Giant Panda - Name

Name

No conclusive explanation of the origin of the word "panda" has been found. The closest candidate is the Nepali word ponya, possibly referring to the adapted wrist bone. The Western world originally applied this name to the red panda. Until 1901, when it was erroneously stated to be related to the red panda, the giant panda was known as "mottled bear" (Ailuropus melanoleucus) or "particolored bear".

In most encyclopedic sources, the name "panda" or "common panda" originally referred to the lesser-known red panda, thus necessitating the inclusion of "giant" and "lesser/red" prefixes in front of the names. Even in 2010, the Encyclopædia Britannica still used "giant panda" or "panda bear" for the bear, and simply "panda" for the Ailuridae, despite the popular usage of the word "panda".

Since the earliest collection of Chinese writings, the Chinese language has given the bear 20 different names, such as 花熊 (huā xióng) "spotted bear" and 竹熊 (zhú xióng) "bamboo bear". The most popular names in China today are 大熊貓 (dà xióng māo), literally "large bear cat", or just 熊貓 (xióng māo), "bear cat". The name may have been inspired by the giant panda's eyes, which have cat-like vertical slits – unlike other bear species, which have round pupils.

In Taiwan, the popular name for panda is the inverted 貓熊 (māo xióng) "cat bear", though many encyclopedia and dictionaries in Taiwan still use "bear cat" as the correct name. Some linguists argue, in this construction, "bear" instead of "cat" is the base noun, making this name more grammatically and logically correct, which may have led to the popular choice despite official writings.