Ikea Norway Offers Help with Baby Names after COVID-19 Boom

The company's logo is seen at an Ikea store in Nice, France, May 11, 2022. (Reuters)
The company's logo is seen at an Ikea store in Nice, France, May 11, 2022. (Reuters)
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Ikea Norway Offers Help with Baby Names after COVID-19 Boom

The company's logo is seen at an Ikea store in Nice, France, May 11, 2022. (Reuters)
The company's logo is seen at an Ikea store in Nice, France, May 11, 2022. (Reuters)

Have you thought about Malm, Kivik or Trotten?

Swedish retailer Ikea is known for the distinctive names of its flat-pack home products. The company's Norway branch wants to use the brand's experience to help parents browsing the baby-naming department.

Ikea Norway has built "a name bank" with more than 800 listings available on its website. The names are drawn from ones Ikea has given to its furniture instead of product numbers since 1948.

"After all these years, (Ikea) has built up a large ‘catalog’ to pick from," Ikea Norway said in a statement.

Ikea names its products after Swedish towns, lakes and other geographical features, but also uses names that have traditionally gone to people.

The branch noted that while retailers saw "both a shortage of raw materials and challenges with delivery times" during the COVID-19 pandemic, "there is at least no shortage of children" in Norway.

The Scandinavian country registered the births of 56,060 babies last year, or 3,081 more than in 2020.

The increase creates "a challenge in finding unique names," Ikea Norway said.



Rare Pallid Bat Spotted in Saudi Arabia's Northern Borders Region

Bats are found on every continent except Antarctica - SPA
Bats are found on every continent except Antarctica - SPA
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Rare Pallid Bat Spotted in Saudi Arabia's Northern Borders Region

Bats are found on every continent except Antarctica - SPA
Bats are found on every continent except Antarctica - SPA

The Pallid bat (Antrozous pallidus), a rare species in the region, was recently spotted in the Saudi Arabia's northern borders.

The region have fostered a rich array of ecosystems, supporting a unique biodiversity that relies heavily on natural resources, according to SPA.

Typically native to the western coast of the Americas, this bat is seldom seen outside its usual range. Its presence in the region highlights the area's pristine nature and hints at the existence of other undiscovered rare and unique species.

Bats, the only mammals capable of flight, are found on every continent except Antarctica.
Biologists have confirmed that the Pallid bat, not native to the Middle East, thrives in arid environments. These bats roost in rock crevices during the day and emerge at night to feed on insects and worms. They hibernate during the winter and give birth to one or two pups in the spring, which they wean after about 40 days.
The primary benefit of bats lies in their role as natural pest controllers. Consuming up to 40% of their body weight in insects daily, including mosquitoes.
Additionally, bats play a critical role in pollinating plants and dispersing seeds, making them invaluable to wildlife restoration efforts in the Kingdom.