Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, may be keeping plans about their impending baby under wraps, but that hasnsa国际传媒檛 stopped everyone in Britain from trying to guess the gender and the name of their first child.

If Britainsa国际传媒檚 bookmakers are to be believed, itsa国际传媒檚 definitely a girl sa国际传媒� and Diana may well be one of her many names.

READ MORE:

The William Hill agency closed the betting on the babysa国际传媒檚 gender a few days ago after an sa国际传媒渁valanchesa国际传媒� of bets poured in from people convinced the royal couple is having a girl.

sa国际传媒淭he secretsa国际传媒檚 out, as far as wesa国际传媒檙e concerned,sa国际传媒� firm spokesman Rupert Adams said. sa国际传媒淚t could be because someone somewhere has seen the scan, or someone has heard something.sa国际传媒�

While Adams acknowledged theresa国际传媒檚 always a chance the surge was based on nothing, he said average betting patterns over the years suggest theresa国际传媒檚 usually some truth in rumours.

So far, Diana is topping the bookmakerssa国际传媒� list as a front-running name sa国际传媒� William Hill has put the odds at 4/1. Victoria, Alice, Grace and Elizabeth are close behind, while Albert, Arthur and James are popular guesses for a boy.

sa国际传媒淎 ridiculous number sa国际传媒� 80% of bets taken sa国际传媒� are for the name Diana,sa国际传媒� Adams said. He said he personally doubts Harry would choose a name that so directly evokes his iconic mothersa国际传媒檚 tragic death in 1997 but added: sa国际传媒淭heresa国际传媒檚 every chance of it being a middle name.sa国际传媒�

Carolyn Harris, a royal historian who teaches at the University of Torontosa国际传媒檚 School of Continuing Studies, agrees that Diana could be a middle name. Thatsa国际传媒檚 what Harrysa国际传媒檚 brother, Prince William, and his wife Kate did for their daughter, Princess Charlotte (the three-year-oldsa国际传媒檚 full name is Charlotte Elizabeth Diana).

sa国际传媒淭he choice of Diana as a first name would place a lot of pressure on the royal baby, as the press would constantly compare her to her famous grandmother,sa国际传媒� she said.

Harris believes Harry and Meghan may adopt a similar approach to the naming of other recently born royal children lower down the line of succession: Choosing a moniker thatsa国际传媒檚 traditional, but one that doesnsa国际传媒檛 frequently appear within the royal family.

She also thinks a possible middle name could be Ruth sa国际传媒� after one of Meghansa国际传媒檚 great-grandmothers, as well as Dianasa国际传媒檚 maternal grandmother, Lady Ruth Fermoy.

Some observers speculate that Meghan, who has long spoken out about womensa国际传媒檚 rights, could go for a name that evokes strong women in history sa国际传媒� a theory Harris thinks has substance.

sa国际传媒淎 name associated with prominent female historical figures in Britain and/or the United States is certainly a possibility,sa国际传媒� she said. Eleanor, for one, could honour both Eleanor Roosevelt and Eleanor of Aquitaine, queen of England in the 12th century.

Harry and Meghan havensa国际传媒檛 announced the babysa国际传媒檚 gender or the due date, which is widely believed to be sometime in late April.

The pair declared Thursday they are keeping the birth private and wonsa国际传媒檛 be sharing news about the babysa国际传媒檚 arrival until theysa国际传媒檝e told family and friends. That has led many to jump to the conclusion that they are planning a home birth at their new residence, Frogmore Cottage, close to Windsor Castle outside of London.

Home birth or not, the scenario will be quite different from the media circus that lasted for days outside the London hospital where their sister-in-law Katesa国际传媒檚 three children were born. That will significantly dampen the name and gender betting frenzy, according to William Hill, which reported taking sa国际传媒渉undreds of bets a minutesa国际传媒� every time palace officials announced that Kate had gone into labour.

Whatever name they choose, the new baby will not automatically have the official title of prince or princess. Those titles were given to all three children of William, the eldest son of Prince Charles, heir to the British throne.

Instead, Harry and Meghansa国际传媒檚 baby is expected to be styled the Earl of Dumbarton if a boy and Lady Mountbatten-Windsor if a girl. That said, the childsa国际传媒檚 great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, could change that if she wants the baby to be a prince or princess.

Harrysa国际传媒檚 first child will be seventh in line for the throne, bumping down Harrysa国际传媒檚 uncle, Prince Andrew.

Sylvia Hui, The Associated Press

Like us on and follow us on