Jia Jia and De De chosen as names for Hong Kong’s twin panda cubs
Names convey Cantonese slang term for encouragement ‘add oil’ and notion of virtue
Hong Kong’s nine-month-old twin panda cubs, previously known only as “Elder Sister” and “Younger Brother”, have been named Jia Jia and De De, respectively, conveying the Cantonese slang term for encouragement “add oil” and the notion of virtue.
Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Rosanna Law Shuk-pui revealed on Tuesday the results of the panda naming contest, which received more than 35,700 entries from members of the public since submissions opened in February.
“All suggestions reflected beautiful blessings for the giant pandas,” she said.
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Twin giant pandas greet excited public for the first time at Hong Kong’s Ocean Park
The Chinese characters for Jia Jia conveyed a message of support, “add oil” in Cantonese, and had the same pronunciation as the words “home” and “auspices” in Mandarin, the park said.
“Younger Brother” has been named De De, after the Chinese word meaning “success”.
De shares the same pronunciation as the Mandarin and Cantonese pronunciation for “virtue”, suggesting that giant pandas possess virtues cherished by the Chinese.
Jia Jia is also the English name of another panda who lived at Ocean Park until her death in 2016, although the Chinese characters for the name of “Elder Sister” are different.
Chairman Paulo Pong Kin-yee said visitor numbers and revenue had increased during the Easter and Labour Day holidays.