Why Princess Beatrice gave her daughters Sienna and Athena the same middle name

Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi are “besotted” with their new bundle of joy, after welcoming their second daughter, Athena, on 22 January.

Buckingham Palace confirmed details of the baby’s birth, including her full name, in a statement released on Wednesday.

And it seems that Beatrice’s late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, was one of the inspirations for one of the tot’s middle names.

The statement read: “Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice and Mr Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi are delighted to announce the safe arrival of their daughter, Athena Elizabeth Rose Mapelli Mozzi, born on Wednesday January 22 at 12.57pm, at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London.”

The name Athena is Greek in origin; in ancient mythology, Athena was a goddess of wisdom, war and handicrafts, and a daughter of Zeus.

The couple chose Elizabeth as one of their daughter’s middle names in honour of Beatrice’s beloved grandmother, the late Queen, who died in 2022.

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Athena’s mother Beatrice and Athena’s big sister Sienna also have the middle name Elizabeth, joining a long line of female royals.

Every royal couple in the late monarch’s immediate family has chosen to give one of their children the middle name Elizabeth, starting with the Queen’s own daughter Princess Anne.

Anne also passed the honour down to her daughter – Zara Anne Elizabeth Tindall. And in turn, Zara and her husband Mike chose to call their second daughter, Lena Elizabeth Tindall.

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The Prince and Princess of Wales’ daughter, Princess Charlotte, and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh’s daughter, Lady Louise Windsor, also share the connection.

Beatrice and Edoardo also chose Rose as one of Athena’s middle names.

In her bridal bouquet for her intimate wedding in 2020, Beatrice chose to include royal porcelain ivory spray roses. 

According to The Bump, Rose is a girl’s name of Latin origins, meaning rose and flower, with the Latin name Rosa, referring to the timeless and romantic bloom.