Walled villages of Hong Kong

Most of the walled villages in Hong Kong are located in the New Territories.

A walled village (圍村) is a kind of traditional building which is completely surrounded by thick defensive walls, protecting the residents from the attack of wild animals and enemies. Usually, people living in the walled village are families. Walled villages can be found in mainland China and Hong Kong.

Famous Walled Villages

Kat Hing Wai

Kat Hing Wai (吉慶圍) is a famous Hakka walled village in Yuen Long District of Hong Kong. Popularly known as Kam Tin, from the name of the area, it is home to about 400 descendants of the Tang clan, who settled in the area in the 11th century and built the village walls in the 1600s.

Kat Hing Wai is a rectangular (100 m x 90 m) walled village. As a family stronghold, Kat Hing Wai has served the Tangs well through the centuries, protecting the residents against bandits, rival clans, and wild tigers. In the Qing Dynasty, a five-metre high blue brick wall and four cannon towers were added to defend bandits. Today, the village is still completely surrounded by 18-foot-thick walls. There is only one narrow gated entrance.

Route: West Rail Kam Sheung Road station or KMB bus routes 51, 54, 64K.

Tsang Tai Uk

Tsang Tai Uk (曾大屋), also known as Shan Ha Wai, is another well-known walled village in Hong Kong. It is located near to the south of the Pok Hong Estate, not far from the Lion Rock Tunnel Road. Built in the 1840s. It was built in 1848 as a stronghold for the Tsang Clan. It is a preserved Hakka fortified village in Sha Tin.It is said to have taken 20 years to build the village. The village is built with granite, grey bricks and solid timber.

Tsang Tai Uk is rectangular in shape and consists of 3 rows of houses which are surrounded by grey-brick compound with high, thick walls and tall corner towers. All the houses are interlinked by passages and small courtyards. On the fortified walls,there are embrasures and loopholes. At the four corners, defensive towers were built to ward off the enemies in the old days.

Ceremonies take place in the ancestral hall in the innermost row of houses. There are 3 arched entrances at the northern wall. The main or the ceremonial entrance is in the middle and leads to the ancestral hall.

In front of the house is a massive courtyard. In the old days, villagers winnowed and dried their harvest.

Originally designed as the home for a rich quarry-master's clan, the walled village gained its current name when it gave refuge to displaced families after the Second World War.

Sheung Shui Wai

Sheung Shui Wai (上水圍), also known as Sheung Shui Heung (上水鄉), is one of the very few rural settlements having retained its original moat which was built in 1646. Characterized by its magnificent moat and landscape setting, the walled village is the core of the Liu clan, of which ancestors came originally from Fujian during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). The village is located in Sheung Shui.

Fanling Wai

Fanling Wai (粉嶺圍) is a walled village in Fanling built by the Pang (彭) clan. It is recognisable with the distinctive pond and layout including features such as cannons and watchtowers. All these elements were crafted to form an integral part of the village setting. Fanling Wai is the centre of the Pang clan who arrived Hong Kong from Guangxi province late in the Song Dynasty.

Nga Tsin Wai Tsuen

Nga Tsin Wai Tsuen (衙前圍村) is a walled village in Wong Tai Sin, New Kowloon. It is the one of the only walled villages left in the urban built-up areas of Hong Kong.

Other walled villages

Other walled villages in Hong Kong include:

Chik Chuen Wai (積存圍), commonly known as "Tai Wai" (大圍), and located in Tai Wai, Shatin.
Tin Sam Wai (田心圍), in Tai Wai, Shatin
Sam Tung Uk (三棟屋), a former Hakka walled village in Tsuen Wan, which has been relocated and converted into the Sam Tung Uk Museum.
Sheung Cheung Wai (上璋圍), in Ping Shan, Yuen Long, part of the Ping Shan Heritage Trail