text: American model Kendra Spears, who has been known as Princess Salwa since her marriage to the Aga Khan's son Prince Rahim, has given birth to her first child. The baby, a  boy named Prince Irfan, was born in the Swiss city of Geneva last Saturday and both mother and child are doing well. News of the birth, which was announced yesterday, has been greeted with joy by the followers of the Aga Khan, who, in a statement, spoke of his family's 'great happiness'. Scroll down for video . Glamorous: Princess Salwa Aga Khan, pictured during a photo shoot last year, has given birth to a son . Ms Spears, a Seattle-born supermodel who has starred in campaigns for Diane von Furstenburg and Chanel among others, married Prince Rahim Aga Khan in 2013 following a four month engagement. The model, 26, had been considered 'the next Cindy Crawford' by her agency Ford Models, but has put her career on the back-burner since becoming wife to the 44-year-old royal. She follows in the footsteps of a string of American royal wives, among them actress Rita Hayworth who was married to Sir Sultan Muhammed Shah Aga Khan. Prince Rahim's younger brother Hussein, 41, also married an American, although his marriage to New Yorker Kristin White, 38, ended shortly after his brother's wedding in 2013. The Jordanian royals have also made a habit of wedding Americans, most famously Lisa Najeeb Halaby who became known as Queen Noor following her marriage. Happy couple: The royal is said to be doing well, according to her husband, Prince Rahim Aga Khan . Striking: Princess Salwa pictured left on her wedding day and right during her catwalk modelling career . Britons have also married into the Jordanian royal dynasty, most notably Antoinette Avril Gardiner, the mother of current ruler Abdullah, . Unlike the Jordanians, the Aga Khan dynasty do not have a country and instead lead the Imami Ismā'īlī Tariqah, a Shi'a Muslim sect . Like the King Abdullah of Jordan, the Aga Khan, a title bestowed upon the family by Persian (now Iran) ruler Fath-Ali Shah Qajar in 1818, claims to be a direct descendant of the Prophet Mohammed. Prince Rahim's father Prince Shah Karim Al Hussaini is the current Aga Khan and took the title aged 20 following the death of his grandfather, Sir Sultan Muhammed Shah, Aga Khan III. A British business magnate and a racehorse enthusiast, he is responsible for adding to the family fortune, which is thought to amount to more than $800m. Not all of the money was acquired through commerce, however. Part of it comes from a tithe paid by Ismaili Muslims called a 'dasond' - the equivalent of 12.5 percent of each person's gross annual income. Royal wives: Rita Hayworth also married into the Aga Khan dynasty while Queen Noor is a Jordanian royal . British connection: King Abdullah II of Jordan, pictured with Prince Charles, has a British mother .
target: Kendra Spears, 26, has given birth to her first child, a son named Irfan .
  The baby, whose father is Prince Rahim Aga Khan, was born in Geneva .
  Ms Spears, now known as Princess Salwa, is said to be doing well .