Can a name be just an artificial and meaningless convention?

Like many other Malaysians, I too was all excited waiting for the arrival of the two giant pandas. Aside from children, there is something about furry creatures that has captured the softest spot in my heart, like cats, dogs, bears etc. (except furry men)

I was lucky enough to have the kind of job that allows me to get up close and personal with the Feng Yi and Fu Wa the moment they landed on the land of truly Asia. I was amongst over 50 members of the media whom waited since 5.30am at the MASKargo Complex in KLIA to catch the first glimpse of this beautiful magnificent bamboo eating bear.

I only got to see Feng Yi, the female panda for about 3 minutes. She looked so adorable yet exquisite. Just like her name – Feng Yi which means cheerful mythical bird.

Feng means Phoenix and Yi means cheerful. Feng Yi is indeed a cheerful big bird. Even after travelling thousands of miles, non-sedated, in a steel box, Feng Yi remained bubbly greeting us greeting her.

I did not get to see Fu Wa though, apparently according to an officer with NRE, Fu Wa is a little stressed out with the whole meet and greet event. The pressure of travelling to a new land, adapting to a new environment, new climate, all adds to the stress especially when their flight had been delayed. They were supposed to land at 6.30am when the air is still cool and breezy but they only arrived at 8.00am, when the sun was already up. For this high profile, celeb bear, it is not at all a fun experience.

Fu Wa, the male panda too has a cute and very apt name. Fu Wa means lucky doll or good luck doll - just like how and why he had been loaned to us, to bring us more luck, prosperity and kindness to the ties we have with China - to celebrate 40 years of healthy ties and to 40 more years to come.

So why do we see the need to change their names? So they can be Malaysian?

I remember when my parents adopted two cats with French names – Monsieur Martin and Michelle Suvont. For the obvious reason, which is difficulty in pronouncing these feline friends’ French names that my parents renamed them to Awang and Mek. And after a series of challenging and agonizing times training and communicating with these cats with their new names, after three years, these cats felt a sense of belonging in their new name.

But unlike Awang and Mek, pandas Feng Yi and Fu Wa do not belong to us. Malaysia is just their second home. They will be brought back to their place of birth in ten years time and they need to stay true to their identity.

Can a name be just an artificial and meaningless convention?

We have spent truckloads of money to bring them in, invested millions to imitate and stay closest to their natural habitat. If we want so much for the pandas to feel at home here in a land so foreign to them, then is it not at all ironic that we would want to give them a foreign name?

“Today is a gift. That is why it is called the "present.” - Kung Fu Panda