January 20, 2010
PUBLIC ASKED TO VOTE FOR WINNING NAME IN BABY GIRAFFE NAMING CONTEST AT SIX FLAGS DISCOVERY KINGDOM
Contest elicited imaginative and fun names for the giraffe born on Dec. 14
Entries ran the gamut in a contest to name the newest member of the Six Flags Discovery Kingdom family. More than 650 names were submitted from the
San Francisco Bay area and beyond. After careful review, the park has narrowed the list down to the top five contenders and the public can vote for their favorite moniker January 20-29. The winning name will be announced on
February 1, 2010.
“We’re delighted with the response,” said Amy Clancy, Land Animal Manager. “Since the baby giraffe was born on December 14, we’ve had tremendous interest from the public so we really wanted to take the time to go through all of the names we received to find the right match.”
Entrants were asked to submit names that reflected the reticulated giraffe’s origin either in another language or from a cultural or historical reference to the species range in Africa.
The top five names met the criteria and were all from the Swahili language:
1) Jabari - young, powerful, valiant
2) Mosi - first born
3) Zuberi - strong
4) Zuwadi - gift
5) Kendi - the loved one
The public can visit www.sixflags.com/discoverykingdom to vote by clicking on the “Vote Here” link from the home page that refers to the giraffe naming contest. If the final name chosen has duplicate entries, the winning entry will be randomly drawn from among these entries. The winner will receive four complimentary 2010 admission tickets to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, a framed photo of the
giraffe calf, a special opportunity to meet the giraffes and a giant plush giraffe.
In addition to the suggested name, language and translation, entrants were asked to provide the reason they chose their name. In the case with Jabari, the young calf was perceived as brave and valiant, even powerful; several entries received submitted Mosi as the first born of mother Makali and father Nyumeke, and many entries referred to present or gift, since he was born in the month of December, hence the selection of Zuwadi.
Some suggestions took on a more light-hearted slant, with names ranging from “Stretch” and “Stilts” to “Longneck” and “Peepers.” Many names referred to the giraffes’ lofty height, such as “Eiffel” because “he’ll tower over the Kingdom,” and “Star” because he “reaches for the stars.” And still other names had to do with the giraffes’ markings hence the suggestions of “Mosaic,” “Puzzles,” “Patches” and “Spot.” Lozenge, Halls and Vicks, referring to the length of a giraffe’s throat and names such as Noodle (“the giraffe has a neck like a spaghetti noodle”) or Toothpick (“the giraffe is tall and skinny like a toothpick”) were also among the entries.
Participants ranged in age from 18 months to 82 years old and the majority took the direction to find a name in an African language, mostly Swahili, but also in Shona, Hausa and Somalian.
“We were impressed with the extent of the research and effort that went into the name suggestions,” said Clancy. “So many individuals took the task to heart and came up with truly beautiful names. In the end, our selections were based on how the names applied to the little giraffe, and how well the name would roll off the tongue.”
The now six-week-old male giraffe has grown considerably since his birth in December, and is now well over six-feet-tall. He is the first reticulated giraffe born at the park since 1992.
About Six Flags:
Six Flags is a publicly-traded corporation headquartered in New York City and is the world’s largest regional theme park company with 20 parks across the
United States, Mexico and Canada.
