# Hong Kong

> English word · Proper noun · IPA /ˌhɒŋˈkɒŋ/

## Definitions
1. A city and special administrative region in southeastern China, located on an island east of the Pearl River delta in the South China Sea; a former British colony.
2. An island in southeastern China, Hong Kong Island, the site of the city of the same name, lying off Guangdong (Canton) province.
3. A special administrative region of China, which includes the city and island of the same name as well as nearby islands and the Kowloon Peninsula.
4. A former British colony in 1843–1941 and 1945–1981 and then British Dependent Territory in 1981–1997 in modern southern China in the area of modern Hong Kong.

## Etymology
Etymology tree
Cantonese 香港 (hoeng¹ gong²)bor.
English Hong Kong
An irregular romanization of Cantonese 香港 (hoeng¹ gong², “incense harbor”), the former name of a settlement in what is now Aberdeen on the southwest side of Hong Kong Island, where joss stick incense was stored for export, made from agarwood.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/hong-kong