Published: 11:36pm, 7 Dec 2024Updated: 1:08am, 8 Dec 2024
Two adult giant pandas gifted to Hong Kong by Beijing will keep their existing names in a move officials have said signifies the city’s stability and unlimited possibilities, with the pair set to meet the public for the first time on Sunday.
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The unchanged names – “An An” for the male and “Ke Ke” for the female – were announced at a ceremony attended by hundreds of VIPs including mainland Chinese and local officials on Saturday.
“An An” denotes a peaceful and stable future for Hong Kong while “Ke Ke” suggests unlimited possibilities for the city in the future. A combination of the two names, “An Ke”, means “encore” in Chinese, suggesting a series of auspicious things will come one after another.
A citywide naming competition for the five-year-old pandas, which arrived in Hong Kong in September and are housed at Ocean Park with four others, including two cubs, earlier drew 22,600 entries.
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said the gift of the pandas meant three things.
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