Languages of Hong Kong

Languages of Hong Kong
English and Chinese signage on Queen's Road
OfficialChinese, English
MainHong Kong Cantonese, Hong Kong English
MinorityHakka, Southern Min (Hokkien, Teochew, Haklau), Mandarin, Shanghainese
ImmigrantFilipino, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi
ForeignFrench, German
SignedHong Kong Sign Language
Keyboard layout

During the British colonial era, English was the sole official language until 1974. Today, the Basic Law of Hong Kong states that English and Chinese are the two official languages of Hong Kong. All roads and government signs are bilingual, and both languages are used in academia, business and the courts, as well as in most government materials today. According to the 2021 Hong Kong census, 93.7% of the population aged 5 or above could speak Cantonese, 58.7% could speak English, and 54.2% could speak Mandarin; in terms of usual spoken language, 88.2% of the population aged 5 and over spoke Cantonese, 4.6% spoke English and 2.3% spoke Mandarin.

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