Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China. Situated on China's southern coast just south of Shenzhen, it consists of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and the New Territories. With 7.5 million residents in a 1,114-square-kilometre (430 sq mi) territory, Hong Kong is the fourth-most densely populated region in the world.

Originally a sparsely populated area of farming and fishing villages, Hong Kong is now one of the world's most significant financial centres and commercial ports. Hong Kong is the world's third-ranked global financial centre behind New York City and London, ninth-largest exporter, and eighth-largest importer. Its currency, the Hong Kong dollar, is the ninth-most traded currency in the world. Home to the third-highest number of billionaires of any city in the world, Hong Kong has the second largest number of ultra high-net-worth individuals. The city has one of the highest per capita incomes in the world, although severe income inequality still exists among the population.

Hong Kong is the city with the most skyscrapers in the world, even though its housing is consistently in high demand. Hong Kong is the second most expensive residential property market in the world and is one of the most expensive cities in the world. Hong Kong is also one of the most visited cities in the world. (Full article...)

The Octopus card is a rechargeable contactless stored value smart card used to transfer electronic payments in online or offline systems in Hong Kong. Originally launched in September 1997 to collect fares for the city's mass transit system, the Octopus card system has since grown into a widely used payment system for virtually all public transport in Hong Kong. It is also used for payment at convenience stores, supermarkets, fast-food restaurants, on-street parking meters, car parks, and other point-of-sale applications such as service stations and vending machines. The Octopus card has been internationally recognised, winning the Chairman's Award of the World Information Technology and Services Alliance's 2006 Global IT Excellence Award for being the world's leading complex automatic fare collection and contactless smartcard payment system, and for its innovative use of technologies. According to Octopus Cards Limited, operator of the Octopus card system, there are more than 14 million cards in circulation, twice the population of Hong Kong. The cards are used by 95 percent of the population of Hong Kong aged 16 to 65, generating over 10 million daily transactions worth a total of about HK$29 billion (US$3.7 billion) a year.

Anita Mui Yim-fong (October 10, 1963 - December 30, 2003) was a popular Hong Kong singer and actress. During her prime years she made major contributions to the cantopop music scene, while receiving numerous awards and honours. She remained an idol throughout most of her career, and was generally regarded as a cantopop diva. Once she held a sell-out concert at Hammersmith, England, where she was dubbed the title "Madonna of Asia". That title has stayed with her throughout her career, and has been used as a comparison for both Eastern and Western media.

In the 1980s the gangtai style of music was revolutionised by her wild dancing and femininity on stage. She was famous for having outrageous costumes and also high powered performances. Her fanbase reached far beyond Hong Kong, and into many parts of Asia including Taiwan, People's Republic of China, Singapore, Malaysia as well as the overseas market. In the Hong Kong entertainment industry where stars often come and go, Mui was able to remain a major star in the spotlight for 20 years. Her career only came to a stop in 2003 when she was suddenly diagnosed with cervical cancer, dying at the age of only 40. Even so, her music and film legacy continues to live on. Her success reached well beyond that of the entertainment circle with humanitarian work, donations and charities that played a major role in helping society even well into the present day.

• ... that Chinese-American architect I. M. Pei (pictured) made three secretive trips to Paris to prepare for his design of the Louvre Pyramid?
• ... that major roads in Hong Kong are numbered from Route 1 to Route 9 under the Hong Kong Strategic Route and Exit Number System?
• ... that Christian Zheng Sheng College on Lantau, Hong Kong, has a dormitory on Cheung Chau from which students take small ferries called kai-tos to get to school?
• ... that Queen's Building was called Hong Kong's "most prestigious commercial building" when it opened in 1899?
• ... that Battery Path was located on Hong Kong Island's waterfront when it opened, but is now situated further inland due to the amount of land reclamation?

• Visit the Hong Kong Wikipedians' discussion board and help to write new Hong Kong-related articles, and expand and improve existing ones.
• Visit Wikipedia:WikiProject Hong Kong/Assessment, and help to assess unrated Hong Kong articles.
• Add the Project Banner to Hong Kong articles around Wikipedia.

WikiProject China

WikiProject Hong Kong

WikiProject Macau

East Asia

Other Countries