Now the name game begins for Zoo Atlanta's female panda cub.

Nothing's been settled yet, except that it'll probably have a Chinese ring to it.

JOHN SPINK/Staff (ENLARGE)

Emily? Madison? Probably not, but Zoo Atlanta might seek public input on the cub's name.

RON GARRISON/San Diego Zoo (ENLARGE)

Hua Mei

KEN BOHN/AFP/Getty Images (ENLARGE)

Mei Sheng

KEN BOHN/San Diego Zoo (ENLARGE)

Su Lin

ANN BATDORF/Smithsonian Institution (ENLARGE)

Tai Shan

"The process will involve input from both the Atlanta community as well as our Chinese colleagues" from the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, which has loaned the animals, said zoo President and CEO Dennis Kelly.

And while the names of the cub's parents — Lun Lun and Yang Yang — were picked by paying sponsors (see box), that won't be the case this time, zoo spokeswoman Susan Elliott said.

One idea is to have the public choose the baby's name in an online poll.

Even when it's picked, the cub's name will not be announced until mid-December. According to Chinese custom, the zoo will hold a naming ceremony 100 days after the cub's birth, which was Sept. 6.

Atlanta's cub is the fifth panda born in the United States. The previous four were all named in different ways. San Diego Zoo has birthed three. The first name, Hua Mei, was selected by Chinese officials, according to Yadira Galindo, a zoo spokeswoman. (China owns all the American pandas and has long-term loans with four American zoos, including Zoo Atlanta.) The second, Mei Sheng, was suggested by the American zoo. The third, Su Lin, was also suggested by the zoo, but online voters selected the winner from a list of finalists suggested by the zoo and China.

Similarly, National Zoo's cub, Tai Shan, born last year, was chosen in an online poll from a list of five finalists, a mix of candidates provided by the zoo and China.

Zoo Atlanta's cub "will most likely be a Chinese name," panda curator Rebecca Snyder said. "We'll take a lot of things into account for that."

LIVING IN ATLANTA

Yang Yang: Born in 1997. Male. Chengdu Research Base, China, Birth name is Jiu Jiu. He was renamed by three organizations in the Netherlands that "adopted" him at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. Yang Yang translates to "little sea."

Lun Lun

Born in 1997. Female. Chengdu Research Base. Her birth name is Hua Hua. She was renamed by a Taiwanese rock star, Su Huilun, who "adopted" her at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. Lun Lun is a derivative of the singer's name. (Repeat names are a sign of affection in China.)

OTHERS BORN IN THE USA

Hua Mei: Born in 1999. Female. San Diego Zoo. Translation: "China USA."

Mei Sheng: Born in 2003. Male. San Diego Zoo. Translation: "Born in the USA."

Su Lin: Born in 2005. Female. San Diego Zoo. Translation: "A little bit of something very cute." (Su Lin is also the name of the first live panda brought to the U.S., in 1936. It died in Chicago's Brookfield Zoo two years later.)

Tai Shan: Born in 2005. Male. National Zoo, Washington. Translation: "Peaceful mountain."