Otherwise known as BeiBei, JingJing, HuanHuan, YingYing, and NiNi.... These little people were given to us last night by a newly arrived Chinese student. The Five Friendlies, official mascots of the Beijing 2008 Olympic games, are inspired by the color of the five Olympic rings.
And of course, being Chinese, they symbolize something! The Friendlies display the traits of the fish, the panda, the Tibetan antelope, the swallow, and the Olympic flame. Traditionally the fish is the symbol of prosperity, so BeiBei carries the blessing of prosperity. The next Friendly, JingJing is a panda, which was selected for optimism and happiness. The red Friendly, HuanHuan represents the Olympic flame - for passion. Next comes YingYing, the orange antelope, who represents harmony and health. The last Friendly is NiNi, the swallow, for good luck.
When the names are put together - Beijing huanying ni - they say, "Welcome to Beijing."
1 comment:
Interesting! I enjoyed learning that and I'm glad to know they have some actual meaning. Have you ever noticed that quite often, the Olympic mascot is just...really weird and meaningless? LOL
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