The royal baby, claim friends of the Duchess of Sussex, was named after Meghan’s pet cat and a vintage US comic book she used to collect with her dad.
Meghan, the future Duchess of Sussex, used to constantly tell her friends about her adored pet cat Archie, who unfortunately ended up putting on excessive weight due to being fed frozen grapes, The Sun reported.
The moment Markle’s pals heard the infant’s name announced, they reckoned that the moniker could be a nostalgic reference to the pet kitty, who was also a favourite of Meghan’s Mother, Doria Ragland, 62.
According to a one-time close friend, Doria Ragland had rescued Archie; Meghan loved playing with him, spoke of him often, and he became an important member of the household.
“It’s no surprise she named her new baby Archie. She loved that cat,” added the one-time friend.
Twitter immediately responded with video images Meghan once shared of her stroking Archie while playing with another of her pet cats.
Archie the kitty is believed to have died while Meghan was at college in Illinois.
The cat itself, in turn, was named after the title character in the US comic Archie, which Meghan used to collect together with her Father Thomas, 74, with whom she had a very close relationship in her early years.
Friends insist Meghan loved following the antics of ginger-haired teen Archie Andrews from the comic book, and would spend weekends going to vintage stores to buy the comics.
“This could be a little nod to her dad. It was him who instilled that hobby into her, that was their activity together. He would drive her around and also surprise her with vintage volumes. She had at least 100. This may be a way to reach out to her dad, even after all that’s happened,” said the friend, in a reference to Meghan’s strained relationship with her father today.
The comics have since been enjoying a new lease of life as the teen TV series Riverdale.
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According to the website Bounty, Archie was the 11th-most popular baby name among new parents in 2019, while data analytic company SEMrush shows it was also the UK’s 10th-most popular name for dogs.
Queen Elizabeth's grandson, 34-year-old Harry, and Meghan, aged 37, a US-born former actress, married in May last year, with Meghan Markle confirming her pregnancy in January.
The newborn baby boy is the eighth great-grandchild of the 93-year-old queen.