The zoo messed up when naming April the giraffe's baby
Animal Adventure Park announced the name of April the giraffe's baby, but the meaning behind the name is very different than what the zoo thought.
In case you were stuck under a rock the last few months, the internet was fixated with a giraffe named April at a petting zoo in New York. Because of some YouTube drama, the livestream of the giraffe waiting to give birth went viral—but nothing happened for nearly two months. Finally, the giraffe had a baby.
The community surrounding the birth became pretty close knit, and the zoo decided to hold a vote for the baby giraffe's new name. Zoo owner Jordan Patch went on Good Morning America on Monday to make the announcement, and explained the giraffes new name, Tajiri, means "hope" in Swahili. Except it doesn't--it actually means "rich" or "wealthy."
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
As usual, the internet kept things in check.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Even Google Translate had it right.
The mess up may have been the result of a bad Google search.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
So who cares? Well, the name is actually quite fitting.
Because it took so long for April to deliver her young, the stream picked up a ton of attention, and money. Donations to the park poured in, and major sponsors like Toys 'R Us hopped on board.
The GoFundMe page for April racked up over $170,000 in donations. The naming contest also had its own fundraising aspect, $1 per vote, which the zoo states can be used "to improve the animal and guest experiences at the park with further improvements and projects." Additionally, money from the naming contest will also go to charity and to support the Giraffe Conservation Foundation.
So, Tajir is indeed a rich giraffe.
[h/t:Reuters]
Topics Animals
