The culture of Hong Kong is a combination of Chinese and Western influences, rooted in Lingnan Cantonese heritage, and shaped by its time as a British colony (1841 to 1997). In addition to absorbing global influences, the city's culture is enriched by its indigenous communities and ethnic minorities from South and Southeast Asia.
As "Asia's World City," Hong Kong has developed a distinct identity that persists under the "one country, two systems" framework, which began after the transfer of sovereignty to China in July 1997.Lilley, Rozanna. (1998) Staging Hong Kong: Gender and Performance in Transition. University of Hawaii. However, increasing Chinese control of Hong Kong has led to increasing concerns about the future of Hong Kong's culture after the end of the "one country, two systems" framework in 2047.
Languages and writing systems Spoken languages
English and Chinese are the two official languages of Hong Kong. During the British colonial era, English was the sole official language until 1978 but remained a strong second language in Hong Kong. As the majority of the population in Hong Kong are descendants of migrants from China's Canton Province, the vast majority speak standard Cantonese or other Yue Chinese varieties as a first language, with smaller numbers of speakers of Hakka Language or the Teochew dialect of Southern Min. In addition, immigrants and expatriates from the West and other Asian countries have contributed much to Hong Kong's linguistic and demographic diversity.
Hong Kong Cantonese
Cantonese (语) has a 1000-year-long history, and a rich heritage of traditional songs and poems.Chen, M., & Newman, J. (1984). From Middle Chinese to Modern Cantonese (Part I). Journal of Chinese Linguistics, 12(1), 148-97.Chen, M. Y., & Newman, J. (1984). From Middle Chinese to Modern Cantonese (Part 2). Journal of Chinese Linguistics, 334-388.Chen, M. Y., & Newman, J. (1985). From Middle Chinese to Modern Cantonese (Part 3). Journal of Chinese Linguistics, 122-170. Although it is not one of the indigenous languages,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYz6STyaSAc TVB News 《星期X檔案 -- 留住本土語》(in Cantonese)http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/news/art/20140217/18627989 Apple Daily Hong Kong 《50年前廣東話人口不過半 淘汰多種方言成主流》17 February 2014 (in Traditional Chinese) it is the most widely spoken language in Hong Kong today. The Hong Kong style of Cantonese contains many loanwords from English, and also some from Japanese, due to Japan being one of Hong Kong's biggest trade partners, and the popularity of Japanese pop culture over the past few decades. Nevertheless, Hong Kong Cantonese is still mutually intelligible with the Cantonese spoken by Cantonese people from mainland China or overseas Chinese of Cantonese ancestry. Cantonese is also the primary language used in Hong Kong cultural products (pop songs, movies, etc.).
One distinctive trait of Hong Kong's Cantonese is that, due to British cultural influences, Hong Kongers are noted to have a habit of sprinkling their Cantonese with English words, resulting in a new speech pattern called "Kongish".
Non-Cantonese Sinitic languages Hakka (Jyutping: ; Traditional Chinese: 客家話), one of the indigenous languages of Hong Kong, is commonly used in many walled villages (Jyutping: ; Traditional Chinese: 圍村) in the New Territories and in Hakka ethnic communities.http://www.hkilang.org (in Chinese Traditional)http://podcast.rthk.hk/podcast/item_epi.php?pid=315&lang=zh-CN&id=16160 RTHK《漫遊百科 - Ep. 17》(in Cantonese) Hakka – like Cantonese and Mandarin – is a member of the Chinese language family, but has close to zero mutual intelligibility with either. Hakka culture also differs from Cantonese in terms of traditional architecture, music, cuisine, and other customs.
Waitau language (Jyutping: Wai4 tau4 waa2; Traditional Chinese: 圍頭話), another of Hong Kong's indigenous languages, is mostly spoken by the older generation living in walled villages in the New Territories. The Tanka people (Jyutping: ; Traditional Chinese: 蜑家人) from the fishing villages are another group of Hong Kong indigenous peoples. Their language, Tanka (Jyutping: ; Traditional Chinese: 蜑家話), with their own version of Cantonese, is also considered as one of Hong Kong's indigenous languages.
Government linguistic policy Since the 1997 handover, the government has adopted the "biliterate and trilingual" (Jyutping: Loeng3 man4 saam1 jyu5; Traditional Chinese: 兩文三語; literally: "two writing systems and three languages") policy. Under this principle, "Chinese" (somewhat ambiguously) and English must both be acknowledged as official languages, with Cantonese being accepted as the de facto official (at least spoken) variety of Chinese in Hong Kong, while also accepting the use of Mandarin (Jyutping: ; Traditional Chinese: 普通話) on certain occasions.
Writing systems In terms of writing systems, Hong Kongers write using Traditional Chinese characters, which not only employ, (in diverse circumstances) variant and classical characters used since imperial times, but also cover all of the words in Mandarin-based Vernacular Chinese – the language in which government documents, and most works of literature are written. With the aid of Cantonese characters invented by Hong Kongers, the Cantonese language can now be written verbatim, and written Cantonese has become more prevalent since the turn of the 21st century, especially in less formal spheres such as Internet fora and advertisements.
Cultural identity After 156 years of rule as a separate British colony, Hong Kong's political separation from the rest of the Lingnan area has resulted in a unique local identity. Elements of traditional Cantonese culture combined with British influences have shaped every aspect of the territory, including its law, politics, education, languages, cuisine, and way of thinking. It is for this reason that locals refer to themselves as Hongkongers (Jyutping: ; Traditional Chinese: 香港人), to distinguish themselves and their culture from that of the Han Chinese from Mainland China. The sense of Hong Kong people asserting their unique identity and nationality has increased over time. This is due to the rising phenomena of conflicts between Hong Kongers and Mainlanders.
Academic Kam Louie described Hong Kong's colonial past as creating a "translation space where Chinese-ness was interpreted for 'Westerners' and Western-ness translated for Chinese."
After the handover of Hong Kong, the University of Hong Kong surveyed residents about how they defined themselves. In its June 2022 poll, 39.1% of respondents identified as Hong Konger, 31.4% as Hong Konger in China, 17.6% as Chinese, 10.9% as Chinese in Hong Kong, and 42.4% as mixed identity. In a 2023 Pew Research survey, adults in Hong Kong were most likely to identify as both Chinese and Hong Konger (53%), followed by those who identify primarily as Hong Konger (36%), and solely as Chinese (10%). The decrease in the number of people who identify as Hong Kongers may be related to the mass exodus of pro-democracy Hong Kongers, an increase in the number of mainland Chinese immigrants, and an increase in self-censorship by those still living in Hong Kong ever since the implementation of the 2020 National Security Law. Those who left often identify as Hong Kongers and/or ethnically Chinese, but not as nationally Chinese, whilst immigrants from the Mainland typically identify as nationally Chinese.
As Hong Kong developed as a fishing village into an international financial hub, many middle-class individuals residing in the colony admired and adapted to European life and culture. The presence of both European and Chinese cultures has caused some to feel the need to pick between a European identity (often perceived as being international) and a Chinese identity, or even a desire for a completely independent identity, separate from both Europe and China.
Society
In Hong Kong, traditional Confucian-derived values such as "family solidarity", "courtesy", and "saving face" carry significant weight in the minds of the people. Hong Kong's mainstream culture is derived from – and heavily influenced by – the Cantonese from the neighbouring province of Guangdong ("Gwongdung" in Cantonese) and their culture, which is considerably different from those of other Han Chinese people. There are also small communities of Hakka, Hokkien, Teochew, and Shanghainese people in Hong Kong.
Structurally, one of the first laws to define people's relationships was the Hong Kong Matrimonial Ordinance passed in 1972. The law set the precedent of banning concubinage and same sex marriages with a strict declaration for heterosexual relationships with one partner only.Chou, Wah-Shan. Zhou, Huashan. (2000). Tongzhi: Politics of Same-Sex Eroticism in Chinese Societies. Haorth Press Other economic changes included families in need of assistance due to both parents being in employment. In particular, foreign domestic helpers have become an integral part of the household since the 1970s.
Architecture
In terms of architecture, Hong Kong showcases Cantonese, British, and indigenous influences. The two dominant styles are Cantonese architecture and British architecture. The former's popularity is stems from the presence of a large number of residents with Cantonese ancestry, whilst the latter is most commonly seen on government buildings due to British rule of the colony. Hong Kong's indigenous peoples also have their own styles, namely walled villages, and stilt houses built on water (pang uk). The major architectural styles found in Hong Kong include:
Hong Kong also contains some Chinese Renaissance style architecture, such as King Yin Lei on 45 Stubbs Road, and St. Mary's Church of Sheng Kung Hui (Anglican Communion) on Hong Kong Island.
Visual arts
Fine arts Hong Kong supports a variety of artistic activities. The Hong Kong Arts Centre in Wan Chai offers a variety of performance venues and galleries, and is supportive of other arts organisations, whist the Oi! arts centre, located inside the historic Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, aims to promote visual arts in Hong Kong by providing a platform for art exhibitions, fora, and other art-related activities. M+ focuses on 20th and 21st century visual culture, including design and architecture. At an international level, Hong Kong hosts Art Basel, which is the leading contemporary arts fair in Asia, and is the centre for new media art with venues such as Microwave International New Media Arts Festival and Videotage. Even in less urban areas of the city, Hong Kongers have also built creative oases, such as the Cattle Depot Artist Village and the Fo Tan artistic community. Contemporary visual artists from Hong Kong include Nadim Abbas, Amy Cheung, Choi Yan-chi, Ming Fay, Lai Cheuk Wah Sarah, Tsang Tsou Choi, Ho Sin Tung, and Eric Siu.
Hong Kong has recently seen a boom in independent art groups.
Cantonese fine arts Hong Kong hosts several styles of Lingnan (Cantonese) fine arts, including the Lingnan style of painting and bonsai. For example, Yeung Sin-sum, who is venerated as "the last master of the Lingnan school of painting", is based (though not born) in Hong Kong. Hong Kong also has an active club supporting Lingnan penjing (English website).
Hong Kong is home to modern ink painting, which infuses traditional Chinese ink painting with experimental techniques and approaches. Prominent artists in this field include Lui Shou-kwan, Liu Kuo-sung, and Eddy Chan.
Graffiti art