Hong Kong

city and special administrative region of China From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hong Kong
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Hong Kong (/ˌhɒŋˈkɒŋ/ (audio speaker iconlisten); Chinese: 香港, Hong Kong Cantonese: [hœ́ːŋ.kɔ̌ːŋ] (audio speaker iconlisten), literally "Fragrant Port"), officially The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of The People's Republic of China,[17] is one of two Special Administrative Regions (SARs) of the People's Republic of China (the other is Macau).

Quick facts Chinese:, Cantonese Yale romanisation: ...

It is one of the richest and most developed parts in the world, and one where the cost of living is one of the highest. Hong Kong grew quickly in the decades after World War II, becoming a famous world-class financial centre. Hong Kong was one of the last territories of the British Empire until 1997, when United Kingdom handed it over to China. China then promised to grant it special status for 50 years.

The population of Hong Kong is over seven million. The economy has rapidly grown from a trading port to a very rich city. Hong Kong has the most skyscrapers in the world.

Hong Kong is divided into 3 main parts:

Hong Kong was a British colony from 1842 to 1997 as China surrendered the city after losing the Second Opium War. After the handover in 1997, Hong Kong became under Chinese control under special status.

Hong Kong has its own constitution that is different from that of the People's Republic of China (PRC).

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Climate

Hong Kong is in a sub-tropical area, and has monsoon winds. It is cool and wet in winter (January-March), hot and rainy from spring through summer (April-September), and warm, sunny and dry in the autumn (October-December). The rainy season is from May until September. In summer and early autumn, there is a frequent threat of typhoons.

Population and language

The population of Hong Kong reached 7.5 million (7,503,100) in 2023. Most of the people in Hong Kong are Chinese. Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. It has an overall population density of 6,300 people per square kilometre.

Hong Kong has one of the world’s lowest birth rates — 1.05 per woman at an age of being capable to give birth as of 2019. This is far below the rate needed to replace each person, 2.1.

People from Hong Kong mainly speak Cantonese. Students are required to learn English at school. Ever since Hong Kong became a part of China, the number of people who speak Mandarin has increased because Mandarin is the official language of China.

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Public holidays

In Hong Kong, 17 days of the year are public holidays:

Currency

There are coins from 10 cents to 10 Hong Kong Dollars and bank-notes (paper money bills) from $10 to $1000. One American dollar equals to HK$7.80±0.05 Hong Kong Dollars, according to the official pegged exchange rate.

Public transport

  • Mass Transit Railway (MTR) which was established in 1979, owns seven lines (10 lines after KCR merger),
    • Kwun Tong Line (running between Whampoa and Tiu Keng Leng)
    • Tsuen Wan Line (running between Tsuen Wan and Central)
    • Island Line (running between Kennedy Town and Chai Wan)
    • South Island Line (running between Admiralty and South Horizons)
    • Tseung Kwan O Line (running between North Point and Po Lam/LOHAS Park)
    • Tung Chung Line (running between Tung Chung and Hong Kong)
    • Airport Express (running between AsiaWorld-Expo and Hong Kong)
    • Disneyland Resort Line (running between Sunny Bay and Disneyland Resort)
    • East Rail Line (running between Lo Wu/Lok Ma Chau and Admiralty)
    • Tuen Ma Line (running between Tuen Mun and Wu Kai Sha)
  • Bus: there are four major bus companies in Hong Kong, namely KMB which mainly serves Kowloon and New Territories, New World First Bus, which mainly serves Hong Kong Island, New Lantau Bus, which mainly serves Lantau Island, and Citybus, which mainly serves airport routes.
  • Public Light Bus: in the 1960s, it was an illegal transportation, but later on, the government noticed that if there were only buses in Hong Kong, then some villages in N.T. will not have a public transport. Therefore, the Legislative Council made it legal and under government regulation.
  • Tram (running between Kennedy Town, Happy Valley, and Shau Kei Wan)
  • Peak Tram (running between Garden Road and Victoria Peak)
  • Taxi [Red (Kowloon and Hong Kong Island), Green (New Territories), and Blue (Lantau Island)]
  • Ferry (Lots of different companies, including the Star Ferry, First Ferry and Fortune Ferry)
  • Hong Kong International Airport is the main airport. It is the busiest airport in the world in terms of cargo traffic.
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Education

Hong Kong's education system is mostly based on the English system. Children are required to be in school from age 6 until completing secondary school (high school) at age 18.

Universities

Hong Kong has 11 Universities:

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Housing in Hong Kong

According to the International Housing Affordability survey, Hong Kong has the most unaffordable housing market in the world since 2010.[18][19]

Timeline of Hong Kong

Here is a brief history of Hong Kong:

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Some very old rocks found in Hong Kong

Around 4000 BC

  • Sea levels rose above 100 meters

Around 3500 BC

  • Ceramic forms decorated with a wide range of patterns

Around 2000 BC

  • Bronze weapons, knives, arrowheads & tools.
  • Metal worked locally

Around 500 BC

  • Ancient Chinese writing developed

221 BC

220 BC

  • Coins from the Chinese Han period were used in Hong Kong

1555

  • A Portuguese named Jorge Álvares was the first European to reach Hong Kong

1799

  • China banned the drug trade in Hong Kong

1800

  • Opium became a huge business
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Opium flower

1839

  • Lin Zexu was appointed Special Commissioner
  • The First Opium war began

1841

January 26, 1841

  • The British flag was raised at Possession Point, on Hong Kong Island

August 1841

  • Sir Henry Pottinger became Hong Kong's first governor
  • The Treaty of Nanjing was signed, ending the First Opium War

1860

  • China was defeated in the Second Opium War. Boundary Street and Stonecutter's Island were leased to Britain

1888

  • The Peak Tram started operating on Hong Kong Island

1898

  • Lantau Island and the New Territories were leased to the British for 99 years

1900s

  • Hong Kong became a refuge for exiles from China

1920s-1930s

  • Western dress began to come in fashion for the locals

1933-1934

  • Father Daniel Finn began excavations on Lamma Island

1941

  • Refugees fleeing the Chinese Communist Party came to Hong Kong
Thumb
Bauhinia × blakeana was adopted as the floral emblem of Hong Kong by the Urban Council in 1965.
Thumb
The armorial bearings granted by the College of Arms, appointed by the British Sovereign, a part of the Royal Household of the United Kingdom.
Thumb
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China's emblem after it was given to China since 1997. The Chinese name of Bauhinia × blakeana has also been frequently shortened as 紫荊/紫荆 (洋 yáng means "foreign" in Chinese, it's also a bit unfriendly, and this would be deemed inappropriate by the PRC government), although 紫荊/紫荆 refers to another genus called Cercis. A statue of the plant has been erected in Golden Bauhinia Square in Hong Kong. Although the flowers are bright pinkish purple in colour, they are depicted in white on the Flag of Hong Kong.

December 8, 1941

December 25, 1941

  • The British authorities surrendered Hong Kong to the Japanese Army

August 1945

  • Britain reclaimed its territory after Japan's surrender

1949

  • Double-decker buses were introduced to Hong Kong

1950

  • Hong Kong became a free port

1953

  • The Shek Kip Mei Estate was built, establishing the program of public housing

1955

  • A Han period tomb was discovered near Lei Cheng Uk

1983

  • The Hong Kong dollar was tied to the US dollar

1984

  • China and Britain signed the Sino-British Joint Declaration

1990

  • The Hong Kong Basic Law was confirmed

1997

  • Asia's financial crisis
  • Archaeologists discovered 20 graves on the island of Ma Wa
  • Tung Chee Wa elected as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong. Voting was conducted by 400 committees of an electoral college whose members are appointed by the Chinese Government.

July 1, 1997

1998

June 2002

  • Tung Chee Hwa was elected as Chief Executive for a second term.

2003

  • Citizens wanted a more democratic and republican system
  • The SARS epidemic began

March 10, 2005

  • Tung Chee Hwa resigned as chief executive because of health problems.

June 16, 2005

  • Donald Tsang Yam-kuen was elected unopposed as Chief Executive.

March 2012

  • Leung Chun Ying was elected as Chief Executive.

2014

  • People occupied the Central region to demand universal suffrage for the next chief executive election, to take place in 2017.

2015

  • The government voted against the universal suffrage demanded by the people.

2016

  • There were more protests in Mong Kok because the government voted against universal suffrage. Police had to use pepper spray and Tear gas on the protesters to get them to leave.

2019

  • Protestors in Hong Kong demonstrated against a new extradition law proposed by the Hong Kong government.[20][21]It was the largest protest in Hong Kong's history.[22] This law would allow Hong Kong to send people to other jurisdictions where they have committed a crime, including mainland China.[23] People opposed this because of the poor reputation of China due to allegations of torture, forced confessions and arbitrary detentions. There were fears that the bill would just bring Hong Kong closer under China's control, even though Hong Kong have their own judicial system.[24]

2020

  • The Hong Kong National Security Law is created. This law will give Beijing, more power to control Hong Kong. Beijing also put a security office in Hong Kong. The law was created at 11 P.M. on 30 June 2020, Hong Kong Time.[25]
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Media

Hong Kong has a few media companies, notably Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB), HK Television Entertainment (HKTVE), and Fantastic Television. Access to television is not affected by Chinese regulations, such as the Great Firewall, which filters and blocks certain programs.

Places in Hong Kong

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Notes

  1. No specific variety of Chinese is official in the territory. Residents predominantly speak Cantonese, the de facto regional standard.[1][2][3]
  2. For all government use, documents written using Traditional Chinese characters are authoritative over ones inscribed with Simplified Chinese characters.[4] English shares equal status with Chinese in all official proceedings.[5]
  3. Except for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Link Road, which drives on the right.[16]
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References

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