Hong Kong

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Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China[note 1]
中華人民共和國香港特別行政區
A flag with a white 5-petalled flower design on solid red background A red circular emblem, with a white 5-petalled flower design in the centre, and surrounded by the words "Hong Kong" and "中華人民共和國香港特別行政區"
Anthem: March of the Volunteers
《義勇軍進行曲》
A panorama overlooking the skyscrapers of Hong Kong at night, with Victoria Harbour in the background
View at night from Victoria Peak
Hong Kong is situated on a peninsula and series of islands on the south coast of China, to the east of the Pearl River Delta and bordered to the north by Guangdong province
Official language(s) Chinese, English[note 2]
Spoken languages Cantonese, English
Writing systems Traditional Chinese, English alphabet
Demonym Hong Konger
Government Quasi-presidential autonomous region with limited suffrage[3][4][5]
 -  Chief Executive Donald Tsang
 -  Chief Justice Geoffrey Ma
 -  President of the
Legislative Council		 Jasper Tsang
Legislature Legislative Council
Establishment
 -  Treaty of Nanking 29 August 1842 
 -  Japanese occupation 25 December 1941 –
15 August 1945 
 -  Handover to China 1 July 1997 
Area
 -  Total 1,104 km2 (179th)
426 sq mi 
 -  Water (%) 4.58 (50 km²; 19 mi²)[6]
Population
 -  2010 census 7,061,200[7] 
 -  Density 6480[8]/km2 (4th)
16,576/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2010 estimate
 -  Total $326 billion[9] 
 -  Per capita $45,736[9] 
GDP (nominal) 2010 estimate
 -  Total $225 billion[9] 
 -  Per capita $31,590[9] 
Gini (2007) 43.4[10] 
HDI (2011) Increase 0.898[11] (very high) (13th)
Currency Hong Kong dollar (HKD)
Time zone HKT (UTC+8)
Date formats yyyy年m月d日 (Chinese)
dd-mm-yyyy (English)
Drives on the left
Internet TLD .hk and .香港
Calling code +852

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Chinese: 香港, pinyin: "Hong Kong", literally "Fragrant Port") is one of two Special Administrative Regions (SARs) of the PRC (the other is Macau). It is one of the richest and most highly developed places in the world. Hong Kong grew quickly in the decades after World War II and now has become a famous world class financial center.

Hong Kong is divided into 3 main parts:

Hong Kong was a British colony since 1842. In 1997, after the Handover, Hong Kong became a part of China.

Contents

[change] Climate

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

[change] Population and language

Hong Kong has just reached the 7-million-people population in 2009. Most of them are Chinese. They mainly speak Cantonese. Many people learn English as an additional language.

[change] Public holidays

17 days of the year are public holidays in Hong Kong:

[change] Currency

There are coins from 10 cents to 10 dollars; and bank-notes (paper money bills) from $10 to $1000. One American dollar is equal to about $7.75 in Hong Kong dollars, at the official bank exchange rate.

[change] Public transport

  • Mass Transit Railway (MTR) which was established in 1979, owns seven lines,
    • Kwun Tong Line (running between Yau Ma Tei and Tiu Keng Leng)
    • Tsuen Wan Line (running between Tsuen Wan and Central)
    • Island Line (running between Sheung Wan and Chai Wan)
    • Tseung Kwan O Line (running between Po Lam/LOHAS Park and North Point)
    • Tung Chung Line (running between Tung Chung and Hong Kong)
    • Airport Express (running between AsiaWorld-Expo and Hong Kong)
    • Disneyland Resort Line (running between Sunny Bay and Disneyland Resort)
    • East Rail Line (running between Hung Hom and Lo Wu/Lok Ma Chau)
  • Bus: there are four major bus companies in Hong Kong, such as KMB which mainly services Kowloon, the rest are New Lantao Bus, who mainly services Lantau Island, Citybus, and New World First Bus, which mainly services Hong Kong Island.
  • Public Light Bus: in 1960s, it was an illegal transportation, but later on, the government noticed that if there were only buses in Hong Kong, then some villages in N.T. will not have a public transport. Therefore, the Legislative Council legislated (made a law) for it to be legal and under the government control.
  • Tram (running between Kennedy Town, Happy Valley, and Shau Kei Wan)
  • Peak Tram (running between Garden Road and Victoria Peak)
  • Taxi (Red, Green, and Blue)
  • Ferry (Lots of different companies)

[change] Time Line of Hong Kong

Here is a brief history of Hong Kong:

Some very old rocks found in Hong Kong

Around 4000 BC

  • Sea levels rose above 100 meters

Around 3500 BC

  • Ceramic forms decorated with a wide range of patterns

Around 2000 BC

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

Around 500 BC

  • Ancient Chinese writing developed

221 BC

  • People from Mainland China came to Hong Kong

220

  • Coins of Han period were used in Hong Kong

1555

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

1799

  • China banned drug trade in HK

1800

  • Sale of opium became a huge success
opium flower

1839

  • Lin Zexu was appointed special commissioner
  • First opium war began

1841

  • Hong Kong was given to the British and became a dependent territory of United Kingdom
  • Lord Palmerston wrote that Hong Kong was nothing but a barren island without a house on it

January 26th, 1841-

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

August 1841

  • Sir Henry Pottinger became Hong Kong's first governor
  • Chinese made two governments sign the Treaty of Nanjing, causing the first opium war to come to an end

1860

  • China is once again defeated in the Opium War. Boundary Street and Stonecutter's Island is leased to Britain

1888

  • Peak Tram on Hong Kong Island started operating

1898

  • There is a 99-year lease of Lantau Island and New Territories to the British

1900s

  • Hong Kong was a refuge for exiles from China

1920s-1930s

  • Western dress began to come in fashion for the locals

1933-1934

  • Father Daniel Finn began excavations on Lamma Island

1941

  • Immigrants fled to Hong Kong because they are scared by the Communist party
Hong Kong's emblem after it returned to China

December 8th, 1941-

  • Empire of Japan invaded Hong Kong

December 25, 1941

  • British surrendered the territory to the Japanese Army

August 1945

  • Britain reclaimed its territory after Japan's surrender

1949

  • Doubled-decker buses were introduced to HK

1950

  • Hong Kong became a free port

1953

  • Shek Kip Mei Estate established the program of public housing

1955

  • Han Tomb near Lei Cheng Uk was discovered

1983

  • Hong Kong Dollars fixed its currency to the USA

1984

  • Two countries signed the Sino-British Joint Declaration

1990

  • The Hong Kong Basic Law was confirmed

1997

  • Asia's financial crisis
  • Archaeologists discovered 20 graves Ma Wan

July 1st, 1997

  • Hong Kong becomes Special Administrative Region of China for 50 years

1998

  • Hong Kong International Airport replaced Kai Tak Airport in Kowloon

June 2002

  • Tung Chee Wa is elected as Chief Executive

2003

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

March 10th, 2005

  • Tung Chee Wa retired as chief executive because of health problems.

March 2012

[change] Media

Hong Kong has two media companies, Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) and Asia Television Limited (ATV). They are business rivals.

[change] Places in Hong Kong

[change] Notes

  1. ↑ This is the official convention employed on the Chinese text of the Hong Kong regional emblem, the text of the Hong Kong Basic Law, and the Hong Kong Government website,[1] although "Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" and "Hong Kong" are also accepted.
  2. ↑ The Basic Law of Hong Kong states that the official languages are "Chinese and English".[2] It does not explicitly specify the standard for "Chinese". While Mandarin written in Simplified Chinese characters are the standards in mainland China, Cantonese and Traditional Chinese characters are the de facto standards in Hong Kong. See also: Bilingualism in Hong Kong.

[change] References

  1. ↑ "GovHK: Residents". Hong Kong Government. http://www.gov.hk/en/residents/. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
  2. ↑ "Official Languages". Hong Kong Government. 2006. http://www.yearbook.gov.hk/2006/en/01_13.htm. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
  3. ↑ Kuan, Hsin Chi (1997). "Support for the Rule of Law in Hong Kong". Hong Kong Law Journal 27: 188. http://heinonline.org/HOL/Page?handle=hein.journals/honkon27&div=24&g_sent=1&collection=journals. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
  4. ↑ "Sing Ming: Executive-Legislative Relations, Political Institutions and Democratic Survival: Lessons from Comparative Studies". Centre for Comparative and Public Law, The University of Hong Kong. Archived from the original on 1 May 2011. http://web.archive.org/web/20110501184743/http://www.hku.hk/ccpl/events/otherevents/documents/DrSingMingpowerpoint.ppt. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
  5. ↑ Zhang, Baohui (2009). "Political Paralysis of the Basic Law Regime and the Politics of Institutional Reform in Hong Kong". Asian Survey 49: 312.
  6. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named cia.
  7. ↑ "Population and Vital Events". Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong Government. 2010. http://www.censtatd.gov.hk/hong_kong_statistics/statistics_by_subject/index.jsp?subjectID=1&charsetID=2&displayMode=T. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
  8. ↑ "Population Density by Area". Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong Government. 2009. http://www.censtatd.gov.hk/FileManager/EN/Content_803/population.pdf. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 "Hong Kong". International Monetary Fund. http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2008&ey=2011&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=532&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=43&pr.y=5. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  10. ↑ "Human Development Report 2009 – Gini Index". United Nations Development Programme. http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/indicators/161.html. Retrieved 10 November 2009.
  11. ↑ "Human Development Report 2011". United Nations. http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2011_EN_Table1.pdf. Retrieved 2011-11-02.
Major cities of Greater China
People's Republic of China
Direct-controlled municipalities Beijing · Chongqing · Shanghai · Tianjin
Sub-provincial cities Changchun · Chengdu · Dalian · Guangzhou · Hangzhou · Jinan · Harbin · Nanjing · Ningbo · Qingdao · Shenyang · Shenzhen · Wuhan · Xi'an · Xiamen
Provincial capitals (not included above) Changsha · Fuzhou · Guiyang · Haikou · Hefei · Hohhot · Kunming · Lanzhou · Lhasa · Nanchang · Nanning · Shijiazhuang · Taiyuan · Ürümqi · Xining · Yinchuan · Zhengzhou
Special administrative regions Hong Kong · Macau
Republic of China
Direct-controlled municipality Taipei · Kaohsiung
Provincial cities Chiayi · Hsinchu · Keelung · Taichung · Tainan
 
Countries and territories of Asia
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1. Includes territory in both Europe and Asia. 2. Usually thought of Europe for cultural, political and historical reasons. 3. Special territories. 4. Disputed territories.

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