Why Hong Kong is called Fragrant Port?
Why Hong Kong is called Fragrant Port? There are several different sayings about it. First one, there was a female pirate whose name was Fragrant Aunt. The island was her base and so it was called Fragrant Port later. Second one, there was a waterfall near the place Young Fragrant Port. Many sailors always drank water from the waterfall since it was sweet. So the place was called Fragrant Port.
Long long ago, there was a small village called Fragrant Port Village near Shipai Gulf and now it is still called Small Fragrant Port or Fragrant Port Exclosure. Today's Fragrant Island and Kowloon used to be under the administration of Dongguan County of Guangdong Province. Then Xin'an County (renamed as Bao'an County later and Shenzhen City nowadays) was separated from Dongguan County, and Fragrant Port Island belonged to Baoan County. After the Opium War in 1840, the Qing government ceded the island to Britain.
At that time Dongguan County of Guangdong Province was abundant with a kind of flavor that was coagulated by liquid from a kind of fragrant tree. Some flavor is like rosin, others like sandalwood. This flavor can be made into many fragrant products. People can put them on a little furnace and fire it with boiled water. Then the fragrance spreads out.
The kind of fragrance is called Guan Fragrance since it is produced in Dongguan. At that time many fragrant products were shipped to a lot of provinces and cities such as Jiangsu Province, Hangzhou and Beijing. So the district is called Fragrant Port and the village is called Fragrant Port Village later.
The finest fragrance of this kind is so expensive that the price value is the same as gold. The most precious one is Dongguan Daughter Fragrance.
It is said that once upon a time the Qing Imperial Palace was in need of this fragrance. But the output of it was quite limited. The court sent special placemen to collect it. They forced people in Dongguan to hand in the flavor. The fragrance farmers fled away after they burnt fragrant trees since they couldn't bear the arbitrariness. After that Guan Fragrance declined and became just a history. But the name of Fragrant Port is called by people till now.
Original Meanings of Some City Names
Harbin
In the language of Manchu ethnic minority, it means fishing net bleachery. It was a fishing village and became a city in 1932 after it was connected to outside by railway.
Hohhot
In the Mongolian language, it means green city.
Xilinhot
In the Mongolian language, it means high city.
Baotou
In the Mongolian language, it means place full of deer.
Hailar
In the Mongolian language, it means fluent water.
Ulanhot
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