In Andalusia, the Duke of Húescar and his wife chose a very particular first name for their youngest daughter, which cannot be accepted by the Spanish civil registry.
If you want to practice pronouncing and articulating complicated words, now is the time to get started. And for good reason, in Spain and more precisely in the region of Andalusia, the 17th Duke of Húescar, Fernando Fitz-James Stuart and de Solísand his wife, the Duchess Sofia Palazuelo, have chosen an immensely long first name for their youngest daughter, born on January 10, 2023. So much so that it is difficult to pronounce in one go. If the birth of the future heiress of the Albe house already dates back a few months, it was only recently that her full first name was revealed to the public, reported the Spanish daily El País. The aristocratic family took advantage of his baptism, which took place on October 7 in Seville, to reveal it.
A first name made up of 11 first names
His parents have decided to call him, get ready: Sofía Fernanda Dolores Cayetana Teresa Ángela de la Cruz Micaela del Santísimo Sacramento del Perpetuo Socorro de la Santísima Trinidad y de Todos Los Santos. In total, 11 first names make it up, not counting the determiners and other terms added.
An unusual choice, but which is above all a tribute to the Duke’s grandmother, Cayetana, the former Duchess of Alba, who died in 2014, and who was notably known for being the most successful aristocrat in the world, with 57 titles of nobility, according to the Guinness Book of Records. The other names listed were also chosen in honor of other family members.
A choice prohibited by law
But although it is a symbolic first name, in the eyes of Spanish law, it cannot be validated. As reported by our Spanish colleagues who cite article 2 of the law on surnames and first names and their ordinance: “in the registration, the name given to the person born will be expressed, but more than one compound first name cannot be given, nor more than two simple first names.”
In other words, a first name made up of 11 names cannot be accepted by the Spanish civil registry. However, there might be a small exception for the nobility given that the first daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Húescar, born in 2021, has 5 first names, namely Rosario Matilde Sofía Cayetana Dolores Teresa. So, did you manage to pronounce the long name correctly?