This Is What Prince William And Kate Middleton Almost Named Prince George

It's hard to imagine Prince George being called anything else, but he very nearly had a different moniker. Royal expert Katie Nicholl revealed that Kate Middleton and Prince William originally had a very different name in mind for their firstborn child.

While the couple didn't know the baby's gender before he was born, Kate had a strong feeling it was a boy and had chosen his name. "Courtiers insisted the pair had not found out the sex of their unborn baby, and friends close to the couple claim William wanted a surprise," wrote the reporter for Vanity Fair. "Although Kate apparently suspected it was a boy and had set her heart on the name Alexander, they had not yet decided what to call their firstborn."

While Kate was correct in thinking that she was having a boy (she was apparently so convinced "because the baby kicked so much"), the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge ultimately decided against naming him Alexander. They did, however, give their oldest child Alexander as a middle name, settling on George Alexander Louis.

Prince William and Kate reportedly picked the name George in honor of the young royal's great-great-grandfather, Queen Elizabeth's father, King George VI. Before they settled on a name for their son, though, Kate had a special nickname for her growing baby. "Kate was reported to have affectionately referred to her bump as 'our little grape' while she was pregnant," wrote Nicholl. 

While you would think that royals would be able to name their babies anything they want, it's apparently not quite as simple as simply picking a name they like and putting it down on the birth certificate. History professor and author of Raising Royalty: 1,000 Years of Royal Parenting Carolyn Harris told Vogue that royals tend to choose traditional names — especially for babies born close to the throne. "The further down the line of succession, the more likely you are to have a more unique or untraditional name," she said.