A lip reading expert has revealed Prince George’s sweet nickname for his mum Kate Middleton and it’s one of the most popular alternatives for ‘Mummy.’
The Royal Family are huge fans of nicknames. Their unusual nicknames for each other hint to their unbreakable bond, from Prince William famously calling the late Queen Elizabeth II, his grandma, ‘Gary’ for an adorable reason and referring to his brother Prince Harry as Harold, to even the Royal Family having their own collective nickname of The Firm.
And the love for nicknames seems to be genetic, with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis now getting in on the action. Like many kids, they have given their grandparents a more unique title than Nan or Grandad, calling King Charles III 'Grandpa Wales.' But it's George's name for mum Kate Middleton that we love the most.
Speaking to The Mirror after analysing footage of the youngster from the Horse Guards Parade during the Platinum Jubilee in 2022, lip-reading expert Jeremy Freeman revealed that when the then eight-year-old George turns to speak to Kate, he affectionately called her "Momma".
According to BabyCenter, Mama/Momma is the top nickname for a mother, surprisingly beating out both Mummy and Mum worldwide. Their experts say the reason for this is, "Some parents prefer to be called something a bit out of the ordinary, whether it's to stand out on a crowded playground, or simply because the generic names just don't chime well."
They also say, "Kids, with their bottomless imaginations, commonly make up nicknames for parents. As long as the parent approves of the name, it can be a fun way to be 'custom' labeled."
After some research, the experts found the most popular alternative nicknames for mums and dads worldwide were;
Alternative nicknames for mum
- Mama/Momma
- Mo
- Ima (Hebrew)
- Lolly
- Amou (Portuguese)
- Big Mama
- Little Mama
- Mumsy
- Motina (Lithuanian)
- Mutti
Alternative nicknames for dad
- Dada
- Papa
- Papou
- Abba (Hebrew)
- Poppy
- Baba (Turkish)
- Pare (Venetian)
- Pappa (Swedish)
- Tad (Welsh)
- Noddy (nonbinary daddy)
George himself has an unusual nickname, with his school friends reportedly shortening his name Prince George to PG, inspired by the British brand of tea bags PG Tips. His parents have taken it one step further though and now refer to him as Tips!
Charlotte too has a moniker, with William calling her ‘Mignonette’, a French word which roughly means ‘little sweet’, while Kate calls her ‘Lottie.’ It was also revealed last year that Kate refers sweetly to her youngest son Louis as 'Lou Bug' when the family attended an event as part of the Big Help Out initiative which was set aside in tribute to King Charles' coronation.
In other royal news, Queen Elizabeth II is in full mum-mode in never-before-seen photo released by Buckingham Palace. And, Prince Louis inherited mischievous personality from his dad as unearthed clips show Prince William getting ‘told off’ by the late Queen. Plus, Princess Lilibet has taken after grandmother Princess Diana with her new ‘favourite’ hobby, reveals Meghan Markle.
