Hong Kong

Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China, located on the country’s southern coast just below Shenzhen. It is made up of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and the New Territories. Covering 1,114 square kilometers and home to 7.5 million people, it ranks as the fourth most densely populated place on Earth.

The region began as a British colony after the Qing dynasty gave up Hong Kong Island following its defeat in the First Opium War in 1841–1842. Britain added the Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 and took a 99-year lease on the New Territories in 1898. Japan occupied Hong Kong from 1941 to 1945 during World War II. In 1997, the territory was returned by the United Kingdom to China, where it now runs its own government and economy under the “one country, two systems” principle.

Once a place of farming and fishing villages, Hong Kong has become a major global financial hub and commercial port. It is the world’s third-ranked financial center, behind New York City and London, and ranks ninth among exporters and eighth among importers. Its currency, the Hong Kong dollar, is the ninth most traded globally. The city has the third-highest number of billionaires of any city worldwide and the second-largest population of ultra-high-net-worth individuals. While per capita income is among the highest, severe income inequality persists.

Hong Kong leads the world in skyscrapers. Housing demand is so high that the city has the most expensive residential property market on the planet and is one of the costliest cities to live in. It is also one of the most visited cities globally.

The territory is highly developed, with a Human Development Index of 0.955—ranking eighth in the world and the only Asian place in the top ten. It is classified as an Alpha+ city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. Hong Kong boasts the highest life expectancy anywhere, and over 90 percent of trips are made using public transport.

Etymology

The name was first written in Roman letters as “He-Ong-Kong” in 1780, referring to a small inlet between Aberdeen Island and the southern coast of Hong Kong Island. Aberdeen was where British sailors first met local fishermen. The origin of the romanized name is unknown, but it is thought to be an early phonetic version of the Cantonese phrase hēung góng, meaning “fragrant harbour” or “incense harbour.” The “fragrant” part might come from the sweet taste of freshwater flowing into the harbour from the Pearl River or from the smell of incense factories along northern Kowloon’s coast. Incense was stored near Aberdeen Harbour for export before Victoria Harbour was developed. Sir John Davis, the second colonial governor, suggested the name came from “Hoong-keang” (“red torrent”), referring to the color of soil over a waterfall on the island.

By 1810, the simplified name Hong Kong was common. It was often written as one word, Hongkong, until 1926, when the government made the two-word version official. Some early colonial companies still use the single-word form, such as Hongkong Land, Hongkong Electric Company, Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, and the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC).

History

Prehistory and Imperial China

The earliest human traces in the area date back roughly 35,000 to 39,000 years, based on a 2003 archaeological dig at Wong Tei Tung in the Sai Kung Peninsula, which uncovered stone tools dated by optical luminescence.

Around 6,000 years ago, during the Middle Neolithic, the region was widely settled. Neolithic and Bronze Age inhabitants were semi-coastal people, likely Austronesians in the Middle Neolithic and later the Yue people. Excavations at Sha Ha in Sai Kung show rice cultivation began in the Late Neolithic. Bronze Age artifacts include coarse and hard pottery, quartz and stone jewelry, and small bronze tools.

The Qin dynasty first incorporated the Hong Kong area into China in 214 BCE after conquering the indigenous Baiyue. After the Qin fell, the region was part of the Nanyue kingdom (a predecessor of Vietnam) and was later reclaimed by China under the Han dynasty. During the Mongol conquest in the 13th century, the Southern Song court briefly set up in what is now Kowloon City (at the Sung Wong Toi site) before its final defeat at the Battle of Yamen in 1279. By the end of the Yuan dynasty, seven large families owned most of the land. During the Ming dynasty, settlers from nearby provinces moved into Kowloon.

The first known European visitor was Portuguese explorer Jorge Álvares in 1513. Portuguese traders set up a post called Tamão in Hong Kong waters and began regular trade with southern China. After military clashes in the 1520s, they were expelled, but trade resumed by 1549. Portugal secured a permanent lease for Macau in 1887.

After the Qing conquest, maritime trade was banned under the Haijin policies. From 1661 to 1683, most of the area that is now Hong Kong was cleared of people under the Great Clearance, turning it into a wasteland.