In English, patronymic names generally end in -son. For example, Jackson translates to “son of Jack.”
When it comes to picking out a baby name, Meghan Markle says she lives by one hard and fast rule.
During the May 27 episode of her “Confessions of a Female Founder” podcast, Markle spoke with her friend, Spanx founder Sara Blakely.
As Markle and Blakely discussed the ins and outs of owning a business and how much the outside world had influenced Blakely when it comes to starting Spanx, the friends talked about failure and the need for approval.
Blakely explained how her own father changed how both she and her brother looked at failure. For Blakely, failure was encouraged.
Calling that mindset “huge,” Markle applauded Blakley for how she tackles the big picture head on by taking risks and not being afraid to do so.
“I love that,” Markle told Blakely. “I mean, everyone is so scared, especially as we get older. You're so scared of making a mistake, you're so scared of doing it wrong, you're so scared of not getting everyone's approval. And I love equally, that at the beginning of Spanx, you held that close because it becomes like Survey Monkey at the beginning of a business. You're like, ‘What do you think?’”
Markle continued, saying it’s something she warns expecting parents about, especially when it comes to choosing a name for their baby.
“I will say this to every woman in the world, every person in the world who's gonna have a child. If you have an idea of what you're gonna name that baby, keep it so close to your heart until that baby is born and it's named,” Markle explained. “Don't ask anyone's opinion.”
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The Duchess of Sussex admitted that it’s “not dissimilar to naming your company.”
Earlier this year, Markle launched her own brand, revealing that she had made the decision to rebrand after announcing the “American Riviera Orchard” in March 2024.
Now known as “As Ever,” Markle explained what went behind that decision in an April podcast episode.
“There are tons of twists and turns—even with the name,” she originally told People in an interview. “I was figuring it out in real time.”
"I said, 'I like American Riviera as an umbrella,' and then to be able to have verticals beneath it and maybe have Orchard really small," shed explained in the podcast episode. "Suddenly, it became this word salad. I didn't love that so much. I said, 'OK, well, let's go back to the thing that I've always loved.'"
Markle revealed she ”had secured 'As Ever' as a name in 2022."
"Let's use the name that I had protected, that had been under wraps," she ultimately decided. "Then, we were able to focus in the quiet and put our heads down and build on something that no one was sniffing around to even see about."
Much like her advice on naming a child, Markle said it was “really, really helpful” to have rebranded her company privately.
