Charlotte the monkey
In a case of incredibly bad timing or insensitivity, a Japanese zoo Wednesday named a newborn macaque monkey, Charlotte.
The news came just two days after the British royal family announced the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had named their daughter born May 2, Charlotte Elizabeth Diana.
The Takasakiyama Natural Zoological Garden located in Oita Prefecture on the southern island of Kyushu immediately apologized for naming a baby monkey Charlotte after it was swamped by angry calls and emails hours after announcing the name for its first monkey born this year, a tradition at the zoo.
"We deeply apologize for causing trouble to many people over the naming of the first baby (monkey)," said the zoo in a statement on its website. "We take these opinions seriously."
Zoo managers said Charlotte was the favorite name in a public ballot. Charlotte received 59 out of 853 votes in until Wednesday when the baby monkey was born.
Irate Japanese said giving the British princess' name to a monkey is disrespectful to the British royal family. Zoo official Akira Asano noted that some of the Japanese that complained said the Japanese would feel offended if a monkey were named after a Japanese princess.
The Japan Times said the zoo was flooded with complaints following the announcement of the baby monkey's name. It said the zoo received about 300 phone calls and email messages demanding a retraction .
The zoo is now considering a new name for the baby macaque, said the Huffington Post.
The British Embassy in Tokyo declined to comment on the brouhaha.
