When it comes to British royalty, there are two ways to become a princess: you either need to be born the daughter of a prince, or you have to marry one.

提到英国皇室，想要成为公主只有2种方式，要么投胎成王子的女儿，要么和王子结婚。

That second option is relevant, for example, to Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge. There is a lot of debate in the media over whether or not to call her a princess, but simply put, Kate is a princess, but she's certainly not Princess Kate.

还是第二个比较靠谱，举个例子，剑桥公爵夫人凯瑟琳，媒体上就有关称呼她为公主有许多争论，简单来说，凯特是王妃，而不是凯特公主。

On her wedding day, Kate Middleton took on her new husband Prince William's title, effectively becoming Princess William of Wales, in addition to Her Royal Highness, Duchess of Cambridge.

在她婚礼那天，凯特•米德尔顿，就沿用了威廉王子的称谓，除了叫王室剑桥公爵夫人，正是成为威尔士威廉王妃。

Her princess status was doubly confirmed with the arrival of her son, Prince George. His birth certificate revealed that her official occupation is Princess of the United Kingdom. Not too shabby a job.

在诞下儿子乔治王子以后，她的王妃地位得到了巩固。同时乔治（长子长孙）的诞生也让她成就了名正言顺的王妃地位，让她很有面子。

In much the same way, grandchildren born to the sons of the monarch receive the title of prince or princess, but those born to the daughters of a monarch don't. In the case of the family of Prince and Princess William of Wales: Prince George's children will automatically be princes and princesses; Princess Charlotte's kids will not (unless, of course, a tragedy upends the British line to the throne).

同样的，君王儿子的孙子辈都有王子和公主的头衔，女儿的孙子辈则没有。在威廉夫妇的家庭中，乔治王子的孩子会自动成为王子和公主，而夏洛特公主的孩子则不会。（除非，有一个颠覆英国王位继承人的悲剧）。

According to Lucy Hume, associate director of Debrett's, which is the trusted resource when it comes to matters of British peerage, "Royal titles are inherited through sons, so if Princess Charlotte has children they would not automatically inherit the titles 'HRH,' 'Prince,' or 'Princess.'"

谈起贵族爵位，《德布雷特英国贵族年鉴》中的有可靠的信息来源。其副主任露西休姆表示，“皇室头衔传子不传女，所以夏洛特公主的孩子不会有‘HRH’, ‘王子’，或是‘公主’的称谓。”

This is also why Beatrice and Eugenie, the daughters of Prince Andrew, are princesses, but Zara Phillips, the daughter of Princess Anne, is not.

就解释了为什么，比阿特丽丝和尤金妮娅，安德鲁亲王的女儿们是公主，而的安妮公主的女儿扎拉•菲利普斯不是公主。

That doesn't mean Louise and Zara are unencumbered by royal pomp. "The monarch may offer to bestow a royal title upon his or her daughter's children," says Hume. "For Peter and Zara Phillips, the Queen offered to give them a royal title when they were born, but Princess Anne and Captain Phillips opted to decline this offer."

但这些不意味着，路易斯和扎拉就不是皇室成员了，“君主可以授予女儿或者儿子的孩子们皇室头衔。”休姆说道。“对于皮特和扎拉菲利普斯，在他们出生的时候女王就授予他们皇室头衔，但是安妮公主和菲利浦斯上尉没有接受这项殊荣。”

This question of titular inequity has only really become a concern in the 20th century. For the bulk of British history, marriage was a transactional means to fortify alliances between nations, so princesses typically married princes and their children took on the titles of their father's country. Now that love matches are standard protocol, the question of titles comes into play.

这个头衔上的差异直到20世纪才开始凸显。英国的历史悠久，联姻以前是用来稳固盟国关系，所以各国的公主们会和王子们结婚，孩子会沿用父亲国家的头衔。现在的爱情都是标准协议（享有同样的权利和义务），所以关于皇室名位之战也会上演。

（翻译：林浔鸥）