Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex. Photo: Getty
Meghan Markle may no longer be using her last name publicly. The dropping of her family surname was spotted in the description of Archewell Audio, which is the podcast launched by her and Prince Harry on Spotify. The about section of the podcast reads: “Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, present Archewell Audio, only on Spotify. Follow for updates.”
According to royal experts, this name change could lead to The Duchess of Sussex officially taking up Prince Harry’s surname, Windsor. However, ahead of the couple’s wedding in 2018, another royal expert Marlene Koenig predicted Meghan doing away with her last name, just as most royals do. “Once married, Meghan will sign as Meghan, no last name,” she told Town and Country magazine. “Just as Harry signs as Harry. Royals use only a first name.” She added that if Prince Harry were to use a surname to sign the marriage registrar, it would likely be this. “This was used by Anne, Andrew, and Edward when they married. Charles had no surname on his registrar. We do not know what William used because unlike every other royal, he chose not to make it public,” said Koenig.
The christening of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. Photo: Instagram/@sussexroyal
Prince Harry’s last name is Mountbatten-Windsor, which was also given to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. It pays tribute to baby Archie’s great-grandparents, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip since “Windsor” was adopted as their official last name in 1917 by King George V (Queen Elizabeth II’s grandfather).
Their son’s name was also the source of inspiration for the name of Prince Harry and Meghan’s non-profit organisation Archewell, and subsequently, their Spotify podcast. The multi-year deal with the streaming platform will see Meghan and Harry produce content that will listen and tell “uplifting and entertaining stories have been a vital part of many of our lives this past year” and feature many “diverse perspectives and voices.”
After stepping down as senior royals at the beginning of 2020, the couple revealed their plans to start the charitable organization in April. “Before SussexRoyal, came the idea of ‘Arche’ – the Greek word meaning ‘source of action.’” they said in a statement at the time. “We connected to this concept for the charitable organization we hoped to build one day, and it became the inspiration for our son’s name. To do something of meaning, to do something that matters. Archewell is a name that combines an ancient word for strength and action, and another that evokes the deep resources we each must draw upon. We look forward to launching Archewell when the time is right.”
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