’t be relied on to follow instructions. Archie suits him! As does PG Tips.
I also found it charming that “Archie” seems to like dogs, and was friendly to a stranger. With everyone always wanting to take his photo I wouldn’t have been surprised to learn he was skittish or scared.
I also assumed that it was a fake name he was told to give people for his own security but I could also see him renaming himself the way kids always do. I desperately wanted my name to be Alice in first grade!
Does that mean that Charlotte and Louis go by Veronica and Jughead? 😉 haha. Archie sounds nice!
EDIT: Just remembered Charlotte’s also named Elizabeth. She should go by Betty instead!
OK that made me laff!!!
Cute.
He is so adorable.
LOL this my only take away from this post tbh. He’s such a cutie.
Archie is a really popular name over here.
I disagree that George doesn’t fit him. It fits him well, imo. It’s a strong no nonsense classic name, befitting a young prince.
I think George fits him to a tee. He was such a grumpy, imperious-looking baby and toddler (in the cutest way possible), that I thought he absolutely embodied the spirit of a George.
I agree that George fits him. He is George through and through. It is a strong name and many impoatynt Georges out there. Love it.
I too wanted to change ny name when i was younger. Teased and made fun, but i love my name. And wouldnt change it for the world.
^ I agree @Tessa, and it will fit him even more as he grows into a teen and then young man. Maybe George seems a bit formal for him right now since he’s still so young but it will fit perfect with his role in the future.
It could be a name he was told to give people. Maybe it’s a family nickname, but then wouldn’t he be known as Archie in school instead of PG? Or he could just be trying out new names, which is pretty developmentally appropriate at that age. My youngest was (adamantly) Baby Werewolf for a couple months.
When I was 7 years old, I started telling people my name was Francesca – so who knows where “Archie” came from. He could have made it up.
When I was a little girl I was in love with Annette Funicello (Micky Mouse Club alumnus) and would only answer to Annette. I think most little kids go through the “I want to change my name” phase, part of their growing independence.
It would be clever if the kids nearly always got a different name at home. In public if they’re bring followed by paparazzi or something who are shouting their name theyre less likely to react? Like if you yell George! at a 5 year old he’d be like “yep?”… unless he never got called that at home and was used to another name
My older daughter told everyone she met her name was Zena from ages 2 to 4. It was not.
King George VI’s full name was, Albert Fredrick Arthur George. So as you can see George was the middle name not Albert. It does not take a lot to get the details straight when writing about subjects.
I think it’s a family nickname. A child of his age has probably been read the quintessentially British Arthurian legends. King Arthur, King of England…Prince George, one day will be King…so calling him Arthur as a joke isn’t out of the question, and Archie is a diminutive of Arthur (just as Art and Artie are, but Archie is more common in the UK).
My sister and I would play together for long hours each day and I wanted to be called Ekaterina as the empress of Rusia and she wanted to be called Isabella. This went on for years. We had our inside talks and jokes and stuff. The funniest thing is with my niece now. She is called Kejsi but my nephew called her Tito when he was a todler and if you call her that now she will actually answer and she doesn’t mind. I can still remember him calling her that while following her around the house and I can’t not laugh.
As Julian Fellowes said in his novel Snobs, “Everyone is ‘Toffee’ or ‘Bobo’ or ‘Snook’. They, themselves, think the names imply a kind of playfulness, an eternal childhood fragrant with memories of nanny and pyjamas warming by the nursery fire.
But they are really a simple reaffirmation of insularity, a reminder of shared history that excludes more recent arrivals, yet another way of publicly displaying their intimacy with each other. Certainly, the nicknames form an affective fence. A newcomer is often in the position of knowing someone too well to continue to call them Lady So and So, but not nearly well enough to call them ‘Sausage’.”
So informative! I’m now a fan of Jeeves and Wooster after someone mentioned it in the comments here, so I can see perfectly how this nickname thing works 🙂
I once told a random lady that my name was Buffy (yes as in the vampire slayer). Little kids say and do weird stuff. Archie is pretty cute though.
When my nephew was around that age, he used to tell strangers his name was something completely different than what it was. My sister said he do it when random people would come up to them and say “what’s YOUR name?” in that sing song voice people use with little kids. She and her husband thought it was hysterical…”why no random person in the grocery story, this kid doesn’t have to tell you his name if he doesn’t want to”
So, Archie might be his call name in the family, but he could also just be being a kid too.
Can you imagine how frustrating it must be that this woman blabbed to the press? Everyone wants their 15 minutes…
Oh god, is it bad that my first thought was that someone in their house has clearly been watching Riverdale?? Because I sure as f*ck hope not. (Kate seems like the type to go for that sort of TV show, if you ask me, but I don’t know how popular Riverdale is in the UK).
Anyway, it’s cute. Who really knows why, but it hardly matters, haha. I like that he came up and started petting her dog, that’s so sweet.
No, that’s not a royal tradition… David and Albert were their given names. The option is given to choose a different name to reign under after coronation
My brother Brian, when he was about 8, decided that his name was actually Stephen, and forced EVERYONE to call him Stephen for about a year. It was weird. He got tired of it and decided he liked Brian again. Kids are weird (and funny).