If you’ve ever wanted to see a baby polar bear then you absolutely need to visit The Ranua Wildlife Park in Norway. The Polar bear cub, born last November, will be called ‘Sisu’ a Finnish word meaning a combination of persistence, determination and composure.
Naming the polar bear was open to the public and Sisu was suggested by 94 of 18,000 entries in the zoo’s naming competition. The local judges decided it was the most appropriate way to celebrate the centenary of Finland and the municipality of Ranua where the cub is located.
Rejected suggestions included Lumea, Sulo, Ranua, Rane, Finlandia, Satku and Huntti. Some politics enthusiasts suggested Sauli, Mauno and Urho Kaleva, the first names of recent and current Finnish presidents.
Sisu was born last November, and will spend the first two years of his life in Finnish Lapland before being transferred to another wildlife park somewhere in Europe.
In 2011 the first polar bear cub to be born at Ranua was named Ranzo. He was transferred to Vienna Zoo, where he still lives. The father of both Ranzo and Sisu was Manasse, who died recently at Ranua. Mother bear Venus remains at Ranua.
