Canonical has published the codename for the upcoming Ubuntu 25.04 on its Ubuntu Wiki Releases page, this time, it will be nicknamed the Plucky Puffin. Giving Ubuntu releases an adjective-noun codename, where the noun is an endangered animal, has been a common theme going back to Ubuntu"s first release, twenty years ago.
In the case of Ubuntu 25.04 Plucky is the adjective and means "having or showing determined courage in the face of difficulties" and Puffin is the noun, this animal is defined as "an auk (seabird) of northern and Arctic waters which nests in holes, with a large head and a massive brightly colored triangular bill."
There are some exceptions to the rule of picking an endangered animal, Ubuntu 14.10 was called Utopic Unicorn, Ubuntu 15.10 was called Wily Werewolf, and Ubuntu 23.10 was called Mantic Minotaur - all these creatures are entirely mythical.
Ubuntu 25.04 is due for release on April 17, 2025, and will be supported until January 2026. The short support window is because it is not a long-term support release. We won"t get an LTS until April 2026 and it should come with a standard five years of support, taking us into the new decade.
Canonical released Ubuntu 24.10 Oracular Oriole last week and that version is also supported for nine months until July 2025. That version shipped with the latest Linux 6.11 kernel and the new GNOME 47.
While 24.10 and 25.04 are stable releases, they are not LTS releases. For people who want to get their work done and don"t want to mess around upgrading all of the time then an LTS is a suitable choice.
The latest LTS was Ubuntu 24.04 Noble Numbat which came out in April and got a point release update in August.
Let us know in the comments whether you like this codename!