Mong Kok, located in Kowloon, Hong Kong, was originally named Mong Kok Tsui (芒角咀, "Ferny Corner/Bay") before 1930 due to its abundant silvergrass (ferns) and sharp, coastal, bull's-horn-shaped terrain. As the area developed, it was renamed to the current Chinese name Wong Kok (旺角), which translates to "prosperous corner" or "busy corner," though the English transliteration remained "Mong Kok".
Name. Until 1930, the area was called Mong Kok Tsui (芒角嘴). The current English name is a transliteration of its older Chinese name 望角 (Jyutping: mong6 gok3; IPA: [mɔːŋ˨ kɔːk˧]), or 芒角 (Jyutping: mong4 gok3; IPA: [mɔːŋ˨˩ kɔːk˧]), which is named for its plentiful supply of ferns in the past when it was a coastal region.
True to its name, Mong Kok (which means “busy corner” or “prosperous corner” in Cantonese) is one of the most vibrant and bustling districts in Hong Kong. With shops operating around the clock, it is a place of endless energy and vitality.
Essentially, the term MK person, which carries a rather negative undertone, is often used to describe a person who blindly follows trends without thought with the implication that they have a poor taste or behaves in a bad way.
By the end of 2019, according to the HKPORI, a record 55 percent of Hong Kong residents identified solely as “Hong Konger.” (That proportion dropped to 32 percent in 2022.) The number of those who identified solely as “Chinese” plunged to a new low of 11 percent.
In texting, “MK” or “mk” is a simple shorthand for “mmmmkay,” is just a casual, sometimes dismissive way of saying “okay.” Like anything in texting, the tone often depends on the context.
How do you say 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 in Cantonese?
To say 1 to 10 in Cantonese, you use different sounds for each number: 一 (jat1) for one, 二 (ji6) for two, 三 (saam1) for three, 四 (sei3) for four, 五 (ng5) for five, 六 (luk6) for six, 七 (cat1) for seven, 八 (baat3) for eight, 九 (gau2) for nine, and 十 (sap6) for ten, with the numbers in parentheses indicating the tone.
Puk gaai. The written form of puk gai commonly seen in Hong Kong. Puk gai (踣街, more commonly idiomatically written as 仆街; pūk gāai) literally means "falling onto street", which is a common curse phrase in Cantonese that may be translated into English as "drop dead".
The rarest Chinese surname is Nǚ (女). Yes, it means woman. You read that right. This surname is almost mythical, with fewer than 100 people registered with it in the entire country.
The British population in Hong Kong today consists mainly of career expatriates working in banking, education, real estate, law and consultancy, as well as many British-born ethnic Chinese, former Chinese émigrés to the UK and Hong Kongers (mostly ethnic Chinese) who successfully applied for full British citizenship ...
Hong Kong is a special administrative region (SAR) of China and is thus granted a high degree of de jure autonomy, as stipulated by Article 2 of the Hong Kong Basic Law ratified under the Sino-British Joint Declaration.
Meaning: Bye-bye. Whilst the number eight is considered lucky and symbolises wealth in other usages in Cantonese, the double eight “88” usually used in text messages doesn't wish luck or wealth upon the other person.
One of the main reasons Cantonese is of such interest is perhaps because it is significantly older than Mandarin. It was first recorded after the fall of the Han dynasty, around 220AD, over 2000 years ago. In contrast, Mandarin only came into being around 100 years ago.
In texting, “kk” means “okay” or “alright.” It's a quick way to show agreement, acceptance, or acknowledgment. Think of it as a slightly more enthusiastic version of “k.” People usually choose kk when they want to sound friendly without being too formal.
Dry texting basically refers to when texting suddenly gets boring, or “dries up” in an otherwise exciting and bouncy conversation where both parties are putting in equal effort. Once one party's answers start to fall into “K” and simple thumbs-up reactions to things, it can be said that the conversation is turning dry.
Responding with just "k" often feels abrupt to the receiver. It can come across as dismissive or even passive-aggressive. Many interpret it as a lack of interest in the conversation.
Cantonese 仆街 (puk1 gaai1, “fall onto street, drop dead, go to hell, [Singapore, Malaysia] to have no money)”), from 仆 (puk1, “fall”) + 街 (gaai1, “street”).
