In colloquial Castilian Spanish, the word sobrina functions just like "niece" in English, denoting the daughter of one's brother or sister. Across Spain’s legal and dynastic registers, however, the word defines a rigid border. When King Felipe VI ascended the throne in June 2014, he drew an uncompromising line between two distinct groups: the Familia Real (the official Royal Family) and the Familia del Rey (the extended family of the monarch).
The official Royal Family was stripped down to a bare core: King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia, their daughters Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofía, and the king's parents, King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía. The king's sisters, Infanta Elena and Infanta Cristina, were relegated to the outer circle.
Consequently, their daughters, the king’s nieces, never received royal titles. Under a 1987 royal decree, only the children of a monarch or an heir apparent are born as Infantes of Spain. As daughters of Infantas, Victoria Federica and Irene entered the world as private citizens with the formal style of The Most Excellent Dame (Excelentísima Señora), derived from their mothers' titles of Grandees of Spain, but without royal status or state duties.
