The Nam Pak Hong (), also Nam Pei Hong and Nam Bac Hang (literally, "South-North Trading Association"), was a combination of individual
hongs, or
trading houses, the traditional form of
business organization
A business entity is an entity that is formed and administered as per corporate law in order to engage in business activities, charitable work, or other activities allowable. Most often, business entities are formed to sell a product or a servi ...
in China. They represented Chinese
merchant
A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...
s who were often associated with overseas trade, both the "
Gold Mountain" trade with the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
and
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
, and the older trade in the
Nanyang
Nanyang is the romanization of two common Chinese place names. It may refer to:
Written as 南洋 (Southern Ocean)
* Nanyang (region), a Chinese term denoting the Southeast Asian lands surrounding the South China Sea
;China
* Nanyang Fleet, Qing ...
. The association was established in 1868 in
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...
by merchants from various dialect groups and its influence quickly expanded.
See also
*
Economy of Hong Kong
The economy of Hong Kong is a highly developed free-market economy. It is characterised by low taxation, almost free port trade and a well-established international financial market. Its currency, called the Hong Kong dollar, is legally issue ...
*
Economic history of China
References
* Jung-Fang Tsai
''Hong Kong in Chinese History: Community and Social Unrest in the British Colony, 1842-1913.''Columbia University Press
Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City, and affiliated with Columbia University. It is currently directed by Jennifer Crewe (2014–present) and publishes titles in the humanities and sciences, including the fie ...
, 1995.
External links
Trading rules of Nam Pak Hong
Chinese diaspora
Economy of the Qing dynasty
Sheung Wan
Economic history of China
{{HongKong-stub