New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern revealed on Sunday her newborn daughter's name, as she left Auckland hospital with her infant and partner Clarke Gayford.

Ardern, 37, and Gayford announced their child will be called Neve Te Aroha Ardern Gayford, or Neve Gayford, for short.

(Getty/Kyodo)

Ardern, who previously said the couple had struggled to decide on a name before the baby was born, explained the significance of their daughter's name on a video posted on Facebook.

"Neve means 'bright' and 'radiant' and it also means 'snow'," the prime minister said, possibly reflecting that the baby was born in the middle of New Zealand's winter.

The infant's second name "Te Aroha" means "love" in Te Reo Maori, one of New Zealand's national languages.

"We thought it was the best way to capture all of the love that had surrounded our little one, from the moment we announced that she was coming," Ardern said in the video.

Te Aroha is also the name of a rural town in New Zealand where both of Ardern's parents are from.

Ardern and Gayford have received congratulations from many world leaders including Queen Elizabeth and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, according to local media.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also offered his congratulations on Twitter with some parenting advice.

"Pro tip, Jacinda: Briefing notes make excellent bed time stories."

Ardern will return home and remain on maternity leave for six weeks, while Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters stands in as acting prime minister.

Ardern took office as prime minister in October, becoming the youngest female head of government in the world. She is the second woman to give birth while serving as prime minister, after Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan's prime minister in the 1980s and 1990s.