Prince Gustav and Princess Carina of Denmark reveal the unique name they have chosen for their baby daughter

Prince Gustav and Princess Carina of Denmark have revealed the unique name they have chosen for their baby, who was born via surrogate last month.

The pair have decided to call their daughter - whose birthday was on April 26 - Mafalda, a spokesperson has confirmed.

The moniker has Italian and Portuguese origins and means 'mighty in battle'. It is also a version of the the name Matilda.

It is believed that the couple may have taken inspiration from Princess Mafalda of Savoy - who according to Tatler is an ancestor of Gustav's - and was alive from 1902 to 1944.

The royal descending from the Italian royal family died in a concentration camp, although it is not confirmed why she was imprisoned, during Germany's rise to fascism and in World War II.

Gustav and Carina (pictured in 2012) were banned from marrying as a result of a legal clause set by the royal's grandfather Prince Gustav Albrecht, but they were able to overthrow the rule and tied the knot in 2022

Theories have ranged from the princess being outspoken against Adolf Hitler, to mysterious tales that she was embroiled in the mysterious death of his ally. 

The name could also be a nod to Carina's love of literature, as there is a cartoon character called Mafalda, which was created in the sixties by Argentinian artist Quino.

In some of the cartoons, Mafalda, who is six years old, speaks about humanitarian issues such as world peace.

Gustav - who is Queen Margrethe's nephew - and Carina both 55, have been together for more than 20 years and tied the knot in Germany two years ago.

The couple spent years fighting a strict inheritance rule set by the Prince's Nazi grandfather in the 1930s, which prevented them from marrying.

They had their first child via a surrogate in the US last year and they were both present during the childbirth.

At the start of this month, the Palace announced that the pair have had their second baby via a surrogate.

Confirming the news to German media outlet Billed Bladet, the said: 'Their Highnesses, Prince Gustav and Princess Carina, have become parents for the second time. 

The couple named their daughter - who was born on April 26 - Princess Mafalda. Above: The pair pictured in 2011 

It is believed that the couple took inspiration for the moniker from Prince Gustav's ancestor, Princess Mafalda of Savoy. Above: The couple pictured in 2010

'They have had a daughter. Everyone involved is doing well and is very happy. The child was born on Friday 26 April.'

Prince Gustav is the son of Queen Margrethe's sister Princess Benedikte and her husband Prince Richard - who passed away in 2017 at the age of 82.

Gustav and Carina were banned from marrying as a result of a legal clause set by the royal's grandfather Prince Gustav Albrecht. 

In the 1930s, he set up his will to prevent relations from inheriting family property if they marry someone not of Protestant, noble and Aryan descent. 

By 1944, he went missing while serving as an officer in the German Army, during a mission near Orsha, Belarus. The soldier was declared MIA and no one sought an official declaration of death until Gustav was born in 1969. 

Gustav's father Prince Richard was able to inherit property because his wife - Princess Benedikte of Denmark - met the strict and controlling criteria. 

However, Carina Axelsson, 55 - who is an American author best known for the teen fashion detective series Model Under Cover - has Swedish and Mexican heritage, and hence didn't satisfy the will's agenda. 

Pictures from the Christening, shared by the royal household's Instagram account, show the proud godparents smiling for a photo with the new parents and their then two-month old son

Another sweet snap shows Princess Benedikte admiring her grandson in a cot as she fondly pinches his cheek at the christening last year 

Crown Prince Frederik (far left) and Princess Mary (far right) attended the couple's wedding at Berleburg Castle in Germany

Before meeting Carina at a dinner party, Gustav had been engaged to Elvire Pasté de Rochefort, who came from an aristocratic French family.

However, their nuptials were called off just two months before the wedding.

Gustav reportedly met Carina in 2003 and the author later moved into the Schloss Berleburg estate with him.

Carina and Gustav welcomed their first child in June last year via surrogate. The Palace said in a statement at the time: 'Princess Carina & Prince Gustav are very happy & grateful for this opportunity & thanks everyone involved who has helped to find a legally legal path to follow.'

The Prince and Princess name their baby Prince Gustav Albrecht of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg.

The pair had a christening for their child and had King Frederik's eldest son, Prince Christian of Denmark, as a godparent alongside Princess Theodora of Greece, 40, actress Ellen Hillingsø, 56, Prince Franz-Albrecht, 40, Arabella Gaggero and Prince Carl-Anton.