AP: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and her partner Clarke Gayford have named their baby daughter Neve and say they want her to grow up in a world in which she can make choices about her family and career based on what she wants.
Ardern made her first public appearance on Sunday since giving birth to her daughter on Thursday.
She answered a few questions from reporters while holding her baby at Auckland City Hospital before she planned on returning home. She will take six weeks of leave before returning to work.
Ardern is just the second elected world leader to give birth while holding office. Many hope the 37-year-old will become a role model for combining motherhood with political leadership.
Ardern said Neve means "bright" and "radiant" as well as "snow," which was fitting because the baby was born on the Southern Hemisphere's winter solstice. Te Aroha means "love" in New Zealand's indigenous Maori language, and Ardern said that name reflected the amount of love and generosity that people had shown the couple even before the baby arrived.
"So I hope for little girls and boys that actually there's a future where they can make choices about how they raise their family and what kind of career they have that are based on what they want and what makes them happy," she said. "Simple."
She said that having a child would likely make her view the world differently and enhance political views that were already focused on children.
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