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Victoria, Hong Kong

Coordinates: 22°16′42″N 114°10′28″E / 22.27833°N 114.17444°E / 22.27833; 114.17444
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Victoria, Hong Kong
A 1915 map showing Victoria City at the bottom
Traditional Chinese維多利亞城
Simplified Chinese维多利亚城
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinWéiduōlìyà Chéng
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanizationwàih dō leih a sìhng
Jyutpingwai4 do1 lei6 aa3 sing4

Victoria City, Victoria, or statutorily, the City of Victoria,[1] was one of the first urban settlements in Hong Kong after it became a British colony in 1842. It was initially named Queenstown but was soon known as Victoria. It is often said to be the capital of Hong Kong,[2][3][4][5][6][7] and almost all government departments still have their head offices located within its limit.

The city name Victoria has been eclipsed by Central District in popular usage.[8][clarification needed] The name "Victoria" is still used in Victoria Park, Victoria Peak, Victoria Harbour, Victoria Prison, and a number of roads and streets. It is nevertheless retained in the names of various organisations in reference to the Victoria City, such as the Victoria City District of the Hong Kong Scout,[9] the Victoria Junior Chamber,[10], etc. The name Victoria District Court had been in used at least way into the 1980s,[11][12][13][14] when it was moved to the Wanchai Tower and combined with other district courts in the territory.

Location

Boundary stone at Old Peak Road

The city is centred in present-day Central, and named after Queen Victoria in 1843. It occupies the areas that are known in modern times as Central, Admiralty, Sheung Wan, Wan Chai, East Point, Shek Tong Tsui, the Mid-levels, the Peak, Happy Valley and Kennedy Town, on Hong Kong Island. In 1903, the Hong Kong Government erected seven boundary stones for the city, inscribed "City Boundary 1903" at Hatton Road (克頓道), Pok Fu Lam Road, Bowen Road, Old Peak Road (舊山頂道), Wong Nai Chung Road, Victoria Road/Sai Ning Street (西寧街) and Magazine Gap Road. All remain, except for the one in Magazine Gap Road, which disappeared around mid-June, 2007.[15][16][17]

History

Victoria, April 1841
Victoria Town, 1850

In 1857, the British government expanded the scope of Victoria City and divided it into four "wans" (環, jyutping: waan4, pinyin: huàn, literally rings). The four wans are Sai Wan ("West Ring" in Chinese, present-day Sai Wan, including Kennedy Town, Shek Tong Tsui, and Sai Ying Pun), Sheung Wan ("Upper Ring" in Chinese, present-day Sheung Wan), Choong Wan or Chung Wan ("Central Ring" in Chinese, present-day Central) and Ha Wan ("Lower Ring" in Chinese, present-day Wan Chai). Except "Ha Wan"; "Sai Wan", "Sheung Wan" and "Choong Wan" retain the same name in Chinese today.

Victoria City, 1860–65

The four wans are further divided into nine "yeuks" (約, jyutping: joek3, pinyin: yuē, similar to "district" or "neighbourhood"). The coverage also included parts of East Point and Happy Valley (West of Wong Nai Chung Road on the east side of the Racecourse). In 1903, boundary stones were established to mark the City's boundary and six of them are still preserved today. The stones spread from Causeway Bay to Kennedy Town.[18]

Praya Central, 1870s

In the 1890s the capital city extended four miles west to east along the coastal strip. Buildings were made of granite and brick. Buses and the new tramway would become the main form of transportation in the area.[19]

Districts

Also called yeuks.

See also

References

  1. ^ Cap 1 Sched 1
  2. ^ The Hong Kong Institute of Architects Architecture Walk Central (2006), p.17
  3. ^ TravelNotes.org
  4. ^ Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary
  5. ^ The Free Dictionary, Your Dictionary - The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language
  6. ^ Darkstar Communications
  7. ^ Encyclopedia.com, Reference.com - The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia
  8. ^ Tsang, Steve (2004). A Modern History of Hong Kong. I.B. Tauris. p. 17. ISBN 1845114191.
  9. ^ Victoria City District
  10. ^ Victoria Junior Chamber
  11. ^ Volume 22 Inland Revenue Board of Review decisions
  12. ^ CACC497/1986 The Queen v. Chan Ngai Hung
  13. ^ CACC186A/1987 The Queen v Currency Brokers (H.K.) Ltd and Robert Lee Flickinger
  14. ^ CACC133A/1986 The Queen v. Wai Hin Keung
  15. ^ Antiquities and Monuments Office website: "Boundary Stone, City of Victoria"
  16. ^ List of boundary stones, with pictures Template:Zh icon
  17. ^ Apple Daily article about the boundary stones, 2007-08-19 Template:Zh icon
  18. ^ Wordie, Jason. [2002] (2002) Streets: Exploring Hong Kong Island. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. ISBN 962-2095631
  19. ^ Sanderson, Edgar. [1897] (1897) The British Empire in the Nineteenth Century: Its Progress and Expansion at Home and Abroad. Blackie publishing. No ISBN digitalized doc from Stanford University.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Victoria City.

22°16′42″N 114°10′28″E / 22.27833°N 114.17444°E / 22.27833; 114.17444

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