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Giant panda cub born at western Japan zoo named Saihin
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baby giant panda bear playing (Shutterstock/dangdumrong)
A female giant panda cub born at a zoo in the western Japan prefecture of Wakayama has been named Saihin, the zoo said Monday.
The Adventure World amusement park selected the name for the 4-month-old, 75-centimeter panda cub weighing over 6 kilograms from about 120,000 suggestions solicited from the public.
The character pronounced "sai" means bright and vivid in Japanese, while "hin" is a reading of the second character of the local town's name Shirahama, where the park is located, a spokeswoman at the zoo said.
About 400 fans gathered for a ceremony at the zoo to announce the name.
"I hope the cub will grow up well and make everyone smile," said Kenji Takai, 47, who attended the ceremony with his family.
Read also: Award-winning panda gets bamboo ‘tumpeng’ for birthday
When the cub was born on Aug. 14 to mother Rauhin, 18, and father Eimei, 26, she weighed only 75 grams, becoming the smallest among the pandas born at the facility.
