2023 Qilin Lecture Series on Chinese Culture
Emigration from/through Hong Kong 1850-1950
Prof. Elizabeth Sinn Yuk Yee
Between 1850 and 1950, tens of thousands of Chinese passengers left Hong Kong for different parts of the world to trade, to work as laborers and seamen, and to find gold in Gold Mountain regions such as California, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. Most of them originated from the Pearl River Delta. As importantly, many returned to their home villages through Hong Kong. In the process of these comings and goings, Hong Kong became an entrepôt for people and many aspects of its social and economic developments were deeply affected by these movements. This talk will also highlight Hong Kong’s place in modern China and in the Chinese diaspora.
Date : Wednesday, May 17, 2023
Time : 3:30 — 4:30 p.m.
Venue : Yidan Chinese Cultural Center
Language：English
Registration：Click here
Enquiries：crc@isf.edu.hk
About the Speaker
Prof. Elizabeth Sinn was born and raised in Hong Kong. She has written widely on Hong Kong history. Before her retirement, she was Deputy Director of the Centre of Asian Studies (HKU) and is today an Honorary Professor at the Hong Kong Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences. She is currently an Expert Advisor to the Hong Kong Museum of History and works closely with the Hong Kong Chronicles project. Having served on the Antiquities Advisory Board and the Lord Wilson Heritage Trust, she was awarded the Bronze Bauhinia Star in 2004 for her contribution to heritage conservation. She led the “Hong Kong Memory Project” (2006-2013) to create a multi-media website for materials on Hong Kong’s history, culture, and heritage. Her own favorite book is Pacific Crossing: California Gold, Chinese Migration, and the Making of Hong Kong (2013) and her latest publication, “(Almost) Making Money in South China: Ho Amei and his Silver Mountain Dream”, (Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Volume 62 (2022), pp. 7-35), tells the history of the silver mine in Silver Mine Bay.
