Thousands of residents and visitors to the United Arab Emirates, have expressed tremendous interest in naming Emaar’s newest tourist attraction, an original fossil of a 155-million year old she-dinosaur, with The Dubai Mall recording an average of 300 entries per day for its ‘#NameTDMDino’ competition.
Following the unveiling of the dinosaur in The Dubai Mall’s Grand Atrium, the mall launched a social media-wide competition inviting fans and followers to help Emaar name the latest addition to its portfolio.
From play-on-words to phrases that symbolise Emirati heritage, The Dubai Mall has already received a wealth of responses. The Dubai Mall is also reaching out to school students to take part in the competition, with several children having submitted creative names backed by their remarkable knowledge of dinosaurs.
The #NameTDMDino competition, open until March 31, 2014, allows each user to submit three suggested names per entry. The winner of the competition will win a five days/six nights trip for four (two adults and two children under the age of 12) to ‘Jurassic Park’ in Universal Studios, in Orlando, United States, inclusive of flights, accommodation and tickets to the attraction.
Ms. Natalie Bogdanova, Senior Director, Business Development & Operations, Emaar Malls Group, said: “The response to the #NameTDMDino has been overwhelming, with people of various nationalities residing in the UAE, suggesting names that build on both Dubai and The Dubai Mall. With over 3,000 entries to date, we look forward to more entries and eventually select a captivating name that will go down in the history, given the extreme rarity of the exhibit on display.”
With nearly 90 per cent of the fossil’s bones being original, the skeleton characteristic is very unique, given that the most original Diplodocus longus skeleton finding, prior to this, had only 30 per cent of original bones from the overall found structure.
The 24.4 metres long and 7.6 metres tall exhibit of the prehistoric dinosaur is open for free viewing for the public in the Grand Atrium of the mall. The exhibit is the only one-of-its kind in the world and is mounted in an upright position. It has unmatched completeness, consistency, and is highly rated in scientific integrity and preservation.
For more information on the #NameTDMDino competition, please visit: www.thedubaimall.com or follow The Dubai Mall on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TheDubaiMall; and on Twitter: @thedubaimall.