POPULATION

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(really five-Hoi Ping, Hok Shan, San Wui, Toi Shan and Yan Ping), Nam Hoi, Pun Yue, Shun Tak and Chung Shan. Other elements in the urban population include a Fukien community and numbers of overseas Chinese whose families originally came from Kwangtung and Fukien.

Cantonese, by which is meant not any dialect of Kwangtung province but the dialect of Canton City and others sufficiently like it to be intelligible, is the lingua franca of the urban area and is the mother tongue of the majority of the inhabitants of Hong Kong, Kowloon and New Kowloon. Next come other languages of Kwangtung-Hoklo, Sze Yap and Hakka in that order, followed by Shanghainese, English and Kuoyu. It is an increasing tendency for children whose families originated in North China to adopt Cantonese as their first language. Knowledge of English is increas- ing and is taught to a lesser or greater extent in all local schools. Kuoyu on the other hand seems to be on the ebb and its use is now almost confined to the academic world.

Certain language groups are found clustered in particular parts of the Colony. On Hong Kong Island there is a concentration of Chiuchow speakers in the Western district, of Fukien speakers (and a smaller number of Shanghai speakers) at North Point and of Sze Yap speakers in Wan Chai. Across the harbour, the Chiu- chow concentration is at Wong Tai Sin opposite Kai Tak airport, the Sze Yap concentration in Mong Kok and Cheung Sha Wan and the Shanghai concentration in Hung Hom. The only notable speakers of Kuoyu are around the University of Hong Kong and Rennie's Mill and the only districts where Portuguese speakers reach three figures are Tsim Sha Tsui and North Point.

NEW TERRITORIES

The indigenous population of the New Territories consists of four main groups-the Cantonese, Hakka, Tanka and Hoklo. These groups show differences in physical appearance, dress, organization and customs. The Cantonese and Hakka groups are traditionally land-dwellers whereas the Tanka and Hoklo groups are traditionally boat-dwellers. The latter two are probably of non- Chinese origin but all these groups now regard themselves as Chinese. The usual village community consists of a single clan but

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