Communication of 22 January 2004 concerning the birth and name of HRH Princess Ingrid Alexandra

Meddelelse om fødselen og navnet til HKH Prinsesse Ingrid Alexandra

Communciation concerning the birth and name of HRH Princess Ingrid Alexandra

22. januar 2004

Meddelelse om kongelig fødsel og navnevalg

Kronprinsregenten meddelte i ekstraordinært statsråd:

«Det er en stor glede for meg å kunne fortelle at Kronprinsessen og jeg har fått en datter. Fødselen fant sted onsdag 21. januar 2004 klokken 09.13.
I samråd med Hans Majestet Kongen har vi bestemt at hun skal hete Hennes Kongelige Høyhet Prinsesse Ingrid Alexandra, og jeg vil be om Statsrådets tilslutning til det.
Med Statsrådets bifall vil navn og fødselstid i samsvar med Grunnlovens § 6 bli meddelt det 148. ordentlige Storting i dag.»

Statsministeren fremførte på Statsrådets vegne Regjeringens lykkeønskninger og uttalte:

«Det er med stor glede Regjeringens medlemmer har mottatt meddelelsen fra Deres Kongelige Høyhet om at Hennes Kongelige Høyhet Kronprinsesse Mette-Marit har født en datter. Vi ber om å få bære frem våre hjerteligste lykkeønskninger til barnets foreldre og Hans Majestet Kong Harald og Hennes Majestet Dronning Sonja. Det er en stor nasjonal begivenhet at det er født en arving til Norges trone og at arvefølgen i et nytt slektledd er sikret. Fødselen er en historisk begivenhet, siden det er første gang en datter av Norges kronprinspar blir født som tronarving. Den nye prinsesse vil bli møtt med folkets gode ønsker. Vi uttrykker håp om at hun må bli til glede for sine foreldre og sin familie, og at hun må vinne en plass i folkets hjerte».

Statsministeren ga på Regjeringens vegne tilslutning til det foreslåtte navn.

(Unofficial translation)

22 January 2004

Communciation concerning the royal birth and name

HRH The Crown Prince Regent communicated in Extraordinary Council of State:

«It is a great pleasure to inform that the Crown Princess and I have got a daughter. The birth took place on Wednesday 21 January 2004 at 09:13.
After consultation with His Majesty The King we have decided that she will be named Her Royal Highness Princess Ingrid Alexandra, and I will ask for the state council's endorsement.
With the Council of State's acceptance the name and time of birth will be communicated to the 148th Storting today in accordance with the Constitution Art. 6.»

The Prime Minister offered on behalf of the Council of State the Government's congratulations and stated:

«It is with sincere joy that the members of the Government have received Your Royal Highness' announcement that Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mette-Marit has given birth to a daughter. We ask to present our heartfelt congratulations to the child's parents as well as to His Majesty King Harald and Her Majesty Queen Sonja. It is a great national event that an heiress to Norway's throne has been born, and that the order of succession has been secured for yet another generation. The birth is an historic event, as this is the first time a daughter of Norway's crown prince and crown princess is born to inherit the throne. The new Princess is being met with good wishes from the people. We express our hope that she will be a joy to her parents, and that she may win herself a place in the people's hearts».

On behalf of the Government the Prime Minister endorsed the Princess' proposed name.

Sources

Council of State 22 January 2004 (Regjeringen.no/Government.no (then Odin.dep.no); in Norwegian)
Press release from the Prime Minister's Office (in Norwegian and in English)
Press release from the Royal Palace (in Norwegian) (dead link as of 2013)

Comments

The birth and name of members of the royal family have always been announced in the Council of State. It should be stressed, however, that there is no place in Norwegian law which gives the Council of State the right to sanction the name of a member of the royal family. The expression «tilslutning» («acceptance», «endorsement») should be understood as «taking cognizance of» (or «taking note of») the decision made by the parents.

The Norwegian Constitution's Art. 6 Paragraph 4 only says that «When a Princess or Prince entitled to succeed to the Crown of Norway is born, her or his name and time of birth shall be notified to the first Storting in session and be entered in the record of its proceedings.» The Crown Prince Regent's communication to the Storting was read to the assembly on 27 January 2004.

The Royal Court has confirmed that the Princess will use both names. At the time of birth Princess Ingrid Alexandra was no. 2 in the line of succession to the Norwegian throne and no. 61 in the line of succession to the British throne.

The translation above is partly taken from the press release given by the Prime Minister's Office (press releases are in the public domain).

Since the Legal Gazette reform of 1969 communications of royal marriages and births etc. are not published in Norsk Lovtidend (the Legal Gazette) anymore. I have put the minutes of the Extraordinary Council of State in the section of resolutions etc. because the communication was given there, even though the communication is not the kind of document which is formally sanctioned by the King and countersigned by the responsible minister.

This page was last updated on Monday 21 January 2013
(first time published on Friday 23 January 2004).