Kowloon
九龍
Kowloon as viewed from Hong Kong Island
Kowloon as viewed from Hong Kong Island
Location within Hong Kong (in green)
Location within Hong Kong (in green)
Area
 • Land67 km2 (26 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)
 • Total2,108,419 (2.1 million)
 • Density43,033/km2 (111,450/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+8 (Hong Kong Time)
Kowloon
"Kowloon" in Traditional (top) and Simplified (bottom) Chinese characters
Traditional Chinese九龍
Simplified Chinese九龙
JyutpingGau2-lung4
Literal meaning"Nine Dragons"

Kowloon (/ˌkaʊˈluːn/) is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. With a population of 2,019,533 and a population density of 43,033/km2 (111,450/sq mi) in 2006, it is the most populous area in Hong Kong, compared with Hong Kong Island and the rest of the New Territories. The peninsula's area is about 47 km2 (18 sq mi).

Location

Kowloon is located directly north of Hong Kong Island across Victoria Harbour. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait to the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen, Butterfly Valley and Stonecutter's Island to the west, a mountain range, including Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock to the north, and Victoria Harbour to the south. Also, there are many islands scattered around Kowloon, such as CAF island.

Administration

Kowloon comprises the following districts:

Name

The name 'Kowloon' (Chinese: 九龍; lit. 'nine dragons') alludes to eight mountains and a Chinese emperor: Kowloon Peak, Tung Shan, Tate's Cairn, Temple Hill, Unicorn Ridge, Lion Rock, Beacon Hill, Crow's Nest and Emperor Bing of Song.[1] It was also spelt 'Kawloong' in some 19th century sources.[2]

History

Kowloon c. 1868, depicting the Qing-era Kowloon Walled City and Lion Rock (in the background)
Map of Kowloon in 1915
Hong Kong's old airport, Kai Tak, was located in Kowloon Bay.

The part of Kowloon south of Boundary Street, together with Stonecutters Island, was ceded by Qing China to the United Kingdom under the Convention of Peking of 1860. For many years the area remained largely undeveloped, used by the British mainly for tiger-hunting expeditions.[3] The part of Kowloon north of Boundary Street (New Kowloon) was leased by the British as part of the New Territories under the 1898 Second Convention of Peking for 99 years. Within New Kowloon is Kowloon City, an area of Hong Kong where the Kowloon Walled City used to be located. The Kowloon Walled City itself was demolished in 1993. The same area was called Kwun Fu Cheung (官富場) during the Song dynasty (960–1279). "New Kowloon" has remained part of the New Territories.

Statutorily, "Kowloon" is only the area south of Boundary Street and Stonecutters Island, but in common use, New Kowloon is not regarded as part of the New Territories, but as an integral part of the Kowloon urban area whether north or south of Boundary Street.

Large-scale development of Kowloon began in the early 20th century, with the construction of the Kowloon-Canton Railway and the Kowloon Wharf, but because of the close proximity of Kowloon's built-up area to Kai Tak Airport, building construction was limited by flight paths. As a result, compared to Hong Kong Island, Kowloon had a much lower skyline.[1] After World War II, Kowloon became extremely congested when slums for refugees from the newly established People's Republic of China gave way to public housing estates, mixed with private residential, commercial, and industrial areas.

The area of reclaimed land known as West Kowloon was once home to a dockyard for the Royal Navy.

The 1911 census recorded a population of 7,306, with most being Hakka.[4] The invasion of China by Japan in 1937 caused the population of Kowloon to grow drastically. Between 1937 and 1939, 750,000 refugees arrived in Kowloon and nearby areas, with many not having residence.[5]

Demographics

As of 2011, 2,108,419 people lived in Kowloon.[6]

About 94.2% of Kowloon's residents are of Han Chinese ethnicity. The largest ethnic minority groups are Indonesians (1.8%), Filipinos (1.5%), Indians (0.5%), Nepalese (0.4%), and British (0.3%).[6] Around 86% of Kowloon's residents use Cantonese as their usual language, while 2.3% use English and 1.2% use Mandarin.[6]

Localities

Kowloon comprises these localities of Hong Kong:

Education

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hung Hom
King George V School, Homantin

Lists of primary and secondary schools in Kowloon by district:

Tertiary education

Notable people

  • Sean Parry (born 1987), cricketer
  • Jackson Wang (born 1994), Founder of TEAM WANG, rapper, singer, dancer, record producer, fashion designer, and music video director

Transport

Western Harbour Crossing, one of the tunnels that link Kowloon with Hong Kong Island

Kowloon is connected to Hong Kong Island by two road-only tunnels (the Cross-Harbour Tunnel and the Western Harbour Crossing), three MTR railway tunnels (Tsuen Wan line, Tung Chung line/Airport Express and East Rail) and one combined road and MTR rail link tunnel (Eastern Harbour Tunnel, containing the Tseung Kwan O line and road traffic in separate parallel conduits). No bridges connect the island and Kowloon.

Kowloon Peninsula panorama

References

  1. 1 2 Fallon, Steve. (2006) Hong Kong and Macau. Lonely Planet Publishing. ISBN 981-258-246-0
  2. ↑ "KAWLOONG FERRY STATION: Hong Kong postcard (C48147)". eBay.
  3. ↑ 10,000 Chinese Numbers. Lulu.com. p. 207. ISBN 9780557006212. Archived from the original on 23 August 2016.
  4. ↑ James Hayes, The Hong Kong Region 1850–1911. Hong Kong, 2012. ISBN 9888139118
  5. ↑ "Hong Kong 2003 – History". www.yearbook.gov.hk. Archived from the original on 26 September 2011. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 District Profiles, Hong Kong Census, 2011, archived from the original on 27 September 2013, retrieved 27 September 2013
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Kowloon.
  • Media related to Kowloon at Wikimedia Commons
  • Media related to Kowloon West at Wikimedia Commons

22°19′N 114°11′E / 22.317°N 114.183°E / 22.317; 114.183

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