Wong Tai Sin
Language: English
Part of speech: name
Forms: form: Wongtaisin
Etymology: From Cantonese 黃大仙 /黄大仙 (wong⁴ daai⁶ sin¹, literally “great immortal Wong”).
Senses: examples: text: The term was popularized by a TV show called “Below the Lion Rock,” which first aired in the 1970s and explored the lives of working-class people in Hong Kong, particularly those who had fled mainland China to settle in the former British colony. The show depicted the lives of people living around Lion Rock in areas such as Wong Tai Sin and Kowloon City, known for their slums and dense public housing developments.
ref: 2014 October 23, “Pro-Democracy Banner Occupies Hong Kong’s Iconic Lion Rock, Spawns Memes”, in The Wall Street Journal, archived from the original on 05 Dec 2019:
text: Officers also fired tear gas in the Wong Tai Sin area Saturday evening; the police said the action was a response to protesters obstructing roads and aiming laser pointers at officers.
ref: 2019 August 24, Raymond Zhong, Steven Lee Myers, “In Hong Kong Protests, Tear Gas and Violence End a Period of Calm”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 24 Aug 2019, Asia Pacific:
text: In the shadow of the revered mountain rise huge monoliths, drab concrete tower blocks far removed from the glittering glass highrises of Hong Kong island’s steroidal skyline. Here, in a neighborhood of public housing estates called Wong Tai Sin, seemingly endless stacks of aging windows heave with drying laundry and hum with air conditioners sweating droplets onto the pavement below.
ref: 2019 October 30, James Pomfret, Jessie Pang, “THE WINDOWS OF WONG TAI SIN”, in Reuters, archived from the original on 30 Oct 2019:
text: In Wong Tai Sin, a lorry driver was beaten and kicked by a group of protesters after he tried to remove roadblocks while in Kai Tin, a woman was sprayed in the face with black paint after she got into an argument with protesters.
ref: 2019 November 11, Didi Tang, “Hong Kong protesters branded ‘people’s enemy’ after day of bloodshed”, in The Times, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 09 Dec 2022:
text: For quotations using this term, see Citations:Wong Tai Sin.
glosses: An area of Wong Tai Sin district, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
examples: text: In the 1995 Legco elections, DAB leader Tsang Yok-shing originally wished to compete with LP leader Allen Lee in Tai Po district. As a result of political compromise, Tsang decided not to run in Tai Po and opted for Wong Tai Sin district.
ref: 1997, Shiu-hing Lo, “Citizen Participation: From Pressure Groups to Political Parties”, in The Politics of Democratization in Hong Kong, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 168:
text: The district of Wong Tai Sin to the north of Kowloon City is known for two things: its enormous and faceless housing estate and one of the most active and interesting temples in the territory.
ref: 2010, Andrew Stone, Piera Chan, Chung Wah Chow, “Neighbourhoods & Islands”, in Hong Kong & Macau City Guide (Lonely Planet), 14th edition, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 114, column 1:
text: Located in Kowloon, with an area of 9.36 km², Wong Tai Sin is the only district in Hong Kong that is totally landlocked. It has a population of 420,183 (2011) and a high density of 44.891/km².
ref: 2020, Eunice Mei Feng Seng, Resistant City: Histories, Maps and the Architecture of Development, →DOI, →ISBN, →OCLC, page https://books.google.com/books?id=4mLcDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT228, columns 1, 2:
text: For quotations using this term, see Citations:Wong Tai Sin.
glosses: A district of Hong Kong.