The Dallas Zoo has selected the name “Kopano” for its newly born baby giraffe. The name, which was selected in an online poll, means “united” in the Tswana language of African nation Botswana.
An anonymous bidder, who won the naming rights by paying a donation of $50,000, allowed the zoo authorities to put the baby giraffe’s name up for a public vote.
The African names selected by the donor, viz. Kopano, Usawa and Shingo, were then put up for an online public vote. The name “Kopano” received more than 10,000 online votes.
Gregg Hudson, the president and chief executive officer of the zoo, said, “It’s a great feeling to see how involved the public has been in the two weeks since this giraffe calf arrived. The community’s connection to Kopano is critical to our mission of teaching about the importance of these endangered animals in the wild.”
