Meghan Markle Has Crucial Advice for Anyone Trying To Pick a Baby Name

Finding the perfect baby name is challenging for every expectant parent. Add the pressures of being famous and part of the British royal family, and well, it can be downright exhausting. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are all too familiar with this, and have even dealt with their fair share of controversy around the names of their kids Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 3. So it makes sense that Markle wants to help moms-to-be avoid extra stress surrounding this decision. The mom of two just revealed a crucial bit of advice for every expectant parent, and it’s one you’ll want to take to heart.

In the season finale episode of her Lemonade Media podcast, Confessions of a Female Founder, the Duchess of Sussex were talking about naming a brand and the pressure to get “everyone’s approval.”

“You’re like, ‘What do you think?’” Markle, who owns lifestyle brand As Ever, which was formerly named American Riviera Orchard, said on the episode, per PEOPLE. And because everyone has an opinion about her company’s name, it reminded the former Suits actress about baby naming.

“It’s no different — I will say this to every woman in the world or every person in the world who’s going to have a child — if you have an idea about what you are going to name that baby, you keep it so close to your heart, until that baby is born and it’s named,” she continued. “Don’t ask anyone’s opinion.”

People love sharing their unfiltered thoughts with parents who did not ask, so I love this advice. I also kept my babies’ names a secret until they were born, and it’s just an easy way to protect your peace and happiness. (Even though some people still have words after your baby is born, like my grandfather, who called my son Liam “Ian” because he liked that name better.)

Of course, Markle has had her fair share of controversy surrounding her daughter’s name, which is the nickname Prince Harry’s late grandmother Queen Elizabeth II used. After the couple announced the birth of their daughter Lilibet Diana on June 4, 2021, people attacked the couple for using the nickname and alleged that the Queen was privately displeased with the move.

At the time, a spokesperson for the couple told PEOPLE, “The Duke spoke with his family in advance of the announcement, in fact his grandmother was the first family member he called. During that conversation, he shared their hope of naming their daughter Lilibet in her honor. Had she not been supportive, they would not have used the name.”

This isn’t surprising, as it is tradition to check with the monarch before officially deciding on a child’s name. Royal commenter Kate Williams told CNN previously that the Queen had an “informal” say in the naming of her great-grandchildren.

“In the case of names, it is more of an informal conversation,” Williams told the outlet after Prince Harry’s brother Prince William and wife Kate Middleton announced the birth of their third son Prince Louis, but hadn’t released his name yet. “Of course, they have such respect for the Queen that if she says, ‘I really don’t like that name,’ they’d definitely take that into account.”

Obviously in the Sussexes case, it was a good thing that they shared their potential name before their baby was born. But since most of us aren’t royals, we don’t have to worry about that — and keeping the name a secret allows us the freedom to feel confident in our choice without anyone else’s thoughts and opinions influencing us.

Before you go, check out everything we know about Princess Lilibet and the alleged controversy around her name.