Macao's twin panda cubs named 'Jianjian', 'Kangkang'

MACAO -- Macao's twin panda cubs were officially named "Jianjian" and "Kangkang" by the government out of 1,718 names recommended by Macao citizens, the special administrative region(SAR)'s civil affair authorities said on Saturday.

The names for the twin brothers represent good wishes from the Macao people, as Jian Kang in Chinese means "being healthy". They are chosen by the government out of 1,718 names proposed by 3,587 citizens according to their meaning, pronunciation, and previous panda names, Macao's Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (CMAB) said.

"Jianjian" and "Kangkang" were the most favored choices as they were proposed by 1,117 citizens, some of which said they chose them to wish the panda cubs good health and wish Macao people good health and happy life.

CMAB said another reason for making the choice is their parents' names "Kaikai" and "Xinxin" are frequently used with "Jianjian" and "Kangkang" in Chinese. The combination of this family's names are Kaixin Jiankang, meaning being happy and healthy.

According to the panda care team, the twin cubs now weigh 4,115 grams and 3,335 grams respectively from 135 grams and 53.8 grams at birth. They have their parents' black-and-white appearance, with their eyes open but only can see things in a short distance.

Female panda Xinxin has given birth to the pair of male twin cubs on June 26, 2016. Xinxin and a male panda named Kaikai were chosen from Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in southwest China's Sichuan Province as a gift of the central government to Macao SAR.