Chinese Baby Panda is named "Xian Xian"

On May 16, Kenji Miyahara, Honorary Adviser at Sumitomo Corporation, visited Ya'an Bifengxia Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Sichuan Province, where he named a baby panda.

Mr. Miyahara has long been engaged in the organization of seminars to support the development of laws in China as Chairman of the International Civil and Commercial Law Centre Foundation. In recognition of the contributions he made to the country through this activity, he was given an opportunity to name a baby panda, a rare opportunity indeed for someone who is not Chinese.

Mr. Miyahara named the baby panda "Xian Xian (Ken Ken in Japanese)" after his own first name, Kenji. Xian means "wise" and also "many" in Chinese. Giant pandas are one of the most endangered mammal species in the world, and Mr. Miyahara gave the name to the baby panda in the hope that it will grow healthily and wisely, and that a great many Giant pandas will be born.

At the naming ceremony, Mr. Miyahara said: "It is a great honor for me to name a baby panda. I will continue to make contributions to fostering exchange between Japanese and Chinese citizens and further developing the bilateral relationship."