Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (
abbr.
An abbreviation (from Latin ''brevis'', meaning ''short'') is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method. It may consist of a group of letters or words taken from the full version of the word or phrase; for example, the word ''abbrevia ...
Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
and
special administrative region of
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
on the eastern
Pearl River Delta
The Pearl River Delta Metropolitan Region (PRD; ; pt, Delta do Rio das Pérolas (DRP)) is the low-lying area surrounding the Pearl River estuary, where the Pearl River flows into the South China Sea. Referred to as the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Mac ...
in
South China
South China () is a geographical and cultural region that covers the southernmost part of China. Its precise meaning varies with context. A notable feature of South China in comparison to the rest of China is that most of its citizens are not n ...
. With 7.5 million residents of various nationalities in a territory, Hong Kong is one of the
most densely populated places in the world. Hong Kong is also a major global
financial centre
A financial centre ( BE), financial center ( AE), or financial hub, is a location with a concentration of participants in banking, asset management, insurance or financial markets with venues and supporting services for these activities to ta ...
and one of the
most developed cities in the world.
Hong Kong was established as a
colony of the British Empire after the
Qing Empire
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
ceded
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong, island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km ...
from
Xin'an County
Xin'an County () is a county in the west of Henan Province, bordering Shanxi Province to the north across the Yellow River. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Luoyang, and contains its northernmost point.
History
In an ...
at the end of the
First Opium War
The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...
in 1841 then again in 1842.
[.] The colony expanded to the
Kowloon Peninsula
The Kowloon Peninsula is a peninsula that forms the southern part of the main landmass in the territory of Hong Kong, alongside Victoria Harbour and facing toward Hong Kong Island. The Kowloon Peninsula and the area of New Kowloon are collect ...
in 1860 after the
Second Opium War
The Second Opium War (), also known as the Second Anglo-Sino War, the Second China War, the Arrow War, or the Anglo-French expedition to China, was a colonial war lasting from 1856 to 1860, which pitted the British Empire and the French Emp ...
and was further extended when Britain obtained a
99-year lease of the
New Territories in 1898.
[.][.] British Hong Kong was
occupied
' (Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 October 2 ...
by
Imperial Japan from
1941
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January–August – 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at Hadamar Eu ...
to
1945
1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat.
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
Januar ...
during
World War II; British administration resumed after the
surrender of Japan
The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally signed on 2 September 1945, bringing the war's hostilities to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy ...
.
[Snow, Philip. ]004 004, 0O4, O04, OO4 may refer to:
* 004, fictional British 00 Agent
* 0O4, Corning Municipal Airport (California)
* O04, the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation
* Abdul Haq Wasiq, Guantanamo detainee 004
* Junkers Jumo 004 turbojet engine
* Lauda ...
(2004). The fall of Hong Kong: Britain, China and the Japanese occupation. Yale University Press. , . The whole territory was
transferred to China in 1997.
[.] As one of China's two special administrative regions (the other being
Macau), Hong Kong maintains separate governing and economic systems from that of
mainland China under the principle of "
one country, two systems
"One country, two systems" is a constitutional principle of the People's Republic of China (PRC) describing the governance of the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau.
The constitutional principle was formulated in the early ...
".
Originally a sparsely populated area of farming and fishing villages,
the territory has become one of the world's most significant financial centres and commercial ports. It is the world's tenth-largest exporter and ninth-largest importer.
Hong Kong has a
market economy
A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand, where all suppliers and consumers ...
characterised by a focus on
services, low taxation and
free trade; its currency, the
Hong Kong dollar, is the eighth most traded currency in the world. Hong Kong is home to the
third-highest number of billionaires of any city in the world, the second-highest number of billionaires of any city in Asia, and the largest concentration of
ultra high-net-worth individuals of any city in the world. Although the city has one of the highest
per capita incomes in the world, severe
income inequality exists among the population. Most notably,
housing in Hong Kong has been well-documented to experience a chronic persistent shortage; the extremely compact house sizes and the extremely high
housing density
Urban density is a term used in urban planning and urban design to refer to the number of people inhabiting a given urbanized area. As such it is to be distinguished from other measures of population density. Urban density is considered an importan ...
are the effects of Hong Kong's housing market being the least affordable and the
most expensive housing market in the world.
Hong Kong is a
highly developed territory and ranks fourth on the
UN Human Development Index
The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, whi ...
.
The city has
the largest number of skyscrapers of any city in the world,
and its residents have some of the
highest life expectancies in the world.
The dense space has led to a highly developed transportation network with public transport rates exceeding 90%.
Hong Kong is ranked 3rd in the
Global Financial Centres Index.
Etymology
The name of the territory, first
romanised
Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...
as "He-Ong-Kong" in 1780, originally referred to a small inlet located between
Aberdeen Island and the southern coast of Hong Kong Island.
Aberdeen was an initial point of contact between British sailors and local fishermen. Although the source of the romanised name is unknown, it is generally believed to be an early phonetic rendering of the
Cantonese (or
Tanka Cantonese) phrase ''hēung góng''. The name translates as "fragrant harbour" or "incense harbour".
[.] "Fragrant" may refer to the sweet taste of the harbour's freshwater influx from the Pearl River or to the odour from incense factories lining the coast of northern
Kowloon
Kowloon () is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. With a population of 2,019,533 and a population density of in 2006, it is the most populous area in Hong Kong, compared with Hong Kong Island and t ...
. The incense was stored near Aberdeen Harbour for export before
Victoria Harbour was developed.
Sir John Davis
}
Sir John Henry Harris Davis (10 November 1906 – 27 May 1993) was an English businessman and accountant. He was the managing director, later chairman, of The Rank Organisation
Early life
John Davis was born in the City of London in 1906 to Si ...
(the second colonial governor) offered an alternative origin; Davis said that the name derived from "Hoong-keang" ("red torrent"), reflecting the colour of soil over which a waterfall on the island flowed.
The simplified name ''Hong Kong'' was frequently used by 1810. The name was also commonly written as the single word ''Hongkong'' until 1926, when the government officially adopted the two-word name. Some corporations founded during the early colonial era still keep this name, including
Hongkong Land
Hongkong Land (HKL) is a property investment, management and development group with commercial and residential property interests across Asia. It owns and manages some 850,000 sq. m. of office and retail property in Asia, principally in Hong K ...
,
Hongkong Electric Company
The Hongkong Electric Company (HEC; ) is one of Hong Kong's two main electricity generation companies, the other being China Light & Power. The company is owned by several companies including Power Assets Holdings, State Grid Corporation of Chi ...
,
Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels and
the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC).
[.]
History
Prehistory and Imperial China
Earliest known human traces in what is now Hong Kong are dated by some to 35,000 and 39,000 years ago during the
Paleolithic
The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...
period. The claim is based on an archaeological investigation in
Wong Tei Tung,
Sai Kung
Sai Kung may refer to:
* Sai Kung Town, or just Sai Kung, a town and administrative area in the Sai Kung District, Hong Kong
* Sai Kung Peninsula, a peninsula in Hong Kong
* Sai Kung District, an administrative district in Hong Kong, which does no ...
in 2003. The archaeological works revealed
knapped stone tool
A stone tool is, in the most general sense, any tool made either partially or entirely out of stone. Although stone tool-dependent societies and cultures still exist today, most stone tools are associated with prehistoric (particularly Stone Ag ...
s from deposits that were dated using optical
luminescence dating
Luminescence dating refers to a group of methods of determining how long ago mineral grains were last exposed to sunlight or sufficient heating. It is useful to geologists and archaeologists who want to know when such an event occurred. It uses var ...
.
During the
Middle Neolithic period, about 6,000 years ago, the region had been widely occupied by humans.
[.] Neolithic to
Bronze Age Hong Kong settlers were semi-coastal people. Early inhabitants are believed to be
Austronesians in the Middle Neolithic period and later the
Yueh people.
As hinted by the archaeological works in Sha Ha, Sai Kung, rice cultivation had been introduced since
Late Neolithic
In the archaeology of Southwest Asia, the Late Neolithic, also known as the Ceramic Neolithic or Pottery Neolithic, is the final part of the Neolithic period, following on from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic and preceding the Chalcolithic. It is some ...
period.
[.] Bronze Age Hong Kong featured coarse pottery, hard pottery, quartz and stone jewelry, as well as small bronze implements.
The
Qin dynasty incorporated the Hong Kong area into China for the first time in 214 BCE, after
conquering the indigenous Baiyue. The region was consolidated under the
Nanyue kingdom (a predecessor state of Vietnam) after the Qin collapse
[.] and recaptured by China after the
Han conquest. During the
Mongol conquest of China in the 13th century, the
Southern Song court was briefly located in modern-day
Kowloon City (the
Sung Wong Toi site) before its final defeat in the 1279
Battle of Yamen.
[.] By the end of the
Yuan dynasty, seven large families had settled in the region and owned most of the land. Settlers from nearby provinces migrated to Kowloon throughout the
Ming dynasty.
The earliest European visitor was
Portuguese explorer
Jorge Álvares, who arrived in 1513. Portuguese merchants established a trading post called
Tamão in Hong Kong waters and began regular trade with southern China. Although the traders were expelled after
military clashes in the 1520s, Portuguese-Chinese trade relations were
re-established by 1549. Portugal acquired a permanent lease for
Macau in 1557.
After the
Qing conquest, maritime trade was banned under the ''
Haijin'' policies. From 1661 to 1683, the population of most of the area forming present day Hong Kong was cleared under the
Great Clearance, turning the region into a wasteland.
The
Kangxi Emperor lifted the maritime trade prohibition, allowing foreigners to enter Chinese ports in 1684. Qing authorities established the
Canton System in 1757 to regulate trade more strictly, restricting non-Russian ships to the port of
Canton
Canton may refer to:
Administrative division terminology
* Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland
* Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French
Arts and ent ...
. Although European demand for Chinese commodities like tea, silk, and porcelain was high, Chinese interest in European manufactured goods was insignificant, so that Chinese goods could only be bought with precious metals. To reduce the trade imbalance, the British sold large amounts of Indian
opium
Opium (or poppy tears, scientific name: ''Lachryma papaveris'') is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which i ...
to China. Faced with a drug crisis, Qing officials pursued ever more aggressive actions to halt the opium trade.
British colony
![Hong Kong 1868](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Hong_Kong_1868.jpg)
In 1839, the
Daoguang Emperor rejected proposals to legalise and tax opium and ordered imperial commissioner
Lin Zexu to eradicate the opium trade. The commissioner destroyed opium stockpiles and halted all foreign trade, triggering a British military response and the First Opium War. The Qing surrendered early in the war and ceded Hong Kong Island in the
Convention of Chuenpi. British forces began controlling Hong Kong shortly after the signing of the convention, from 26 January 1841. However, both countries were dissatisfied and did not ratify the agreement. After more than a year of further hostilities, Hong Kong Island was formally ceded to the
United Kingdom in the 1842
Treaty of Nanking.
Administrative infrastructure was quickly built by early 1842, but piracy, disease, and hostile Qing policies initially prevented the government from attracting commerce. Conditions on the island improved during the
Taiping Rebellion in the 1850s, when many Chinese refugees, including wealthy merchants, fled mainland turbulence and settled in the colony.
Further tensions between the British and Qing over the opium trade escalated into the Second Opium War. The Qing were again defeated and forced to give up
Kowloon Peninsula
The Kowloon Peninsula is a peninsula that forms the southern part of the main landmass in the territory of Hong Kong, alongside Victoria Harbour and facing toward Hong Kong Island. The Kowloon Peninsula and the area of New Kowloon are collect ...
and
Stonecutters Island in the
Convention of Peking.
By the end of this war, Hong Kong had evolved from a transient colonial outpost into a major
entrepôt. Rapid economic improvement during the 1850s attracted foreign investment, as potential stakeholders became more confident in Hong Kong's future.
![Flag of Hong Kong 1959](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Flag_of_Hong_Kong_%281959%E2%80%931997%29.svg)
The colony was further expanded in 1898 when Britain obtained a 99-year lease of the New Territories.
The
University of Hong Kong was established in 1911 as the territory's first institution of higher education.
Kai Tak Airport began operation in 1924, and the colony avoided a prolonged economic downturn after the 1925–26
Canton–Hong Kong strike.
[.] At the start of the
Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Governor
Geoffry Northcote declared Hong Kong a neutral zone to safeguard its status as a free port. The colonial government prepared for a possible attack, evacuating all British women and children in 1940. The
Imperial Japanese Army attacked Hong Kong on 8 December 1941, the same morning as its
attack on Pearl Harbor. Hong Kong was
occupied by Japan for almost four years before Britain resumed control on 30 August 1945.
Its population rebounded quickly after the war, as skilled Chinese migrants fled from the
Chinese Civil War and more refugees crossed the border when the
Chinese Communist Party took control of mainland China in 1949.
[.] Hong Kong became the first of the
Four Asian Tiger
The Four Asian Tigers (also known as the Four Asian Dragons or Four Little Dragons in Chinese and Korean) are the developed East Asian economies of Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan. Between the early 1960s and 1990s, they underwent r ...
economies to industrialise during the 1950s. With a rapidly increasing population, the colonial government attempted reforms to improve infrastructure and public services. The
public-housing estate programme,
Independent Commission Against Corruption, and
Mass Transit Railway were all established during the post-war decades to provide safer housing, integrity in the civil service, and more reliable transportation.
Nevertheless, widespread public discontent resulted in multiple protests from the 1950s to 1980s, including pro-
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...
and pro-
Chinese Communist Party protests. In the
1967 Hong Kong riots
The 1967 Hong Kong riots were large-scale anti-government riots that occurred in Hong Kong during British colonial rule. Beginning as a minor labour dispute, the demonstrations eventually escalated into protests against the British colonial go ...
, pro-
PRC protestors clashed with the British colonial government. As many as 51 were killed and 802 were injured in the violence, including dozens killed by the
Royal Hong Kong Police via beatings and shootings.
Although the territory's competitiveness in manufacturing gradually declined because of rising labour and property costs, it transitioned to a service-based economy. By the early 1990s, Hong Kong had established itself as a global financial centre and shipping hub.
Chinese special administrative region
The colony faced an uncertain future as the end of the New Territories lease approached, and
Governor Murray MacLehose raised the question of Hong Kong's status with
Deng Xiaoping in 1979. Diplomatic negotiations with China resulted in the 1984
Sino-British Joint Declaration, in which the United Kingdom agreed to transfer the colony in 1997 and China would guarantee Hong Kong's economic and political systems for 50 years after the transfer.
[.] The impending transfer triggered a
wave of mass emigration as residents feared an erosion of civil rights, the rule of law, and quality of life. Over half a million people left the territory during the peak migration period, from 1987 to 1996.
The Legislative Council became a
fully elected legislature for the first time in 1995 and extensively expanded its functions and organisations throughout the last years of the colonial rule. Hong Kong was transferred to China on 1 July 1997, after 156 years of British rule.
Immediately after the transfer, Hong Kong was severely affected by several crises. The Hong Kong government was forced to use substantial
foreign exchange reserves to maintain the Hong Kong dollar's currency peg during the
1997 Asian financial crisis
The Asian financial crisis was a period of financial crisis that gripped much of East Asia and Southeast Asia beginning in July 1997 and raised fears of a worldwide economic meltdown due to financial contagion. However, the recovery in 1998–1 ...
,
and the recovery from this was muted by an
H5N1 avian-flu outbreak and a housing surplus. This was followed by the
2003 SARS epidemic, during which the territory experienced its most serious economic downturn.
Political debates after the transfer of sovereignty have centred around the region's
democratic development
Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose gov ...
and the
Chinese central government's adherence to the "one country, two systems" principle. After reversal of the last colonial era Legislative Council
democratic reforms following the handover, the regional government unsuccessfully attempted to enact
national security legislation pursuant to
Article 23 of the Basic Law
Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 () is an article in the Basic Law, the constitution of Hong Kong. It states that Hong Kong "shall enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People's ...
. The central government decision to implement
nominee pre-screening before allowing
chief executive elections triggered a series of
protests in 2014 which became known as the Umbrella Revolution. Discrepancies in the electoral registry and disqualification of elected legislators after the
2016 Legislative Council elections and enforcement of national law in the
West Kowloon high-speed railway station raised further concerns about the region's autonomy. In June 2019,
mass protests erupted in response to a
proposed extradition amendment bill permitting the extradition of fugitives to mainland China. The protests are the largest in Hong Kong's history,
with organisers claiming to have attracted more than three million Hong Kong residents.
The Hong Kong regional government and Chinese central government responded to the protests with a number of administrative measures to quell dissent. In June 2020, the Legislative Council passed the
National Anthem Ordinance, which criminalised "insults to the national anthem of China". The Chinese central government meanwhile enacted the
Hong Kong national security law to help quell protests in the region.
Nine months later, in March 2021, the Chinese central government introduced
amendments to Hong Kong's electoral system, which included the reduction of directly elected seats in the Legislative Council and the requirement that all candidates be vetted and approved by a Beijing-appointed
Candidate Eligibility Review Committee.
Government and politics
![Legislative Council Complex 2011 Chamber](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Legislative_Council_Complex_2011_Chamber.JPG)
Hong Kong is a
special administrative region of China, with executive, legislative, and judicial powers
devolved from the
national government A national government is the government of a nation.
National government or
National Government may also refer to:
* Central government in a unitary state, or a country that does not give significant power to regional divisions
* Federal governme ...
. The Sino-British Joint Declaration provided for economic and administrative continuity through the transfer of sovereignty,
resulting in an
executive-led governing system largely inherited from the territory's history as a British colony.
Under these terms and the "one country, two systems" principle, the
Basic Law of Hong Kong is the regional constitution. The regional government is composed of three branches:
* ''Executive:'' The
Chief Executive is responsible for enforcing regional law,
can force reconsideration of legislation, and appoints
Executive Council members and
principal officials. Acting with the Executive Council, the
Chief Executive-in-Council can propose new bills, issue
subordinate legislation, and has authority to
dissolve the legislature. In
states of emergency
A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to be able to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state du ...
or public danger, the Chief Executive-in-Council is further empowered to enact any regulation necessary to restore public order.
* ''Legislature:'' The unicameral
Legislative Council enacts regional law, approves budgets, and has the power to
impeach a sitting chief executive.
* ''
Judiciary:'' The
Court of Final Appeal and lower courts interpret laws and overturn those inconsistent with the Basic Law.
[.] Judges are appointed by the chief executive on the advice of a recommendation commission.
The chief executive is the
head of government and serves for a maximum of two five-year terms. The
State Council State Council may refer to:
Government
* State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of South Korea, headed by the President
* State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative auth ...
(led by the
Premier of China) appoints the chief executive after nomination by the
Election Committee
The Election Committee is a Hong Kong electoral college, the function of which is to select the Chief Executive (CE) and, since 2021, to elect 40 of the 90 members of the Legislative Council. Established by Annex I of the Basic Law of Hong ...
, which is composed of 1,200 business, community, and government leaders.
The Legislative Council has 90 members, each serving a four-year term. Twenty are directly elected from
geographical constituencies, thirty-five represent
functional constituencies
A functional constituency is an electoral device (a non-geographical constituency) used within the political systems of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China:
* Functional constituency (Hong Kong)
* Functional cons ...
(FC), and forty are chosen by an
election committee
The Election Committee is a Hong Kong electoral college, the function of which is to select the Chief Executive (CE) and, since 2021, to elect 40 of the 90 members of the Legislative Council. Established by Annex I of the Basic Law of Hong ...
consisting of representatives appointed by the Chinese central government.
Thirty FC councillors are selected from limited electorates representing sectors of the economy or special interest groups,
and the remaining five members are nominated from sitting
district council District council may refer to:
*A branch of local government in the United Kingdom:
**Supervising one of the Districts of England:
***A Metropolitan borough
***A Non-metropolitan district
***A Unitary authority
**Supervising one of the Principal ...
members and selected in region-wide
double direct election In Canada, a double direct election is an election in which an individual is elected to two political offices in one electoral event. The elected individual serves on a regional council and a constituent municipal government within that region. It d ...
s. All popularly elected members are chosen by
proportional representation. The 30 limited electorate functional constituencies fill their seats using
first-past-the-post or
instant-runoff
Instant-runoff voting (IRV) is a type of ranked preferential voting method. It uses a majority voting rule in single-winner elections where there are more than two candidates. It is commonly referred to as ranked-choice voting (RCV) in the Un ...
voting.
Twenty-two political parties had representatives elected to the Legislative Council in the
2016 election
The following elections occurred in the year 2016.
Africa
Benin Republic
*2016 Beninese presidential election 6 March 2016
Cape Verde
* 2016 Cape Verdean presidential election 2 October 2016
Chad
* 2016 Chadian presidential election 10 A ...
. These parties have aligned themselves into three ideological groups: the
pro-Beijing camp (the current government), the
pro-democracy camp, and
localist groups. The Chinese Communist Party does not have an official political presence in Hong Kong, and its members do not run in local elections. Hong Kong is represented in the
National People's Congress by 36 deputies chosen through an electoral college and 203 delegates in the
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC, zh, 中国人民政治协商会议), also known as the People's PCC (, ) or simply the PCC (), is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of ...
appointed by the central government.
Chinese national law does not generally apply in the region, and Hong Kong is treated as a separate jurisdiction.
Its judicial system is based on
common law, continuing the legal tradition established during British rule. Local courts may refer to precedents set in
English law
English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures.
Principal elements of English law
Although the common law has, historically, be ...
and overseas jurisprudence. However,
mainland criminal procedure law applies to cases investigated by the
Office for Safeguarding National Security of the CPG in the HKSAR.
Interpretative and amending power over the Basic Law and jurisdiction over acts of state lie with the central authority, making regional courts ultimately subordinate to the mainland's
socialist civil law system. Decisions made by the
Standing Committee of the National People's Congress
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China (NPCSC) is the permanent body of the National People's Congress (NPC) of the People's Republic of China (PRC), which is the highest organ of state po ...
override any territorial judicial process.
Furthermore, in circumstances where the Standing Committee declares a state of emergency in Hong Kong, the State Council may enforce national law in the region.
[ Article 18.]
The territory's jurisdictional independence is most apparent in its
immigration and taxation policies. The
Immigration Department issues
passports for permanent residents which differ from those of the mainland or Macau, and the region maintains a
regulated border with the rest of the country. All travellers between Hong Kong and China and Macau must pass through border controls, regardless of nationality. Mainland Chinese citizens do not have
right of abode in Hong Kong and are subject to immigration controls. Public finances are handled separately from the national government; taxes levied in Hong Kong do not fund the central authority.
The
Hong Kong Garrison
The People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison is a garrison of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), responsible for defence duties in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) since the sovereignty of Hong Kong was transferred to ...
of the
People's Liberation Army
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the principal military force of the People's Republic of China and the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The PLA consists of five service branches: the Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, ...
is responsible for the region's defence. Although the
Chairman of the Central Military Commission Chairman of the Central Military Commission may refer to:
*Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China)
*Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea
See also
*Secretary of the Central Military Commission of the ...
is
supreme commander of the armed forces, the regional government may request assistance from the garrison. Hong Kong residents are not required to perform military service, and current law has no provision for local enlistment, so its defence is composed entirely of non-Hongkongers.
The central government and
Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...
handle diplomatic matters, but Hong Kong retains the ability to maintain separate economic and cultural
relations with foreign nations. The territory actively participates in the
World Trade Organization, the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, the
International Olympic Committee, and many
United Nations agencies. The regional government maintains
trade offices in
Greater China and other nations.
The imposition of
Hong Kong national security law by the
central government in Beijing in June 2020 resulted in the suspension of bilateral extradition treaties by the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Finland, and Ireland.
[ The United States ended its preferential economic and trade treatment of Hong Kong in July 2020 because it was no longer able to distinguish Hong Kong as a separate entity from the People's Republic of China.]
Administrative divisions
The territory is divided into 18 districts, each represented by a district council District council may refer to:
*A branch of local government in the United Kingdom:
**Supervising one of the Districts of England:
***A Metropolitan borough
***A Non-metropolitan district
***A Unitary authority
**Supervising one of the Principal ...
. These advise the government on local issues such as public facility provisioning, community programme maintenance, cultural promotion, and environmental policy. There are a total of 479 district council seats, 452 of which are directly elected. Rural committee chairmen, representing outlying villages and towns, fill the 27 non-elected seats.
Political reforms and sociopolitical issues
Hong Kong is governed by a hybrid regime that is not fully representative of the population. Legislative Council members elected by functional constituencies composed of professional and special interest groups are accountable to these narrow corporate electorates and not the general public. This electoral arrangement has guaranteed a pro-establishment majority in the legislature since the transfer of sovereignty. Similarly, the chief executive is selected by establishment politicians and corporate members of the Election Committee rather than directly elected.[.] Although universal suffrage for the chief executive and all Legislative Council elections are defined goals of Basic Law Articles 45 and 68, the legislature is only partially directly elected, and the executive continues to be nominated by an unrepresentative body. The government has been repeatedly petitioned to introduce direct elections for these positions.
Ethnic minorities (except those of European ancestry) have marginal representation in government and often experience discrimination in housing, education, and employment. Employment vacancies and public service appointments frequently have language requirements which minority job seekers do not meet, and language education resources remain inadequate for Chinese learners. Foreign domestic helpers, predominantly women from the Philippines and Indonesia, have little protection under regional law. Although they live and work in Hong Kong, these workers are not treated as ordinary residents and do not have the right of abode in the territory. Sex trafficking in Hong Kong is an issue. Local and foreign women and girls are often forced into prostitution
Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...
in brothels, homes, and businesses in the city.
The Joint Declaration guarantees the Basic Law of Hong Kong for 50 years after the transfer of sovereignty. It does not specify how Hong Kong will be governed after 2047, and the central government's role in determining the territory's future system of government is the subject of political debate and speculation. Hong Kong's political and judicial systems may be integrated with China's at that time, or the territory may continue to be administered separately. However, in response to large-scale protests in 2019 and 2020, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China (NPCSC) is the permanent body of the National People's Congress (NPC) of the People's Republic of China (PRC), which is the highest organ of state po ...
passed the controversial Hong Kong national security law. The law criminalises secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign elements and establishes the Office for Safeguarding National Security of the CPG in the HKSAR, an investigative office under Central People's Government authority immune from HKSAR jurisdiction. Some of the aforementioned acts were previously considered protected speech under Hong Kong law. The United Kingdom considers the law to be a serious violation of the Joint Declaration. In October 2020, Hong Kong police arrested seven pro- democracy politicians over tussles with pro-Beijing politicians in the Legislative Council in May. They were charged with contempt and interfering with members of the council, while none of the pro-Beijing lawmakers were detained. Annual commemorations of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre
The Tiananmen Square protests, known in Chinese as the June Fourth Incident (), were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square, Beijing during 1989. In what is known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, or in Chinese the June Fourth ...
were also cancelled amidst fears of violating the national security law. In March 2021, the Chinese central government unilaterally changed Hong Kong's electoral system and established the Candidate Eligibility Review Committee, which would be tasked with screening and evaluating political candidates for their "patriotism".
Geography
Hong Kong is on China's southern coast, east of Macau, on the east side of the mouth of the Pearl River estuary
The Pearl River Delta Metropolitan Region (PRD; ; pt, Delta do Rio das Pérolas (DRP)) is the low-lying area surrounding the Pearl River estuary, where the Pearl River flows into the South China Sea. Referred to as the Guangdong–Hong Kong– ...
. It is surrounded by the South China Sea on all sides except the north, which neighbours the Guangdong city of Shenzhen along the Sham Chun River. The territory's area (2754.97 km2 if the maritime area is included) consists of Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong, island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km ...
, the Kowloon Peninsula
The Kowloon Peninsula is a peninsula that forms the southern part of the main landmass in the territory of Hong Kong, alongside Victoria Harbour and facing toward Hong Kong Island. The Kowloon Peninsula and the area of New Kowloon are collect ...
, the New Territories, Lantau Island, and over 200 other islands. Of the total area, is land and is water. The territory's highest point is Tai Mo Shan, above sea level. Urban development is concentrated on the Kowloon Peninsula, Hong Kong Island, and in new towns throughout the New Territories. Much of this is built on reclaimed land; (6% of the total land or about 25% of developed space in the territory) is reclaimed from the sea.[.]
Undeveloped terrain is hilly to mountainous, with very little flat land, and consists mostly of grassland, woodland, shrubland, or farmland. About 40% of the remaining land area is country parks and nature reserves. The territory has a diverse ecosystem; over 3,000 species of vascular plants occur in the region (300 of which are native to Hong Kong), and thousands of insect, avian, and marine species.
Climate
Hong Kong has a humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
( Köppen ''Cwa''), characteristic of southern China, despite being located south of the Tropic of Cancer. Summer is hot and humid, with occasional showers and thunderstorms and warm air from the southwest. Typhoons occur most often then, sometimes resulting in floods or landslides. Winters are mild and usually sunny at the beginning, becoming cloudy towards February. Frequent cold fronts bring strong, cooling winds from the north and occasionally result in chilly weather. Autumn is the sunniest season, whilst spring is generally cloudy. When there is snowfall, which is extremely rare, it is usually at high elevations. Hong Kong averages 1,709 hours of sunshine per year. Historic temperature extremes at the Hong Kong Observatory are on 22 August 2017 and on 18 January 1893. The highest and lowest recorded temperatures in all of Hong Kong are at Wetland Park on 22 August 2017, and at Tai Mo Shan on 24 January 2016.
Architecture
Hong Kong has the world's largest number of skyscrapers, with 482 towers taller than , and the third-largest number of high-rise buildings in the world. The lack of available space restricted development to high-density residential tenements and commercial complexes packed closely together on buildable land. Single-family detached home
A stand-alone house (also called a single-detached dwelling, detached residence or detached house) is a free-standing residential building. It is sometimes referred to as a single-family home, as opposed to a multi-family residential dwelling ...
s are uncommon and generally only found in outlying areas. The International Commerce Centre and Two International Finance Centre
2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many cultur ...
are the tallest buildings in Hong Kong and are among the tallest in the Asia-Pacific region. Other distinctive buildings lining the Hong Kong Island skyline include the HSBC Main Building
HSBC Main Building is a headquarters building of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, which is today a wholly owned subsidiary of London-based HSBC Holdings. It is located on the southern side of Statue Square near the location of the ...
, the anemometer-topped triangular Central Plaza, the circular Hopewell Centre, and the sharp-edged Bank of China Tower.[.]
Demand for new construction has contributed to frequent demolition of older buildings, freeing space for modern high-rises. However, many examples of European and Lingnan architecture are still found throughout the territory. Older government buildings are examples of colonial architecture. The 1846 Flagstaff House
Flagstaff House, built in 1846, is the oldest example of Western-style architecture remaining in Hong Kong.Antiquities and Monuments OfficeDeclared Monuments in Hong Kong: Flagstaff House It is located at 10 Cotton Tree Drive, Central – w ...
, the former residence of the commanding British military officer, is the oldest Western-style building in Hong Kong. Some (including the Court of Final Appeal Building and the Hong Kong Observatory) retain their original function, and others have been adapted and reused; the Former Marine Police Headquarters was redeveloped into a commercial and retail complex,[.] and Béthanie (built in 1875 as a sanatorium) houses the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. The Tin Hau Temple, dedicated to the sea goddess Mazu
Mazu or Matsu is a Chinese sea goddess also known by several other names and titles. She is the deified form of the legendary figure Lin Mo or Lin Moniang, a Fujianese shamaness whose life span is traditionally dated from 960 to 987. Re ...
(originally built in 1012 and rebuilt in 1266), is the territory's oldest existing structure. The Ping Shan Heritage Trail
Ping Shan Heritage Trail is a heritage trail located in the Ping Shan area of Yuen Long District, in Hong Kong. The trail was inaugurated on 12 December 1993 and was the first of its kind in Hong Kong. It passes through the villages ...
has architectural examples of several imperial Chinese dynasties, including the Tsui Sing Lau Pagoda
The Tsui Sing Lau Pagoda () is the only surviving ancient pagoda in Hong Kong near MTR Tin Shui Wai station and Light Rail Tin Shui Wai stop. It is part of the Ping Shan Heritage Trail and a declared monument.
History
According to Tang Clan ...
(Hong Kong's only remaining pagoda).
'' Tong lau'', mixed-use tenement buildings constructed during the colonial era, blended southern Chinese architectural styles with European influences. These were especially prolific during the immediate post-war period, when many were rapidly built to house large numbers of Chinese migrants. Examples include Lui Seng Chun, the Blue House in Wan Chai, and the Shanghai Street shophouses in Mong Kok. Mass-produced public-housing estates, built since the 1960s, are mainly constructed in modernist style
Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style based upon new and innovative technologies of construction, particularly the use of glass, steel, and reinforced concrete; the idea that form ...
.
Demographics
The Census and Statistics Department estimated Hong Kong's population at 7,482,500 in mid-2019. The overwhelming majority (92%) is Han Chinese, most of whom are Taishanese, Teochew, Hakka, and other Cantonese people
The Cantonese people () or Yue people (), are a Yue-speaking Han Chinese subgroup originating from or residing in the provinces of Guangdong and Guangxi (collectively known as Liangguang), in Southern Mainland China. Although more accurately, ...
s. The remaining 8% are non-ethnic Chinese minorities, primarily Filipinos, Indonesians
Indonesians (Indonesian: ''orang Indonesia'') are citizens or people originally from Indonesia, regardless of their ethnic or religious background. There are more than 1,300 ethnicities in Indonesia, making it a multicultural archipelagic coun ...
, and South Asians. However, most Filipinos and Indonesians in Hong Kong are short-term workers. According to a 2016 thematic report by the Hong Kong government, after excluding foreign domestic helpers, the real number of non-Chinese ethnic minorities in the city was 263,593, or 3.6% of Hong Kong's population. About half the population have some form of British nationality, a legacy of colonial rule; 3.4 million residents have British National (Overseas) status, and 260,000 British citizens live in the territory. The vast majority also hold Chinese nationality, automatically granted to all ethnic Chinese residents at the transfer of sovereignty. Headline population density exceeds 7,060 people/km2, and is the fourth-highest in the world.
The predominant language is Cantonese, a variety of Chinese originating in Guangdong. It is spoken by 94.6% of the population, 88.9% as a first language and 5.7% as a second language. Slightly over half the population (53.2%) speaks English, the other official language; 4.3% are native speakers, and 48.9% speak English as a second language. Code-switching, mixing English and Cantonese in informal conversation, is common among the bilingual population. Post-handover governments have promoted Mandarin
Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to:
Language
* Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country
** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China
** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
, which is currently about as prevalent as English; 48.6% of the population speak Mandarin, with 1.9% native speakers and 46.7% as a second language. Traditional Chinese characters are used in writing, rather than the simplified characters used on the mainland.
Among the religious population, the traditional " three teachings" of China, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism, have the most adherents (20%), followed by Christianity (12%) and Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
(4%).[.] Followers of other religions, including Sikhism, Hinduism, and Judaism, generally originate from regions where their religion predominates.
Life expectancy in Hong Kong was 82.38 years for males and 88.17 years for females in 2022, the highest in the world. Cancer, pneumonia, heart disease
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, hea ...
, cerebrovascular disease, and accidents are the territory's five leading causes of death.[.] The universal public healthcare system is funded by general-tax revenue, and treatment is highly subsidised; on average, 95% of healthcare costs are covered by the government.
Income inequality has risen since the transfer of sovereignty, as the region's ageing population has gradually added to the number of nonworking people. Although median household income steadily increased during the decade to 2016, the wage gap remained high; the 90th percentile of earners receive 41% of all income. The city has the most billionaires per capita, with one billionaire per 109,657 people. Despite government efforts to reduce the growing disparity, median income for the top 10% of earners is 44 times that of the bottom 10%.
Economy
Hong Kong has a market economy
A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand, where all suppliers and consumers ...
focused on services, characterised by low taxation, minimal government market intervention, and an established international financial market. It is the world's 35th-largest economy, with a nominal GDP of approximately US$373 billion. Hong Kong's economy ranked at the top of the Heritage Foundation's economic freedom index between 1995 and 2021. However, Hong Kong was removed from the index by the Heritage Foundation in 2021, with the Foundation citing a "loss of political freedom and autonomy... aking Hong Kongalmost indistinguishable in many respects from other major Chinese commercial centers like Shanghai and Beijing". The Hong Kong Stock Exchange
The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (SEHK, also known as Hong Kong Stock Exchange) is a stock exchange based in Hong Kong. As of the end of 2020, it has 2,538 listed companies with a combined market capitalization of HK$47 trillion. It is repor ...
is the seventh-largest in the world, with a market capitalisation of HK$30.4 trillion (US$3.87 trillion) . Hong Kong is ranked as the 14th most innovative territory in the Global Innovation Index in 2022. The city is sometimes referred to as "Silicon Harbor", a nickname derived from Silicon Valley in California. Hong Kong hosts several high tech and innovation companies, including several multinational companies.
Hong Kong is the tenth-largest trading entity in exports and imports (2017), trading more goods in value than its gross domestic product. Over half of its cargo throughput consists of transshipments (goods travelling through Hong Kong). Products from mainland China account for about 40% of that traffic. The city's location allowed it to establish a transportation and logistics infrastructure which includes the world's seventh-busiest container port and the busiest airport for international cargo. The territory's largest export markets are mainland China and the United States. Hong Kong is a key part of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road
The 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (Chinese: 21世纪海上丝绸之路), commonly just Maritime Silk Road (MSR), is the sea route part of the Belt and Road Initiative which is a Chinese strategic initiative to increase investment and foster col ...
. It has little arable land and few natural resources, importing most of its food and raw materials. More than 90% of Hong Kong's food is imported, including nearly all of its meat and rice. Agricultural activity is 0.1% of GDP and consists of growing premium food and flower varieties.
Although the territory had one of Asia's largest manufacturing economies during the latter half of the colonial era, Hong Kong's economy is now dominated by the service sector. The sector generates 92.7% of economic output, with the public sector accounting for about 10%. Between 1961 and 1997 Hong Kong's gross domestic product increased by a factor of 180, and per capita GDP increased by a factor of 87. The territory's GDP relative to mainland China's peaked at 27% in 1993; it fell to less than 3% in 2017, as the mainland developed and liberalised its economy. Economic and infrastructure integration with China has increased significantly since the 1978 start of market liberalisation on the mainland. Since resumption of cross-boundary train service in 1979, many rail and road links have been improved and constructed, facilitating trade between regions.[.] The Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement formalised a policy of free trade between the two areas, with each jurisdiction pledging to remove remaining obstacles to trade and cross-boundary investment. A similar economic partnership with Macau details the liberalisation of trade between the special administrative regions. Chinese companies have expanded their economic presence in the territory since the transfer of sovereignty. Mainland firms represent over half of the Hang Seng Index
The Hang Seng Index (HSI) is a freefloat-adjusted market- capitalization-weighted stock-market index in Hong Kong. It is used to record and monitor daily changes of the largest companies of the Hong Kong stock market and is the main indicator ...
value, up from 5% in 1997.
As the mainland liberalised its economy, Hong Kong's shipping industry faced intense competition from other Chinese ports. Half of China's trade goods were routed through Hong Kong in 1997, dropping to about 13% by 2015. The territory's minimal taxation, common law system, and civil service attract overseas corporations wishing to establish a presence in Asia. The city has the second-highest number of corporate headquarters in the Asia-Pacific region. Hong Kong is a gateway for foreign direct investment
A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business in one country by an entity based in another country. It is thus distinguished from a foreign portfolio investment by a notion of direct co ...
in China, giving investors open access to mainland Chinese markets through direct links with the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges. The territory was the first market outside mainland China for renminbi-denominated bonds, and is one of the largest hubs for offshore renminbi
The renminbi (; symbol: ¥; ISO code: CNY; abbreviation: RMB) is the official currency of the People's Republic of China and one of the world's most traded currencies, ranking as the fifth most traded currency in the world as of April 2022. ...
trading. In November 2020, Hong Kong's Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau proposed a new law that will restrict cryptocurrency trading to professional investors only, leaving amateur traders (93% of Hong Kong's trading population) out of the market.
The government has had a passive role in the economy. Colonial governments had little industrial policy
An industrial policy (IP) or industrial strategy of a country is its official strategic effort to encourage the development and growth of all or part of the economy, often focused on all or part of the manufacturing sector. The government takes m ...
and implemented almost no trade controls. Under the doctrine of " positive non-interventionism", post-war administrations deliberately avoided the direct allocation of resources; active intervention was considered detrimental to economic growth. While the economy transitioned to a service basis during the 1980s, late colonial governments introduced interventionist policies. Post-handover administrations continued and expanded these programmes, including export-credit guarantees, a compulsory pension scheme, a minimum wage, anti-discrimination law
Anti-discrimination law or non-discrimination law refers to legislation designed to prevent discrimination against particular groups of people; these groups are often referred to as protected groups or protected classes. Anti-discrimination laws ...
s, and a state mortgage backer.
Tourism is a major part of the economy, accounting for 5% of GDP. In 2016, 26.6 million visitors contributed HK$258 billion (US$32.9 billion) to the territory, making Hong Kong the 14th most popular destination for international tourists. It is the most popular Chinese city for tourists, receiving over 70% more visitors than its closest competitor (Macau). The city is ranked as one of the most expensive cities for expatriates. However, since 2020, there has been a sharp decline in incoming visitors due to tight COVID-19 travel restrictions. Additionally, due to the closure of Russian airspace in 2022, multiple airlines decided to cease their operations in Hong Kong.
Infrastructure
Transport
Hong Kong has a highly developed, sophisticated transport network. Over 90% of daily trips are made on public transport, the highest percentage in the world. The Octopus card, a contactless smart payment card, is widely accepted on railways, buses and ferries, and can be used for payment in most retail stores.
The Peak Tram
The Peak Tram is a funicular railway in Hong Kong, which carries both tourists and residents to the upper levels of Hong Kong Island. Running from Garden Road Admiralty to Victoria Peak via the Mid-Levels, it provides the most direct route and o ...
, Hong Kong's first public transport system, has provided funicular rail transport between Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
and Victoria Peak since 1888. The Central and Western District has an extensive system of escalators and moving pavements, including the Mid-Levels escalator (the world's longest outdoor covered escalator system). Hong Kong Tramways covers a portion of Hong Kong Island. The Mass Transit Railway (MTR) is an extensive passenger rail network, connecting 93 metro
Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to:
Geography
* Metro (city), a city in Indonesia
* A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center
Public transport
* Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...
stations throughout the territory.[.] With a daily ridership of over five million, the system serves 41% of all public transit passengers in the city and has an on-time rate of 99.9%. Cross-boundary train service to Shenzhen is offered by the East Rail line, and longer-distance inter-city trains to Guangzhou, Shanghai, and Beijing are operated from Hung Hom station. Connecting service to the national high-speed rail system is provided at West Kowloon railway station.
Although public transport systems handle most passenger traffic, there are over 500,000 private vehicles registered in Hong Kong. Automobiles drive on the left (unlike in mainland China), because of historical influence of the British Empire. Vehicle traffic is extremely congested in urban areas, exacerbated by limited space to expand roads and an increasing number of vehicles. More than 18,000 taxicabs, easily identifiable by their bright colour, are licensed to carry riders in the territory. Bus services operate more than 700 routes across the territory, with smaller public light buses (also known as minibuses) serving areas standard buses do not reach as frequently or directly. Highways, organised with the Hong Kong Strategic Route and Exit Number System, connect all major areas of the territory. The Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge provides a direct route to the western side of the Pearl River estuary.
Hong Kong International Airport is the territory's primary airport. Over 100 airlines operate flights from the airport, including locally based Cathay Pacific
Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (CPA), more widely known as Cathay Pacific (), is the flag carrier of Hong Kong, with its head office and main hub located at Hong Kong International Airport. The airline's operations and subsidiaries have sc ...
( flag carrier), Hong Kong Airlines
Hong Kong Airlines Limited (stylised as HONGKONG AIRLINES) is an airline based in Hong Kong, with its headquarters in the Tung Chung district and its main hub at Hong Kong International Airport. It was established in 2006 as a member of t ...
, low-cost airline HK Express
Hong Kong Express Airways Limited (), commonly known as Hong Kong Express or HK Express, is a Hong Kong–based low-cost airline fully owned by Cathay Pacific Airways. It provides scheduled air service to 27 destinations in Asia, including C ...
and cargo airline Air Hong Kong. It is the eighth-busiest airport by passenger traffic and handles the most air-cargo traffic in the world. Most private recreational aviation traffic flies through Shek Kong Airfield, under the supervision of the Hong Kong Aviation Club
The Hong Kong Aviation Club is an aviation club which offers training on both fixed-wing aircraft and helicopter to Private Pilot Licence Level. It was established in 1982 upon the amalgamation of the Hong Kong Flying Club, the Aero Club of Ho ...
.
The Star Ferry
The Star Ferry is a passenger ferry service operator and tourist attraction in Hong Kong. Its principal routes carry passengers across Victoria Harbour, between Hong Kong Island, and Kowloon. The service is operated by the Star Ferry Com ...
operates two lines across Victoria Harbour for its 53,000 daily passengers. Ferries also serve outlying islands inaccessible by other means. Smaller kai-to boats serve the most remote coastal settlements. Ferry travel to Macau and mainland China is also available. Junks
A junk (Chinese: 船, ''chuán'') is a type of Chinese sailing ship with fully battened sails. There are two types of junk in China: northern junk, which developed from Chinese river boats, and southern junk, which developed from Austronesian ...
, once common in Hong Kong waters, are no longer widely available and are used privately and for tourism.
Utilities
Hong Kong generates most of its electricity locally. The vast majority of this energy comes from fossil fuels, with 46% from coal and 47% from petroleum. The rest is from other imports, including nuclear energy generated in mainland China. Renewable sources account for a negligible amount of energy generated for the territory. Small-scale wind-power sources have been developed, and a small number of private homes and public buildings have installed solar panels.
With few natural lakes and rivers, high population density, inaccessible groundwater sources, and extremely seasonal rainfall, the territory does not have a reliable source of freshwater. The Dongjiang River in Guangdong supplies 70% of the city's water,[.] and the remaining demand is filled by harvesting rainwater. Toilets in most built-up areas of the territory flush with seawater, greatly reducing freshwater use.
Broadband Internet access is widely available, with 92.6% of households connected. Connections over fibre-optic infrastructure are increasingly prevalent, contributing to the high regional average connection speed of 21.9 Mbit/s (the world's fourth-fastest). Mobile-phone use is ubiquitous; there are more than 18 million mobile-phone accounts, more than double the territory's population.
Culture
Hong Kong is characterised as a hybrid of East and West. Traditional Chinese values emphasising family and education blend with Western ideals, including economic liberty and the rule of law. Although the vast majority of the population is ethnically Chinese, Hong Kong has developed a distinct identity. The territory diverged from the mainland through its long period of colonial administration and a different pace of economic, social, and cultural development. Mainstream culture is derived from immigrants originating from various parts of China. This was influenced by British-style education, a separate political system, and the territory's rapid development during the late 20th century. Most migrants of that era fled poverty and war, reflected in the prevailing attitude toward wealth; Hongkongers tend to link self-image and decision-making to material benefits. Residents' sense of local identity has markedly increased post-handover: The majority of the population (52%) identifies as "Hongkongers", while 11% describe themselves as "Chinese". The remaining population purport mixed identities, 23% as "Hongkonger in China" and 12% as "Chinese in Hong Kong".
Traditional Chinese family values, including family honour, filial piety, and a preference for sons, are prevalent. Nuclear families are the most common households, although multi-generational and extended families are not unusual. Spiritual concepts such as '' feng shui'' are observed; large-scale construction projects often hire consultants to ensure proper building positioning and layout. The degree of its adherence to ''feng shui'' is believed to determine the success of a business. '' Bagua'' mirrors are regularly used to deflect evil spirits, and buildings often lack floor numbers with a 4; the number has a similar sound to the word for "die" in Cantonese.
Cuisine
Food in Hong Kong is primarily based on Cantonese cuisine
Cantonese or Guangdong cuisine, also known as Yue cuisine ( or ) is the cuisine of Guangdong province of China, particularly the provincial capital Guangzhou, and the surrounding regions in the Pearl River Delta including Hong Kong and Maca ...
, despite the territory's exposure to foreign influences and its residents' varied origins. Rice is the staple food, and is usually served plain with other dishes.[.] Freshness of ingredients is emphasised. Poultry and seafood are commonly sold live at wet markets, and ingredients are used as quickly as possible. There are five daily meals: breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner, and ''siu yeh
Siu yeh (), (), is a late night meal in the food culture of southern China and Hong Kong. It is particularly associated with the cuisine of Hong Kong. It comes after dinner, and is similar to supper. Mealtime may start from about 9pm onwards un ...
''. Dim sum
Dim sum () is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch. Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in other Chinese cuis ...
, as part of '' yum cha'' (brunch), is a dining-out tradition with family and friends. Dishes include congee
Congee or conjee ( ) is a type of rice porridge or gruel eaten in Asian countries. It can be eaten plain, where it is typically served with side dishes, or it can be served with ingredients such as meat, fish, seasonings and flavourings, most o ...
, '' cha siu bao'', '' siu yuk'', egg tarts, and mango pudding
Mango pudding is a very popular dessert in Hong Kong, where pudding is eaten as a traditional United Kingdom, British food.
There is very little variation between the regional mango pudding's preparation. The dessert is also found in Singapor ...
. Local versions of Western food are served at ''cha chaan teng
''Cha chaan teng'' (; "tea restaurant"), often called a Hong Kong-style cafe or diner in English, is a type of restaurant that originated in Hong Kong. Cha chaan teng are commonly found in Hong Kong, Macau, and parts of Guangdong. Due to the w ...
'' (Hong Kong-style cafes). Common ''cha chaan teng'' menu items include macaroni in soup, deep-fried French toast, and Hong Kong-style milk tea
Hong Kong-style milk tea is a tea drink made from Ceylon tea, black tea and milk (usually evaporated milk and condensed milk). It is usually part of lunch in Hong Kong tea culture. Hongkongers consume approximately a total of 900 million gl ...
.
Cinema
Hong Kong developed into a filmmaking hub during the late 1940s as a wave of Shanghai filmmakers migrated to the territory, and these movie veterans helped build the colony's entertainment industry over the next decade. By the 1960s, the city was well known to overseas audiences through films such as '' The World of Suzie Wong''. When Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee (; born Lee Jun-fan, ; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was a Hong Kong and American martial artist and actor. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy drawing from different combat disciplines that ...
's ''The'' ''Way of the Dragon'' was released in 1972, local productions became popular outside Hong Kong. During the 1980s, films such as '' A Better Tomorrow'', '' As Tears Go By'', and '' Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain'' expanded global interest beyond martial arts films; locally made gangster films, romantic dramas, and supernatural fantasies became popular. Hong Kong cinema continued to be internationally successful over the following decade with critically acclaimed dramas such as '' Farewell My Concubine'', '' To Live'', and ''Chungking Express
''Chungking Express'' is a 1994 Hong Kong romantic crime comedy-drama film written and directed by Wong Kar-wai. The film consists of two stories told in sequence, each about a lovesick Hong Kong policeman mulling over his relationship with a ...
''. The city's martial arts film roots are evident in the roles of the most prolific Hong Kong actors. Jackie Chan, Donnie Yen, Jet Li, Chow Yun-fat, and Michelle Yeoh frequently play action-oriented roles in foreign films. At the height of the local movie industry in the early 1990s, over 400 films were produced each year; since then, industry momentum shifted to mainland China. The number of films produced annually has declined to about 60 in 2017.
Music
Cantopop is a genre of Cantonese popular music which emerged in Hong Kong during the 1970s. Evolving from Shanghai-style '' shidaiqu'', it is also influenced by Cantonese opera and Western pop. Local media featured songs by artists such as Sam Hui
Samuel Hui Koon-kit (born 6 September 1948), usually known as Sam Hui, is a Hong Kong musician, singer, songwriter and actor. He is credited with popularising Cantopop both via the infusion of Western-style music and his usage of vernacular Cantone ...
, Anita Mui, Leslie Cheung, and Alan Tam; during the 1980s, exported films and shows exposed Cantopop to a global audience. The genre's popularity peaked in the 1990s, when the Four Heavenly Kings
The Four Heavenly Kings are four Buddhist gods, each of whom is believed to watch over one cardinal direction of the world. In Chinese mythology, they are known collectively as the "Fēng Tiáo Yǔ Shùn" () or "Sìdà Tiānwáng" (). In the a ...
dominated Asian record charts. Despite a general decline since late in the decade, Cantopop remains dominant in Hong Kong; contemporary artists such as Eason Chan, Joey Yung, and Twins are popular in and beyond the territory.
Western classical music has historically had a strong presence in Hong Kong and remains a large part of local musical education. The publicly funded Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, the territory's oldest professional symphony orchestra, frequently hosts musicians and conductors from overseas. The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra
The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra (; abbreviated HKCO) was founded in 1977. The orchestra has won the accolades as “a leader in Chinese ethnic music” and “a cultural ambassador of Hong Kong”. It is often invited to perform at famous venues ...
, composed of classical Chinese instruments, is the leading Chinese ensemble and plays a significant role in promoting traditional music in the community.
Sport and recreation
Despite its small area, the territory is home to a variety of sports and recreational facilities. The city has hosted numerous major sporting events, including the 2009 East Asian Games )
, Host city = Hong Kong
, Teams participating = 9
, Athletes participating = 2,377
, Events = 262 events in 22 sports
, Opening ceremony = December 5, 2009
, Closing ceremony = December 13, 2009
, Officially opened by = State Councilor L ...
, the 2008 Summer Olympics equestrian events, and the 2007 Premier League Asia Trophy.[.] The territory regularly hosts the Hong Kong Sevens, Hong Kong Marathon, Hong Kong Tennis Classic
The Hong Kong Tennis Classic (formerly known as the ''JB Group Classic'' and the '' Watsons Water Champions Challenge'') is a women's exhibition tennis tournament held (with temporary stands) in Victoria Park, Hong Kong, in the first week of Jan ...
and Lunar New Year Cup
The Lunar New Year Cup, previously known as the Carlsberg Challenge or the Carlsberg Cup, is an annual invitational football tournament organised in Hong Kong by the Hong Kong Football Association (HKFA) since 1908. It is usually held on the firs ...
, and hosted the inaugural AFC Asian Cup
The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second oldest cont ...
and the 1995 Dynasty Cup
The 1995 Dynasty Cup was a football competition for the top four teams of East Asia. The third edition of the Dynasty Cup was held from 19 to 26 February 1995 in British Hong Kong which was under control of United Kingdom. The competition was won b ...
.
Hong Kong represents itself separately from mainland China, with its own sports teams in international competitions. The territory has participated in almost every Summer Olympics since 1952 and has earned nine medals. Lee Lai-shan
Lee Lai Shan () (born in Cheung Chau, Hong Kong, 5 September 1970) is a former world champion and Olympic gold medal-winning professional windsurfer from Hong Kong. She was the first athlete to win an Olympic medal representing Hong Kong.
...
won the territory's first Olympic gold medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
, and Cheung Ka Long won the second one in Tokyo 2020. Hong Kong athletes have won 126 medals at the Paralympic Games and 17 at the Commonwealth Games. No longer part of the Commonwealth of Nations, the city's last appearance in the latter was in 1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
.
Dragon boat races originated as a religious ceremony conducted during the annual Tuen Ng Festival
The Dragon Boat Festival ( zh, s=端午节, t=端午節) is a traditional Chinese holiday which occurs on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese calendar, which corresponds to late May or June in the Gregorian calendar.
Names
The Engl ...
. The race was revived as a modern sport as part of the Tourism Board
A destination marketing organization (DMO) is an organisation which promotes a location as an attractive travel destination. DMOs are known as tourist boards, tourism authorities or "Convention and Visitors Bureaux". They primarily exist to provide ...
's efforts to promote Hong Kong's image abroad. The first modern competition was organised in 1976, and overseas teams began competing in the first international race in 1993.
The Hong Kong Jockey Club, the territory's largest taxpayer,[.] has a monopoly on gambling and provides over 7% of government revenue. Three forms of gambling are legal in Hong Kong: lotteries, horse racing, and football.
Education
Education in Hong Kong is largely modelled after that of the United Kingdom, particularly the English system
English units are the units of measurement used in England up to 1826 (when they were replaced by Imperial units), which evolved as a combination of the Anglo-Saxon and Roman systems of units. Various standards have applied to English units at ...
. Children are required to attend school from age 6 until completion of secondary education, generally at age 18. At the end of secondary schooling, all students take a public examination and awarded the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education on successful completion. Of residents aged 15 and older, 81% completed lower-secondary education, 66% graduated from an upper secondary school, 32% attended a non-degree tertiary program, and 24% earned a bachelor's degree or higher. Mandatory education has contributed to an adult literacy rate of 95.7%. The literacy rate is lower than that of other developed economies because of the influx of refugees from mainland China during the post-war colonial era; much of the elderly population were not formally educated because of war and poverty.
Comprehensive schools fall under three categories: public schools, which are government-run; subsidised schools, including government aid-and-grant schools; and private schools, often those run by religious organisations and that base admissions on academic merit. These schools are subject to the curriculum guidelines as provided by the Education Bureau. Private schools subsidised under the Direct Subsidy Scheme; international schools fall outside of this system and may elect to use differing curricula and teach using other languages.
The government maintains a policy of "mother tongue instruction"; most schools use Cantonese as the medium of instruction, with written education in both Chinese and English. Other languages being used as medium of instruction in non-international school education include English and Putonghua
Standard Chinese ()—in linguistics Standard Northern Mandarin or Standard Beijing Mandarin, in common speech simply Mandarin, better qualified as Standard Mandarin, Modern Standard Mandarin or Standard Mandarin Chinese—is a modern standar ...
(Standard Mandarin Chinese). Secondary schools emphasise "bi-literacy and tri-lingualism", which has encouraged the proliferation of spoken Mandarin language education.
Hong Kong has eleven universities. The University of Hong Kong (HKU) was founded as the city's first institute of higher education during the early colonial period in 1911. The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) was established in 1963 to fill the need for a university that taught using Chinese as its primary language of instruction. Along with the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) established in 1991, these universities are consistently ranked among the top 50 or top 100 universities worldwide. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) is a public research university located in Hung Hom, Hong Kong near Hung Hom station. The University is one of the eight government-funded degree-granting tertiary institutions in Hong Kong. Founded ...
(PolyU) and City University of Hong Kong (CityU), both granted university status in 1994, are consistently ranked among the top 100 or top 200 universities worldwide. The Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) was granted university status in 1994. Lingnan University, Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Hong Kong Shue Yan University and Hang Seng University of Hong Kong were all established in subsequent years.
Media
Most of the newsapapers in Hong Kong are written in Chinese but there are also a few English-language newspapers. The major one is the ''South China Morning Post
The ''South China Morning Post'' (''SCMP''), with its Sunday edition, the ''Sunday Morning Post'', is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper owned by Alibaba Group. Founded in 1903 by Tse Tsan-tai and Alfred Cunningham, it has remained ...
'', with ''The Standard
The Standard may refer to:
Entertainment
* The Standard (band), an indie rock band from Portland, Oregon
* ''The Standard'' (novel), a 1934 novel by the Austrian writer Alexander Lernet-Holenia
* ''The Standard'' (Tommy Flanagan album), 1980
* ...
'' serving as a business-oriented alternative. A variety of Chinese-language newspapers are published daily; the most prominent are '' Ming Pao'' and '' Oriental Daily News''. Local publications are often politically affiliated, with pro-Beijing or pro-democracy sympathies. The central government has a print-media presence in the territory through the state-owned '' Ta Kung Pao'' and '' Wen Wei Po''. Several international publications have regional operations in Hong Kong, including '' The Wall Street Journal'', '' Financial Times'', '' The New York Times International Edition'', '' USA Today'', '' Yomiuri Shimbun'', and ''The Nikkei
''The Nikkei'', also known as , is the flagship publication of Nikkei, Inc. (based in Tokyo) and the world's largest financial newspaper, with a daily circulation exceeding 1.73 million copies. The Nikkei 225, a stock market index for the Tok ...
''.
Three free-to-air television broadcasters operate in the territory; TVB, HKTVE
HK Television Entertainment Company Limited (, or HKTVE) is a television service operator in Hong Kong operated by Hong Kong billionaire Richard Li's PCCW, through its subsidiary PCCW Media, which also owns an IPTV platform, Now TV and operati ...
, and Hong Kong Open TV air eight digital
Digital usually refers to something using discrete digits, often binary digits.
Technology and computing Hardware
*Digital electronics, electronic circuits which operate using digital signals
**Digital camera, which captures and stores digital i ...
channels. TVB, Hong Kong's dominant television network, has an 80% viewer share. Pay TV services operated by Cable TV Hong Kong and PCCW offer hundreds of additional channels and cater to a variety of audiences. RTHK is the public broadcaster, providing seven radio channels and three television channels. Ten non-domestic broadcasters air programming for the territory's foreign population. Access to media and information over the Internet is not subject to mainland Chinese regulations, including the Great Firewall, yet local control applies.
See also
* Index of articles related to Hong Kong
* Outline of Hong Kong
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Hong Kong:
Hong Kong – one of two special administrative regions of China, the other being Macau. The territory lies on the eastern side of the Pearl River Delta ...
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External links
Hong Kong
'' The World Factbook''. Central Intelligence Agency.
Hong Kong
from BBC News
Key Development Forecasts for Hong Kong
from International Futures
International Futures (IFs) is a global integrated assessment modelling, integrated assessment model designed to help with thinking strategically and systematically about key global systems (economic, demographic, education, health, environment, ...
Hong Kong in Transition (1995–2020)
an open access photographic archive of recent Hong Kong history
; Government
GovHK
Hong Kong SAR government portal
Discover Hong Kong
Official site of the tourism board
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World Bank Summary Trade Statistics Hong Kong
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{{Good article
People's Republic of China
1842 establishments in Asia
Chinese-speaking countries and territories
English-speaking countries and territories
Metropolitan areas of China
Pearl River Delta
Populated coastal places in Hong Kong
Populated places established in 1842
Port cities and towns in China
South China Sea
Special administrative regions of China
States and territories established in 1997
Former Japanese colonies
Former British colonies and protectorates in Asia