''Infante'' (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as Infant or translated as Prince, is the title and rank given in the

Iberia The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...

n kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to the sons and daughters (''infantas'') of the king, regardless of age, sometimes with the exception of the

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question. ...

to the throne who usually bears a unique princely or ducal title.de Badts de Cugnac, Chantal. Coutant de Saisseval, Guy. ''Le Petit Gotha''. Nouvelle Imprimerie Laballery, Paris 2002, p. 303, 364-369, 398, 406, 740-742, 756-758 (French) A woman married to a male ''infante'' was accorded the title of ''infanta'' if the marriage was dynastically approved (e.g., Princess Alicia of Bourbon-Parma), although since 1987 this is no longer automatically the case in Spain (e.g., Princess Anne d'Orléans). Husbands of born ''infantas'' did not obtain the title of ''infante'' through marriage (unlike most hereditary titles of

Spanish nobility Spanish nobles are persons who possess the legal status of hereditary nobility according to the laws and traditions of the Spanish monarchy and historically also those who held personal nobility as bestowed by one of the three highest orders of ...

), although they were occasionally elevated to the title ''de gracia'' ("by grace") at the sovereign's command.The style of Infante / Infanta de España at Heraldica
/ref> While the title belonged by right to all sons and daughters of a monarch (even when they ceased to be children of the reigning sovereign), it was also often accorded to sons-in-law and male-line grandchildren of the sovereign (e.g., Prince Ferdinand of Bavaria, Infante Pedro Carlos of Spain and Portugal), sometimes to other

agnates Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritan ...

of the ruling dynasty (e.g.,

Infante Enrique, Duke of Seville , house = Bourbon , father =Infante Francisco de Paula of Spain , mother =Princess Luisa Carlotta of the Two Sicilies , birth_date = , birth_place =Seville, Spain , death_date = , death_place =Madrid, Kingdom of Spain , ...

), and to female-line relatives of the monarch (e.g.

Infante Sebastian of Portugal and Spain ''Infante'' (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as Infant or translated as Prince, is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to th ...

, Infante Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón).

History

Although the title is derived from the same root as "infant," in

Romance languages The Romance languages, sometimes referred to as Latin languages or Neo-Latin languages, are the various modern languages that evolved from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages in the Indo-European language ...

the term may be more broadly interpreted to mean "child" (cf. French '' enfants de France''), and historically indicated that the ''infante'' or ''infanta'' was the child of the nation's monarch. Like the ''enfants de France'', all ''infantes'' in the various Iberian kingdoms were princes of the blood royal, although since 1987 the Spanish sovereign may also confer the title ''infantado'' by decree upon a person (typically the spouse of an ''infante'' or ''infanta'') who is not of royal descent.

Spanish ''infantes''

In the Spanish royal family, the dynastic children of the monarch and of the

are entitled to the designation and rank of ''infante'' with the style of

Royal Highness Royal Highness is a style used to address or refer to some members of royal families, usually princes or princesses. Monarchs and their consorts are usually styled ''Majesty''. When used as a direct form of address, spoken or written, it t ...

(''infantes by birth''). A second category of ''infantes'' may be granted that title by royal decree (''infantes by grace''), but only bear the style of Highness. Previously, the title and rank of ''infante of Spain'' was often granted to relatives and in-laws of Spain's monarchs, but unlike those created under the 1987 decree, their dynastic wives were automatically ''infantas'' and bearers of the title were ''Royal Highnesses''. In addition, some distant relatives of Spanish sovereigns, usually children of ''infantes by grace'', were accorded the "honours and treatment" of ''infante'' or ''infanta'', but were not granted the title itself, Included in this category were the children of Infante Carlos de Borbón-Dos Sicilias' second marriage to Princess Louise d'Orléans, those of Infante Fernando de Bavaria y Borbón's marriage with

Infanta Maria Teresa of Spain ''Infante'' (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as Infant or translated as Prince, is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to th ...

, and those of Infante Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón's marriage to

Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Princess Beatrice Leopoldine Victoria of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (20 April 1884 – 13 July 1966) was a member of the British royal family, a male-line granddaughter of Queen Victoria. She later married into the Spanish royal family, and was t ...

(e.g., Princess María de las Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Countess of Barcelona, Prince Alvaro de Orléans-Borbón, Duke di Galliera).

Current infantes of Spain

The current ''infantes'' of Spain (''by rank'') are: * Infanta Sofía (daughter of King

Felipe VI Felipe VI (;, * eu, Felipe VI.a, * ca, Felip VI, * gl, Filipe VI, . Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Grecia; born 30 January 1968) is King of Spain. He is the son of former King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía, and ...

and Queen consort Letizia, younger sister of

Leonor, Princess of Asturias (Leonor de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Ortiz; born 31 October 2005) is the heir presumptive to the throne of Spain as the elder daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia. In addition to the official title of Princess of Asturias, she bears th ...

, the heir presumptive); *

Infanta Elena, Duchess of Lugo Infanta Elena, Duchess of Lugo (Elena María Isabel Dominica de Silos de Borbón y de Grecia; born 20 December 1963) is the first child and eldest daughter of Juan Carlos I (King of Spain from 1975 to 2014) and Queen Sofía of Spain, and third ...

(elder daughter of former King Juan Carlos I and former Queen consort Sofía); * Infanta Cristina, former (stripped in 2015) Duchess of Palma (younger sister of above); *

Infanta Margarita, Duchess of Soria Infanta Margarita of Spain, Duchess of Soria, 2nd Duchess of Hernani, Grandee of Spain (Margarita María de la Victoria Esperanza Jacoba Felicidad Perpetua de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón; born 6 March 1939), is the younger sister of K ...

(younger sister of former King Juan Carlos I);

Portuguese ''infantes''

Coronet of an Infante - Kingdom of Portugal

''Infante'' had no feminine form at first in Portugal and may be compared to the ''infanções'' of the lower

Portuguese nobility Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

, who were also cadets of their families with no prospect of inheriting the main possessions of the noble families to which they belonged, being distinguished in law by some prerogatives, but little patrimony. Later, the word ''infanta'' emerged in Portugal as a feminised form applied to Portuguese princesses after the 16th and 17th centuries. Also, after Edward, King of Portugal, in the 15th century, the heir apparent and his eldest son, or daughter if there was no son, came to be styled "prince" or "princess". The first prince in Portugal was the future Afonso V, his eldest son, maybe adopting the French royal style by an English influence imported by

Philippa of Lancaster Philippa of Lancaster ( pt, Filipa ; 31 March 1360 – 19 July 1415) was Queen of Portugal from 1387 until 1415 by marriage to King John I. Born into the royal family of England, her marriage secured the Treaty of Windsor and produced severa ...

's retinue. After the accession of the House of Braganza to the throne, the

honorific An honorific is a title that conveys esteem, courtesy, or respect for position or rank when used in addressing or referring to a person. Sometimes, the term "honorific" is used in a more specific sense to refer to an honorary academic title. It ...

of "Most Serene" (''Sereníssimo'') was prefixed to the title of ''infante'' (''Sereníssima'' for an ''infanta''), since the complete appellation of this dynasty was "Most Serene House of Braganza" (''Sereníssima Casa de Bragança''), a style granted by the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

. The style, however, does not seem to have been used with the title of Prince Royal.

Current infantes of Portugal

Portugal has been a republic since 1910. Close relatives of

Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza (Portuguese: ''Duarte Pio de Bragança'': born 15 May 1945) is the current Duke of Braganza, claimant to the title of King of Portugal of the dormant Portuguese throne, as the head of the House of Braganza. The Mig ...

, head of the Portuguese royal house, using the title are: *Infanta Maria Francisca, Duchess of Coimbra: Duarte Pio's 2nd child; *Infante Dinis, Duke of Porto: Duarte Pio's 3rd child; *Infante Miguel, Duke of Viseu: Duarte Pio's 2nd brother; Afonso, Prince of Beira, Duarte Pio's eldest son and heir apparent, is styled

Prince of Beira Prince of Beira ( pt, Príncipe da Beira, feminine: ''Princesa da Beira'') is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent of the heir apparent to the throne of Portugal. The title's original use that it be granted on the eldest daughter o ...

, not ''infante''.

Footnotes