The real bear that inspired the “Winnie” in Winnie-the-Pooh was named Winnipeg.
Winnipeg was a female American black bear that lived at London Zoo from 1915 until her death in 1934. Canadian cavalry veterinarian Harry Colebourn bought the cub in Ontario during the First World War and named her after Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Christopher Robin Milne frequently visited the bear at the zoo from 1924 onward. He changed the name of his own teddy bear from Edward Bear to Winnie, helping inspire the name later used by his father, A. A. Milne.
Winnipeg is commonly called Winnie, but “Winnie” was her nickname rather than her formal name. The second part of Pooh’s name came from a swan, so the complete name reflects two different animals. Winnipeg was also a real bear, unlike the fictional teddy bear who lives in the Hundred Acre Wood.