BERLIN — The names of Germany’s newly born panda twins have been revealed, and interestingly, each cub has two names.
The pair of female cubs, delivered at the Berlin Zoo on August 22, were introduced to the public on Friday. They are named Meng Hao and Meng Tian, which mean “beautiful dreams” and “sweet dreams” in Chinese. Alternatively, they have been given the distinctly local names of Leni and Lotti, honoring the iconic Berlin actress Marlene Dietrich and the city’s Charlottenburg district.
As they lounged on their cozy mattress, the adorable baby pandas curiously gazed at the cameras during the name announcement, which was made by the Chinese ambassador to Germany and the mayor of Berlin. This marks the second instance of giant pandas being born in Germany, following in the footsteps of their elder brothers, Meng Xiang and Meng Yuan, more affectionately known as Pit and Paule. The older cubs were born in August 2019 and captivated audiences at the zoo until they were flown back to China nearly a year ago—a decision made long before that faced delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Both pairs of cubs are the progeny of their mother Meng Meng and father Jiao Qing, who took up residence in Berlin in 2017. Zoo director Andreas Knieriem reported that the new cubs are thriving remarkably well, gaining nearly 100 grams (3.5 ounces) each day and currently weighing around 6 kilos (13.2 pounds) apiece.
Given that giant pandas experience challenges when breeding, each successful birth is a significant event. There are approximately 1,800 pandas in their natural habitat in China and several hundred in captivity worldwide. Meng Meng was artificially inseminated in March, as female pandas are only fertile for a limited number of days each year.
For decades, China has been known to share its beloved giant pandas with friendly nations as part of a soft diplomacy strategy known as “panda diplomacy.” Nowadays, pandas are lent to various zoos under more commercial agreements.
Zoo visitors currently have the opportunity to observe one of the cubs for an hour each day. Starting in late January, both twins will be on display alongside their mother, as announced by the zoo.
