Kowloon Owes Its Name to a Six-Year-Old Chinese Emperor

In the thirteenth century, after the Mongols conquered northern China, which was then controlled by the Jin Dynasty, the Song Dynasty sought refuge in southern China. When 7-year-old Emperor Duanzong (宋端宗) died in 1278, his six-year-old brother, Zhao Bing (趙昺), was enthroned in Mui Wo (梅窩) on Lantau Island. He thus became the first, last, and only Chinese emperor to be enthroned on the territory of present-day Hong Kong.

One day, when he saw the eight peaks forming the northern boundary of what was to become Kowloon, he thought the mountain ridge resembled the back of a dragon and named the eight peaks the Eight Dragons. However, one of his servants reminded him that, according to Chinese tradition, the Emperor was also a Dragon. Therefore, the Eight Dragons became the Nine Dragons.

In Cantonese, nine is pronounced 九 (gau), and dragon is pronounced 龍 (lung). In other words, Nine Dragons in Cantonese is 九龍 (gau lung). Eventually, the British romanized the word 九龍 into Kowloon, which is its modern English name.

As for Emperor Bing, following the conquest of the Southern Song Empire by Kublai Khan, he committed suicide on March 19, 1279, at the age of 7, by throwing himself into the sea. This marked the end of the Song Dynasty.

In 1960, a tomb believed to be Zhao Bing’s was rediscovered in Chiwan (赤灣), in present-day Shenzhen, and was restored in a joint effort between Hong Kong and Shenzhen in 1984.