Meghan’s many names: The truth behind the Duchess of Sussex real moniker

From her days acting on Suits to marrying into the royal family, she’s long been known as Meghan Markle.

But earlier this year, Meghan insisted she now uses the surname ‘Sussex’ – and has since her wedding to Prince Harry in 2018.

She made the comments during an episode of the first series of her Netflix show With Love, Meghan, which featured celebrity guest Mindy Kaling.

‘It’s so funny, too, that you keep saying, “Meghan Markle” – you know, I’m Sussex now,’ she told the actress.

Her remark caused furore on social media at the time, as Meghan is only believed to have visited the English county once and had no official surname as a member of the royal family – prompting royal fans to later insist that her name is actually Mountbatten-Windsor.

Now, in a recent interview with Bloomberg journalist Emily Chang, to promote the second season of her Netflix show, Meghan was asked what her real, legal name is. 

In response to whether Sussex is ‘a last name’, the mother-of-two admitted ‘it’s not’ – but said she, her husband Prince Harry, and children Archie, six, and Lilibet, four, use the name Sussex ‘roughly or loosely’ as their surname.

She then clarified that her official legal name is Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, saying: ‘My legal name is Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, but Sussex for us works as our family name and it’s the name we share with our children. 

‘Since I’ve been married, that’s what I’ve been called.

From her childhood to throughout her two marriages, Meghan has used a variety of names, so what is her official moniker – and how does it appear on her passport?

Rachel Meghan Markle

Born Rachel Meghan Markle in West Park Hospital in Los Angeles, California, on August 4, 1981, the 44-year-old has reportedly used her middle name since childhood.

Between 2011 and 2018, the actress appeared in the end credits of legal drama Suits as Meghan Markle. Coincidentally, she shares her real first name with the character she played on the show – highly-ambitious lawyer Rachel Zane.

She took her surname from her father Thomas Markle, and shares it with her half-siblings Samantha Markle and Thomas Markle Jr.

Becoming Mrs Engleson

Meghan ditched the name Markle when she married film producer Trevor Engleson in 2011 and took his surname.

It’s believed the couple met when Meghan first entered the film industry, with Trevor said to have mentored the actress, securing her a cameo in the Robert Pattinson film Remember Me in 2010. They dated for seven years before tying the knot.

The marriage lasted for just two years before the couple separated, citing ‘irreconcilable differences’, divorcing in August 2013.

A source has claimed that the separation may have been linked to Meghan’s new role on Suits, which saw her based in Toronto, while Trevor lived in LA.

She went back to using the surname Markle, which can be seen in the credits of the long-running legal drama.

A new royal name

When Meghan wed Prince Harry in May 2018, keen royal watchers may have noticed that both the bride and groom used their preferred names – of Meghan and Harry – rather than their given names, Rachel and Henry.

But the Duchess’s official name was made public after the birth of the Sussexes’ first child, Prince Archie.

On his birth certificate, the new mother’s official name was listed as Rachel Meghan The Duchess of Sussex.

Family surname

Now, Meghan calls herself Meghan Sussex. Explaining why to Mindy Kaling, she said: ‘You have kids and you go, “No, I share my name with my children”.

‘I didn’t know how meaningful it would be to me but it just means so much to go “This is OUR family name. Our little family name”.’

Although Archie’s birth certificate says his surname is Mountbatten-Windsor, her children use the surname Sussex too.

Is a title a name?

According to Buckingham Palace, officially the family’s name is Mountbatten-Windsor – and is recorded as such on both Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet’s birth certificates.

Members of the Royal Family who are entitled to the style of HRH Prince or Princess do not actually need to use a surname day to day, however, Harry and Meghan lost the HRH styling when they stepped down as senior members of The Firm.

The use of the hyphenated name Mountbatten-Windsor dates back to 1960 when Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh decided they would like their own direct descents to be distinguished from the rest of the Royal Family, without changing the name of the Royal House (which had been Windsor since 1917, after George V anglicised the name from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha as a result of anti-German public sentiment).

And so it was declared in the Privy Council that the Queen’s descendants would add a hyphenated ‘Mountbatten’ to reflect Prince Philip’s surname, which he himself took on in 1947 when he became a naturalised Briton.

A ‘shorthand surname’

However, while the official family name is Mountbatten-Windsor, it’s not uncommon for members of the Royal Family (and the peerage generally) to use their dukedom or title as a ‘shorthand surname’.

While at school and in the military, Prince Harry was known as Harry Wales, as a nod to his father, King Charles, then the Prince of Wales.

And Prince William also used the moniker Wales, which his three children now use as a surname as well.

Meanwhile, before getting married, both Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie used the surname York, after their father, Prince Andrew, the Duke of York.

So..what does Meghan’s passport say?

It’s believed that Meghan Markle does not have a British passport, because she never became a British citizen.

Although she started the required three-year residency and began to study for the citizenship exam, because she returned to the States before completing the process, it is understood she holds just an American passport.

If she did have a British passport, she would have been entitled to use the name Meghan, Duchess of Sussex on the document.  

What remains unknown, is what Meghan is legally called in the US, and what name she uses in her passport.

The US does not recognise titles of nobility and include them on passports, therefore there’s no chance the document would say Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.  

In the US, if someone changes their name after marriage, their marriage certificate is required as proof of their new surname. 

However, on the couple’s certificate, Harry is listed as HRH Prince Henry of Wales – and there is no mention of the name Sussex.

Speaking during her recent interview, when journalist Emily Chang asked if ‘Markle’ is on her passport anymore, Meghan replied: ‘Well, when I got married, I changed my name. 

‘But it’s a complicated one for people to understand, because a last name is not typical in that construct.’

When Emily asked if Sussex is ‘a last name’, Meghan admitted ‘it’s not’ – but said she, her husband Prince Harry, and children Archie, six, and Lilibet, four, use the name Sussex ‘roughly or loosely’ as their surname.

She then clarified that her official legal name is Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.

She said: ‘My legal name is Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, but Sussex for us works as our family name and it’s the name we share with our children. Since I’ve been married, that’s what I’ve been called.

‘When I got married, I changed my name, but it’s a complicated one for people to understand because our last name is not typical in that construct.

‘It sounds so silly to say because I went there and I’m American and then you come back and as an American you go, “I’m so confused!” But it’s a dukedom.’

When asked what she has learned about herself since ‘becoming Sussex’, Meghan insisted that she has stayed true to herself throughout.

She said: ‘What I learned about myself is that, no matter what my name is, or what people call me, I’m still the same person. 

‘That didn’t really change who I am and maybe that’s the biggest distinguishing factor.’