Infante (, ; f. ''infanta''), also

anglicised Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

as "infant" or translated as "prince", is the title and rank given in the

Iberia The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, compri ...

n kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

, Castile,

Navarre Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...

, 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 is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

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 a person with a better claim to the position in question. This is in contrast to an heir app ...

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 , . 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 title Hereditary titles, in a general sense, are nobility titles, positions or styles that are hereditary and thus tend or are bound to remain in particular families. Though both monarchs and nobles usually inherit their titles, the mechanisms often d ...

s of

Spanish nobility The Spanish nobility are people who possess a title of nobility confirmed by the Spanish Ministry of the Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Cortes, as well as those individuals appointed to one of Spain's three highest orders of knightho ...

), although they were occasionally elevated to the title ''de gracia'' ("by grace") at the sovereign's command. 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 Infante (, ; grammatical gender, 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 Crown of Aragon, Aragon, Crown of Castil ...

), sometimes to other agnates of the ruling dynasty (e.g.,

Infante Enrique, Duke of Seville Infante Enrique, Duke of Seville (17 April 182312 March 1870), was an Infante of Spain and a member of the Spanish branch of the House of Bourbon. He was a grandson of Charles IV of Spain and became the first Duke of Seville in 1823. He was k ...

), and to female-line relatives of the monarch (e.g. Infante Sebastian of Portugal and Spain, Infante Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón).

History

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

Romance languages The Romance languages, also known as the Latin or Neo-Latin languages, are the languages that are Language family, directly descended from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-E ...

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. Kings and their female consorts, as well as queens regnant, are usually styled ''Majesty''. When used as a direct form of a ...

(''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 Highness (abbreviation HH, oral address Your Highness) is a formal style used to address (in second person) or refer to (in third person) certain members of a reigning or formerly reigning dynasty. It is typically used with a possessive adjec ...

. 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 the ...

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

Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Beatrice Leopoldine Victoria; 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, a ...

(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 are (by precedence): * Infanta Sofía (daughter of King

Felipe VI Felipe VI (; Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Grecia; born 30 January 1968) is King of Spain. In accordance with the Spanish Constitution, as monarch, he is head of state and commander-in-chief of the Spanish Armed For ...

and Queen consort Letizia, younger sister of

Leonor, Princess of Asturias Leonor, Princess of Asturias (; born 31 October 2005) is the heir presumptive, heiress presumptive to the Spanish throne. She is the elder daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia. Leonor was born during the reign of her paternal grandf ...

, the heir presumptive); * Infanta Elena, Duchess of Lugo (elder daughter of former King

Juan Carlos I Juan Carlos I (; Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 November 1975 until Abdication of Juan Carlos I, his abdic ...

and former Queen consort Sofía); * Infanta Cristina, former (stripped in 2015) Duchess of Palma (younger sister of above); * Infanta Margarita, Duchess of Soria (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 Edward ( ; 31 October 1391 – 9 September 1438), also called Edward the Philosopher King (''Duarte o Rei-Filósofo'') or the Eloquent (''o Eloquente''), was the King of Portugal from 1433 until his death. He was born in Viseu, the son of John I o ...

, 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's retinue. After the accession of the

House of Braganza The Most Serene House of Braganza (), also known as the Brigantine dynasty (''dinastia Brigantina''), is a dynasty of emperors, kings, princes, and dukes of Portuguese people, Portuguese origin which reigned in Europe and the Americas. The hous ...

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 title (academic), h ...

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 is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

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

, not ''infante''.

Footnotes