Romy Iris Charlotte: The meaning behind the name of Boris Johnson’s new daughter

Carrie Johnson gave birth to the couple’s second child on 9 December

Boris and Carrie Johnson have announced the name of their newborn daughter.

Boris revealed the name while speaking at a vaccination centre in Kent, while Carrie announced the baby’s full name on Instagram as Romy Iris Charlotte Johnson.

The couple welcomed their “healthy baby girl” in the early hours of Thursday 9 December at a London hospital.

In a post, Carrie said her daughter’s first name was inspired by her aunt Rosemary, while Iris is the Greek word for rainbow and Charlotte was chosen as a tribute to Boris’ late mother.

(Carrie Johnson/Instagram)

The reference to a rainbow could reflect Romy being a “rainbow baby”, as Carrie described her pregnancy earlier this year. A rainbow baby means a child expected after the loss of a baby to miscarriage, stillbirth or neonatal birth.

Earlier this year, Carrie revealed she had suffered a miscarriage. When the 33-year-old first announced in July that she was pregnant with her and Boris’ second child, she said: “Hoping for our rainbow baby this Christmas. At the beginning of the year, I had a miscarriage which left me heartbroken.

“I feel incredibly blessed to be pregnant again but I’ve also felt like a bag of nerves. Fertility issues can be really hard for many people, particularly when on platforms like Instagram it can look like everything is only ever going well.

“I found it a real comfort to hear from people who had also experienced loss so I hope that in some very small way sharing this might help others too.”

During Baby Loss Awareness Week in October, Carrie said that becoming pregnant again after the loss was “totally wonderful”, but she was also in a state of “constant” worrying.

(Carrie Johnson/Instagram)

Mentioning pregnancy charity Tommy’s, Carrie wrote on Instagram: “The stories of other people’s experiences shared on their website provided me much comfort after our loss earlier this year.

“It’s also a helpful resource if you have friends or family that have experienced baby loss and you’re not sure what to say or how best to be supportive.

“I’ve found this pregnancy very different to my first,” she added. “Pregnancy after loss is totally wonderful but the worry is constant. Tommy’s has shown me that’s completely normal.”

Sophie King, a midwife with Tommy’s, said: “Children born after loss are often called ‘rainbow babies’ to symbolise hope and light after a dark time, but it’s important to remember that a rainbow doesn’t erase the storm that came before it, which can make pregnancy and parenting after loss very challenging.

“Any expectant or new parent may struggle with anxiety, but it can be very hard for those who have lost babies to believe that won’t happen again, or they may feel guilty for being excited about a new arrival while grieving a sibling.”

Boris and Carrie had their first child, Wilfred Lawrence Nicholas Johnson, on 29 April 2020. They were married just over a year later in a secret ceremony at Westminster Cathedral.