KEY POINTS:
Auckland Zoo's three-week-old female giraffe has been named Ntombi.
The zoo held a public competition to name her and received close to 1000 entries from all over New Zealand.
"We wanted a name of cultural significance to symbolise her heritage.
"The name Ntombi stood out for a number of reasons, it is of Zulu origin, which is a native African language and it means 'girl' or 'lady' - something we are very pleased she is," said Auckland Zoo Pridelands team leader, Michael Batty.
Several people submitted the name but the winner of the naming competition was six-year-old Jade Lusty from Papakura, Auckland.
Jade loves giraffes and is very excited about going behind the scenes at the zoo to meet Ntombi, her prize for winning the competition, the zoo said.
Ntombi is the first female giraffe born at Auckland Zoo in 15 years.
She will stay with mum Kay in Auckland until she is about one. But she will then move to another zoo within the Australasian region to strengthen the genetic pool for breeding.
- NZ HERALD STAFF
