Will and Kate royal tour of Alberta inspires 2011 baby names
One family names boy “Princewill”
Prince William and Kate Middleton visited Calgary during last year's Stampede.
Royal newlywed tour of Alberta inspires names of babies in 2011 Kate and William rise in the ranks, Liam and Olivia top the lists Edmonton.
The royal visit by Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, appears to have left a lasting impression on Alberta families naming babies in 2011, with eight boys named Prince, six girls named Princess, and one boy named Princewill.
“It was an honour for Alberta to host the royal newlyweds last July on their first official tour as a married couple,” said Service Alberta Minister Manmeet Bhullar. “The Duke and Duchess were warmly received by our province and it’s no surprise that parents would want to name their children after a couple who showed such care for Albertans, particularly in Slave Lake.”
William and Kate both became more popular names in 2011. At 199 in total, William rose to 9th place from 11th the previous year. With 50, Kate ascended to 64th place from 79th. One baby girl was named Pippa.
Families chose other monarchy-related monikers: Knightly, Lady, Mirza, Queen, Reign, Royal, and Sovereign for girls; and Dominion, Duke, Emir, Kaiser, King, Lord, Malik, Princelife, and Sultan for boys.
Preliminary figures show that 50,592 babies were born in Alberta in 2011, just 10 less than 2010, and 906 fewer than 2009′s record-breaking total of 51,498. Overall in 2011, Olivia was the most popular name for girls, the choice of 290 families. The top pick for boys was Liam, with 270 families giving the name to their newborn sons.
The Vital Statistics branch of Service Alberta recorded 5,695 distinct boy names and 6,994 unique girl names, including two girls named Unique. Parents also celebrated new additions to their families with names such as Amen, Destiny, Divine, Favour and Marvelous for boys; and Heavenly, Hopestill, Hosanna, Kismet, Lovely, Praise and Precious for girls.
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