Hong Kong's baby pandas finally get names – meet Jia Jia and De De
The names of the cubs, affectionately known as Elder Sister and Little Brother, were announced in a ceremony at Ocean Park, the theme park housing them, their parents and two other giant pandas who arrived from mainland China last year.
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Giant panda Ying Ying, left, and her daughter Jia Jia in their enclosure in Ocean Park in Hong Kong (Chan Long Hei/AP)
The names were the winning suggestions from residents in a naming contest that drew more than 35,700 entries.
The Chinese character Jia, from the female cub's name Jia Jia, carries a message of support and is said to feature an element of family and a sense of grace. The name embodies the prosperity of families and the nation and the happiness of the people, the park said.
The Chinese character De, from the male cub's name, means to succeed, carrying the connotation that Hong Kong is successful in everything. De also has the same pronunciation as the Chinese character for virtue, the park said, suggesting that giant pandas possessed virtues cherished by Chinese people.
Jia Jia's name is said to carry a message of support (Chan Long Hei/AP)
Ocean Park chairman Paulo Pong said they had followed tradition by using Mandarin pronunciation for the pandas' English names. He said Jia sounded like a word in the Cantonese term for 'elder sister', while De De sounded a bit like the Cantonese phrase for 'little brother'.
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Cantonese is the mother language of many Hong Kongers.
'It's a very positive pair of names,' he said.
'We have to be a bit creative here with the names.'
The cubs attracted visitors on Tuesday who lined up to see them (Chan Long Hei/AP)
The cubs, who live with their mother, attracted visitors on Tuesday who lined up to see them. Jia Jia explored a rock and walked around their area, while De De climbed onto a tall tree.
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The twins' birth in August made their mother, Ying Ying, the world's oldest first-time panda mother. Their popularity among residents, visitors and on social media raised hopes for a tourism boost in the city, where politicians touted the commercial opportunities as the 'panda economy'.
Observers are watching whether housing six pandas helps the park revive its business, especially when caring for the animals in captivity is expensive. Ocean Park recorded a deficit of 71.6 million Hong Kong dollars (£6.7 million) last financial year.
The pandas' names were announced in a ceremony at Ocean Park (Chan Long Hei/AP)
The park recorded a nearly 40% growth in visitor flow and 40% increase in overall income during a five-day holiday beginning May 1 in mainland China, said Mr Pong, who hopes the growth momentum will continue through the summer, Halloween and Christmas seasons.
Pandas are considered China's unofficial national mascot. The country's giant panda loan programme with overseas zoos has long been seen as a tool of Beijing's soft-power diplomacy.
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