You might think of Italy's fashion capital when you hear the word Milan, but pop singer Shakira and soccer star Gerard Pique say that isn't what they had in mind when they named their baby boy.
Milan Pique Mebarak was born at 9:36 p.m. Tuesday in Barcelona, Spain, according to an announcement posted on Shakira's website. Mebarak is Shakira's seldom-used surname.
'The name Milan (pronounced MEE-lahn), means dear, loving and gracious in Slavic; in Ancient Roman, eager and laborious; and in Sanskrit, unification,' the announcement said. The 35-year-old Colombian singer first revealed her pregnancy in September, canceling a scheduled weekend concert appearance at a music festival in Las Vegas.
Last week, a black-and-white photo on her website showed a pregnant Shakira, wearing a bikini top, standing beside her 25-year-old boyfriend, who plays for Spain's FC Barcelona.
The couple called for donations to UNICEF as part of a 'world baby shower' for them to raise money for gifts such as polio vaccines, therapeutic food and rehydration salts 'for the benefit of babies everywhere.'
While their son isn't on the soccer field yet, on Tuesday, Shakira's website said, 'Just like his father, baby Milan became a member of FC Barcelona at birth.'
Milan, the couple's first child, weighed approximately 6 pounds, 6 ounces.
'Both mother and child are in excellent he.