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The HKCI is in the process of carrying out a mega project to compile over 60 volumes of Hong Kong chronicles, totalling about 25 million words.
The social, cultural, and population history of Hong Kong will receive extensive coverage in this project.
The plan is to complete the project within a period of eight years (2019 – 2027), by the 30th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China.
Besides the “Population” volume, the HKIAPS has been newly commissioned by the Hong Kong Chronicles Institute to undertake the work of compiling the “Ethnicity and Family” volume.
This volume will be divided into four sections that illustrate the changes and current situation regarding ethnicity and family in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong can be viewed as a largely mono-racial society, as more than 90% of the population is Chinese.
Nevertheless, Hong Kong society is comprised of people from a diversity of races, ethnicities,
and ancestral origins, and relationships among the various groupings are complex.
Since the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States era,
Hong Kong has been a safe haven and a place of settlement for people of various ethnicities fleeing calamities elsewhere.
Ever since the period when Hong Kong came under British colonial rule,
Hong Kong has served as an intersection of trade and culture between China and the West,
attracting people of different races and nationalities to work and reside here.
After the Second World War in particular, rapid industrialization, urbanization,
and westernization brought about large changes to the traditional family,
including in its structure, function, values, and system.
In this volume, the historical background behind some large-scale changes in ethnicity and family in Hong Kong will be examined.■
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