THE MYSTERY OF WINNIE-THE-POOH

Pooh and Friends

What puzzled me about Pooh, the honey-eating teddy-bear who featured in the writings of the brilliant A.A. Milne, was how he came to be known as Winnie-the-Pooh.  Why Winnie?  Seems a bit effeminate for a bear, even one of very little brain.

Well, here's the answer.  There was an actual Pooh, the toy of Milne's son Christopher Robin.  This actual Pooh (photographed above) has taken up residence in the New York Public Library, along with other toys of Christopher Robin. When Christopher was young, there was a large Canadian bear in London Zoo called Winnipeg, for which Winnie was a short form.  Christopher, as a result, added this to the name of his teddy-bear.

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