Winnipeg Free Press - ONLINE EDITION

Names chosen for zoo's Amur tiger cubs

You can still call them cute.

Or you can now use proper names referring to the two Amur tiger cubs who made their debut at the Assiniboine Park Zoo Monday morning.

Naming the cubs was the object of a Facebook poll that ran from Monday to Thursday. Visitors could choose between three names for each two-month-old cub.

The winning names were Sarma for the female cub (beating out Selenga and Angara) and Peka for the male cub (defeating Ropa and Dusha).

"Sarma" is the name of a river in Russia and "Reka" is the Russian word for river.

The pronunciation offered in the poll for the male cub was ‘Peka,’ but some knowledgable authorities pointed out that in the Russian Cyrillic alphabet, the Russian letter "P" actually translates to "R" in English.

In a press release, the zoo said they chose to "honour the poll results and stick with the name and the meaning behind it, while respecting the Cyrillic spelling and pronunciation."

You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.

Have Your Say

New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.

letters

Make text: Larger | Smaller

LATEST VIDEO

Jets aren't dead (quite) yet

View more like this

Photo Store Gallery

  • A monarch butterfly looks for nectar in Mexican sunflowers at Winnipeg's Assiniboine Park Monday afternoon-Monarch butterflys start their annual migration usually in late August with the first sign of frost- Standup photo– August 22, 2011   (JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS)
  • Jia Ping Lu practices tai chi in Assiniboine Park at the duck pond Thursday morning under the eye of a Canada goose  - See Bryksa 30 Day goose challenge Day 13- May 17, 2012   (JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS)

View More Gallery Photos

Poll

Can Winnipeg support a downtown grocery store?

View Results

Ads by Google