Flag of China
Flag of Hong Kong
You may recall the popular novel The World of Suzie Wong, about a prostitute in Hong Kong. The book was made into a play, film and a ballet. Two unofficial sequels were written.
Wiki gives this wonderful video demo of how to write the letter for king, pronounced as Wong or Wang. A Cantonese speaking friend of mine in Singapore told me: "The base line of a letter in Chinese is always wider, as a support, like the earth."
I replied, "Or a table or support for a candlestick!"
The majority of people in Singapore are ethnic Chinese and speak Chinese (Mandarin).
HONG KONG
Etymology (History of the word or name)
| Hong Kong | |||
|---|---|---|---|
"Hong Kong" in Chinese characters
| |||
| Chinese | 香港 | ||
| Cantonese Yale |  Hēunggóngor Hèunggóng | ||
| Literal meaning | "Fragrant Harbour" [33][34] | ||
| |||
| Hong Kong Special Administrative Region | |||
| Traditional Chinese | 香港特別行政區 (香港特區) | ||
| Simplified Chinese | 香港特别行政区 (香港特区) | ||
| Cantonese Yale | Hēunggóng Dahkbiht Hàhngjingkēui (Hēunggóng Dahkkēui) or Hèunggóng Dahkbiht Hàhngjingkēui (Hèunggóng Dahkkēui) | ||
| |||
Fragrant/Incense Harbour
From WIki :
The name of the territory, first romanised 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 pronunciation hēung góng. The name translates as "fragrant harbour" or "incense harbour".
Why Fragrant
"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. The incense was stored near Aberdeen Harbour for export before Victoria Harbour developed.
Alternatively, red waterfall
Sir John Davis (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.
One Word Or Two? HSBC Bank
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 Electric Company, Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels and the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC).
So the names of the latter companies are not wrong spelling but old spelling. If you deal with HSBC or see the name, you may recall that the bank dates from a while ago.
HSBC Bank
The HSBC Bank was founded in the 1860s. Wow. Now you know.
Useful Websites
Hong Kong
Shanghai
For more on Tourism see
Wikipedia
Wikitravel
Wikivoyage
tripadvisor
HSBC
About the Author
Angela Lansbury travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Member of five Toastmasters Clubs which train speakers worldwide. Angela's club Braddell Heights Advanced is on the same time zone as China. From London and the UK you area few hours behind, so early lunch enables you to log into a club in Singapore, China and Hong Kong. Another club, Singapore Online meets later, starting at 9 pm Singapore time, so that visitors and members from the USA can join in.
BHA 7 p, first Wednesday, Aug 5th 2020, at 7 pm Singapore time. Use google chrome
bha.learncool.sg/meet
