Public Outraged After Monkey With Same Name As The Royal Baby Was Announced
Mount Takasaki Wild Monkey Park has a tradition of holding a public vote to name the first macaque monkey born each year. This year the winning name just happened to be the same as the newly born Princess of Cambridge. The flap began on Wednesday, May 6th when the Takasakiyama Natural Zoological Garden called a newborn macaque Charlotte, after the name came top in a public ballot.
“The name was publicly solicited and Charlotte suddenly became the most popular choice after the British baby princess’s name was announced,” a zoo official said. “There was no vote for Charlotte before the Monday night announcement,” he added.
Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana was born to Prince William and his wife Kate on May 2nd, a younger sister to Prince George, whom is third in line to inherit the British throne. Since they announced the name, they have been receiving calls and emails from people mostly complaining that it is rude to British people to give a monkey the same name as a member of the royal family.
The zoo in southwestern Oita, on the island of Kyushu, was considering the option of renaming the baby monkey. However, City officials ruled out the complaints settling the debate by saying they would stick to their first choice because there was no protest from the royal family in the UK. The monkey born in a Japanese zoo will keep the name Charlotte, despite concerns that the decision could offend British royals.
