As Meghan Markle’s pregnancy progresses, royal watchers are abuzz with speculation about what she and Prince Harry will name their baby girl.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced in February that they were expecting their second child, and during their March interview with Oprah Winfrey, they shared that they’re having a daughter.
According to most U.K. betting companies, Diana is the current favorite baby name, with 5-1 odds on the Coral platform, 4-1 on Betfair and Paddy Power, and 3-1 on Betway and William Hill.
“Diana is the clear favorite in our market now, ever since Harry and Meghan confirmed that they could be having a baby girl,” Coral spokesperson Harry Aitkenhead said in late March. “We are convinced it will feature somewhere in the name, going 5-1 that it is the new arrival’s first name.”
Royal insiders reportedly doubt that the couple would name their daughter after her late grandmother. What’s more likely is that Diana may feature as a middle name a la Princess Charlotte, whose full name is Charlotte Elizabeth Diana.
Bettors are also gravitating toward many names that start with “a,” likely due to the couple’s choice of Archie for their son. These include Alice (14-1 on Betfair, and 16-1 on Coral, Betway and William Hill), Alexandria (8-1 on Coral, 12-1 on Betway), Allegra (11-1 on Betfair and OddsMonkey), Abigail (14-1 on Betfair) and Anne (25-1 on Coral and Betway).
Other popular bets include Elizabeth, Grace, Emma, Greta, Molly, Isabella, Emily and Victoria. And name predictions at the lower-odds end of the spectrum include Markle’s mother’s name, Doria, and nods to public figures like Oprah, Kamala, Camilla and Ivanka.
Bettors were not particularly successful when it came to predicting the name of Harry and Meghan’s first child. While there were some bets on the name Archie, it was nowhere near the top of the lists. Still, other “a” names like Arthur, Alexander and Albert were seen as likely contenders, so people weren’t completely off track.
Although it’s unclear when exactly we’ll know what name the Sussexes do choose for their daughter, the duchess reportedly plans to take maternity leave in May, so the birth could be sooner than previously thought. And naturally, there are bets for the due date too.
