Header image courtesy of Ko Tim-keung (via Hong Kong Memory)
Hong Kong’s rich history leaves its footsteps in the city’s objects and people. While it is easy to turn to the internet and the library to look up information, the tales of cities are always more fascinating when unravelled through existing legacies. Perhaps you already know of a few notable examples off the top of your head: the Clock Tower, Western Market, Victoria Prison, and its likes—and the value in all of these historic legacies lies in the collision of quiescence and vibrancy. While they silently front the city through a time-lapsed lens, they simultaneously speak loudly about its history and give us a glimpse of what society looked like back then.
Heritage is arguably the most significant part of any society, as there will never be a ‘present’ without a ‘past.’ For Hong Kong, such a transition is perhaps most well-put in its stories of translation. Every part of our city will be able to show you how it straddles two languages, as well as the way it bridges two significantly different cultures. Over the course of a hundred years, the topic of change still lingers in Hong Kong. Such change is not futile, but substantial—after all, the connection with a homeland is what defines one’s identity. And what better embodies the substantial changes of Hong Kong than the streets we step foot on every day?
People change, cultures change, languages change. It is our geographical landscape that remains constant, one that testifies to all other changes. If streets could speak, some of them would perhaps be interested to learn how and why their Chinese and English names differ so drastically. Little would they know, though, just how much these differences embody Hongkongers’ state of mind: lost in translation. Get a glimpse into five streets that unfold whimsical tales of how meanings differ in English and Cantonese.