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HONG KONG ANNUAL REPORT
distinctive dialect of Cantonese, which they appear to have adopted early in the fourteenth century, during the Yuan dynasty. At Tai O, on Lantao Island, there is the rare instance of a fairly large group of Tanka living ashore, or rather half-ashore, in huts built on stakes over a muddy inlet.
Certain parts of the New Territories mainland have been affected by the great numbers of refugees who, since 1937, have come to the Colony from all parts of China. In general where they have settled in the country, it has been in assimil- able numbers; but certain groups of Tungkwun and Chiu- chow cultivators, and of miners from North China, have resisted assimilation and preserved a refugee mentality. These, however, form only a very small minority of the total rural population.
An increasing number of city dwellers of all nationalities have in recent years been building bungalows and small week-end residences in the New Territories. Most of these are along the main roads, particularly at Sha Tin, Tai Po, near the Fan Ling golf courses, and along the road to Castle Peak and Clearwater Bay, On the islands the principal areas affected are Cheung Chau and Silver Mine Bay.
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CLIR