CHAPTER IX
Growth of the Portuguese Community in Hongkong –
The Portuguese as Interpreters
The strength of British colonial enterprise was demonstrated in the case of Hongkong in less than a decade after the founding of the settlement. There were disabilities, misunderstandings, recriminations, and criticisms, it is true, but Hongkong was taking shape as an outpost of empire. It was not long before an increasing number of British and foreign firms followed in the wake of the Superintendency of British Trade, to open up trading establishments in Hongkong. With the advent of more business houses, more Portuguese clerks moved over to the British colony. Most of the newcomers to Hongkong were employed by the same firms with which they had previously worked in Macao and Canton, but a number of them also tried their fortunes in new enterprises.
In the first decade, or so, of Hongkong’s establishment, the well-to-do Portuguese merchants of Macao apparently were not attracted by the reported advantages offered in Hongkong, and so, like a number of the British and other foreign traders, they continued to carry on business at Macao, although some of them had agents in Hongkong. In several cases these Hongkong agents were British firms. As soon, however, as the young British colony showed signs of vitality and growth, they, too, began to employ their energies and their resources in the bustling new trading centre.
As the trade of Hongkong grew, that of Macao decreased. But Macao became the recruiting ground for clerks and other commercial assistants for whom Hongkong provided a livelihood which was not obtainable at Macao, as business in the Portuguese colony rapidly declined. Hongkong’s early traders, British as well as foreign, were able to secure in adequate numbers all the Portuguese assistants they required, at very low salaries. The young Macaense emigrants gave of their best to their employers, and it is not surprising that the demand for their services continued all through the century which followed. Their steady application to their work and their trustworthiness earned for them the confidence of their employers, and this provided the best recommendation for more men of their class. Their excellent penmanship was another qualification.
One story is worth relating, going back to the days before the introduction of typewriters for the transcription of letters and despatches. Sir William Des Voeux, Governor of Hongkong from 1887 to 1891, used to draft despatches in his own handwriting, stenographers being yet unknown in Hongkong in those days. Sir William wrote so badly that there were times when he could not read his own handwriting! Whenever this happened, a trusted Portuguese clerk from the Colonial Secretariat had to be sent for, and he it was who reduced the Governor’s seemingly illegible manuscript into folios of what looked like copper-plate “copy” for the eyes of the Secretary of State in Whitehall. Those were the days when penmanship was taught in the schools, and the records in many an old Hongkong firm testify to the excellent calligraphy of their Portuguese clerks. Penmanship as an accomplishment has become old-fashioned, apparently, to judge from the handwriting of the lads now turned out in the schools of Hongkong!
The Portuguese clerk just mentioned, whose services were so greatly appreciated by the Hongkong officials half a century ago, was Mr. José Maria Gutierrez. Mr. Gutierrez served under Dr. Frederick Stewart, who was for several years Colonial Secretary of Hongkong and by whom he was well liked. Such was the esteem in which Mr. Gutierrez was held and such the confidence reposed in him that, on two or three occasions when, in the Governor’s absence for short periods, Dr. Stewart acted as Officer Administering the Government, Mr. J. M. Gutierrez was appointed Acting Colonial Secretary of Hongkong.
Nothing seems to have been written elsewhere about the conditions under which the majority of the Portuguese settlers lived during the early decades of Hongkong’s history. Those conditions were far from easy. The hours of work were long, and the salaries paid to the Portuguese clerks were meagre, and it was only by dint of unremitting thrift that they were able to provide for the maintenance of their families. Fortunately, the housewives who came over from Macao to join their menfolk were capable and industrious young ladies, who plied needle and thread dexterously in making clothes for themselves, their husbands, and their children, and who with very limited means produced tasty and wholesome meals which they had learned to cook in their old homes in Macao. These women, it must be admitted, had had practically no schooling in Macao. What knowledge they possessed had been acquired in their homes, and they put that knowledge to good practical use in Hongkong.
Housing accommodation seemed always insufficient for the demands of the growing population of early Hongkong, and most of the Portuguese families had to be content with living in quarters which were close and uncomfortable to say the least. What with the periodic influxes of Chinese families from Canton, during the Taiping Rebellion, and the “Arrow” War, and on other occasions when life was insecure in China – which, by the way, contributed very greatly to the commercial life of Hongkong, for the newcomers brought their fortunes with them and set up in business in the city – the population of the British colony mounted by leaps and bounds. For the Portuguese clerks, for whom the housing problem was always a difficult one, the incursion of so many Chinese was a serious matter; it was not until very many years later, when they could stand on their own feet, that the situation improved for some of them.
In their homes, the Portuguese migrants in Hongkong must have led drab lives. There was little outside entertainment to be had after the day’s work. At night the only illumination came from oil-lamps; the streets were none too safe, and the rowdy life in the town held no attraction for the home-loving Portuguese. Within their own family circles and in the company of congenial friends they spent their leisure hours, and enjoyed their simple pleasures. They had little in common with the British community, and lived very much among themselves. A hard-working and law-abiding community were the Macaense settlers who helped in the development of what has become the great port of Hongkong.
Sir John Pope Hennessy, Governor of the Colony forty years after its establishment, once discussed the Portuguese in Hongkong.
He had a high regard for the members of the Portuguese community who, in spite of their disabilities and the difficulties they had to overcome, rendered such good service in the home of their adoption. Sir John gave it as his opinion that the Portuguese servants of the British Crown “should stand on a footing of perfect equality with every class in the service of the Hongkong Government”. In taking that view he said that he “had but followed the spirit of the Queen’s Instructions and the high authority and example of one of the most eminent statesmen who had ever held the Seals of the Colonial Department”. 91 Sir John’s statement was not a hollow, meaningless declaration, for he himself is our authority for the assertion that the “clerical work of Hongkong was mainly conducted, and admirably conducted by the Portuguese.”
92 Sir John’s own experience and his observation of the Portuguese in Hongkong, after almost five years’ residence, enabled him to make that statement. Would that the admirable principle laid down by this good, far-sighted administrator – of more generous treatment for the Portuguese – had been acted upon by his successors in office! History has proven how loyal the Portuguese of Hongkong have been, and loyalty, surely, should have its reward!
At first the services rendered by the Portuguese were mainly of a clerical nature, but as the years went by and they came more closely into contact with the British and other communities, they took an increasingly important part in every phase of the British colony’s activities. And have they not occupied positions of responsibility and trust in the community life of Hongkong?
They are represented in a number of professions, serving the community as physicians, lawyers, engineers, accountants, and in other capacities. They are engaged in almost every branch of commerce, and have held seats on the directorates of a number of British public companies, in friendly collaboration with British and Chinese colleagues. They have served in His Britannic Majesty’s forces in the regular army in war time, and in the Hongkong Volunteer Defence Corps, the Hongkong Police Reserve, and Air-Raid Precautions and Auxiliary Nursing Divisions. They have rallied to the call of the Government in every emergency, offering their services eagerly, and, as in duty bound, have served faithfully and enthusiastically at all times. In the less important phases of the social life of Hongkong they have not been found wanting, and their contribution has received its meed of praise. They have been, indeed, part of Hongkong.
In the pages of this book on the Portuguese in Hongkong I shall have occasion to describe in greater detail some of the services rendered by the Portuguese. It is gratifying to think that their contribution to the social amenities in Hongkong has been favourably commented upon by many, including the English press of the colony. The South China Morning Post, for instance, referring to the Portuguese on one occasion stressed the fact that “their services to the community generally have been willingly and ungrudgingly given”.
From very humble beginnings the Portuguese community of Hongkong has risen to a creditable position – a position which it has attained by hard and honourable work, performed at times in the face of great difficulties. Its success has brought honour to the name of Portugal, and given pleasure to all who have at heart the interest of the Portuguese in Hongkong.
As a result of their early training and home influence, the Portuguese have been staunch friends of the Catholic clergy and helpers in Church activities, just as they have supported the charitable institutions conducted by the Catholic Missions, especially the Convents of the Canossian Sisters of Charity. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul was an early creation in Hongkong. It has been supported in such large measure by the Portuguese, both by active service in the work of the Society and by contributions to the Society’s funds, that it might almost be called a Portuguese society. An important phase of the work of the Society was the regular visiting, for purposes of personal investigation, of those applying for aid. It must regretfully be admitted that excessive zeal on the part of some of the visiting committee members has at times amounted almost to abuse, but such cases have been the exceptions which have properly been frowned upon by other members of the community. Relief was given to the poor, irrespective of creed or race, and to the sick and others in distress, who relied on the Society for their maintenance and for the education of their children.
In later days, recognising the need for a mutual-aid society, with objects differing somewhat from those of St. Vincent’s, the Portuguese formed amongst themselves an association called the “Associação de Socorros Mútuos,” about which more will be said later. Long before its establishment the Portuguese had started, in 1865, their premier social club – Club Lusitano, to which a whole chapter of this book will be devoted.
Concerts and other forms of entertainment organised for charitable purposes have not failed also to receive general support from the Portuguese in Hongkong; their contributions to the performances have invariably been appreciated. There have been a number of singers of merit among both the ladies and the men, in past times, but shyness (or was it modesty?) kept most of them from taking part in public concerts. Less shy have been our young lady singers whose names have figured in concert programmes on various occasions in recent years. At different times the Portuguese have staged dramatic and musical performances for charitable purposes, generally with the greatest success. As musicians they are known to be very proficient. The Band of the Hongkong Police Reserve Force, in the last war, for instance, was composed almost exclusively of Portuguese; and members of the Portuguese community have taken part in choirs and orchestras, and been associated with musical and other organisations providing public entertainment in Hongkong. The occasional balls and other festive gatherings, public and private, in their own club houses on the island of Hongkong and, later, at Kowloon as well, were functions marked by the greatest conviviality and open-handed hospitality. Celebrations on the occasion of national anniversaries provided the opportunity for a demonstration of friendship and goodwill. These functions were largely attended by officers (including the Governor and the highest representatives of both of His Majesty’s Services and the Consular Body), members of the professions, leading merchants and other prominent citizens. At these ceremonies felicitous speeches were exchanged in an atmosphere of marked cordiality.
In sport, Portuguese participation was not material in the early years, but from the second generation onwards the Portuguese have played an increasingly prominent part in the sporting life of Hongkong. As individual performers they have done well in shooting, billiards, swimming, and rowing, and athletics in its various forms, as well as horse-racing; in the collective games of football, hockey, lawn bowls, water-polo, rowing, tennis, and cricket they have held their own. The trophy known as the Lusitano Cup, presented by members of the Club Lusitano for one of the events at the big annual horse race meeting held in the Spring by the Hongkong Jockey Club, has been keenly competed for each year. So much interest is attached to the Lusitano Cup that on one occasion, not many years ago, a superb trophy of Portuguese design was entrusted to one of the ablest craftsmen in Portugal to make and send out to Hongkong. The Portuguese silversmith’s work of art was greatly admired in Hongkong, and but for the outbreak of hostilities in Europe, in 1939, other similar trophies would have been commissioned from Portugal.
I shall later revert to and treat more fully of a number of the activities of my fellow-nationals in Hongkong, but must here admit that although their individual contributions to the community efforts of the British colony have been of some value, collectively they might have achieved a greater measure of good if their efforts had been unified in singleness of purpose. Unfortunately they were not, and opportunities for improving the welfare of the community as a whole were missed on many occasions. It has regretfully to be admitted that the failure of the Portuguese to combine their material and intellectual strength for the common weal has been due principally to their inherent jealousy of one another’s success, and in the case of those who have been blessed with an abundance of this world’s goods to the lack of the right civic spirit in the bigger things of community life. These traits have been markedly evident all through the history of the Portuguese in Hongkong. Had these defects been remedied by proper education there are few attainments which they might not have achieved successfully.
The following remarks by Professor Aubrey Bell93 on the traits of the Portuguese people generally apply with peculiar emphasis to the Portuguese of Hongkong:
“The quick intelligence, the dreaming melancholy . . . the wit and imagination, and the power of expression in words a population hard-working, vigorous, and intelligent (modified at times by foreign influences and the blood of many races) but the real people of Portugal has never yet come into its own; although it was on the point of doing so at the beginning of the XVIth century and if it can be given a national government, and a national policy and ideals, it may yet surprise the World and if a Portuguese does not easily forget that Portugal was once the greatest empire in Europe, he considers that other nations forget it too often . . . It must always be remembered that the foreigner often views the Portuguese at his worst, in an artificial atmosphere, rarely in his natural life and surroundings. He seldom has occasion to see him in his home life nor to realise the nobility and delicacy of his dreams and ideals which are so often shattered by harsh reality, and the genuine kindliness which proves that his politeness and courtesy are not merely superficial If they are capable rather of occasional heroic actions than of securing a gradual prosperity, they are nevertheless a people peculiarly gifted, under proper guidance, to achieve what, presumably, is the end to which modern civilisation aspires – a state of peace and culture”.
That is it. “Under proper guidance”. And one is inclined to ask, “Will that guidance not be given?”
While the Portuguese in the British colony, lacking in proper guidance and leadership, and co-ordination of effort, missed many an opportunity for advancement as a community, Hongkong as a colony went on from strength to strength. It was during the first World War (1914-1918) and the period immediately after the conclusion of the Armistice that the prosperity of Hongkong reached its zenith. Again, in the late 1930’s, with hostilities breaking out in China and the war-clouds gathering in Europe, Hongkong – and Kowloon in particular – experienced boom conditions. But the Colony suffered not a few setbacks from time to time. There were the crises of the early years, during one of which the great Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation narrowly missed going under; but from each financial set-back Hongkong emerged stronger than ever before. After the first Great War, the big shipping strike of 1922 caused serious losses in Hongkong, while the general strike of 1925 was a disaster from which the Colony took a long time to recover. During the period of 1919 to 1925, the Portuguese, to their sorrow, were drawn into the vortex of the severe speculation that raged in the Colony, and many burned their fingers badly. The community as a whole lost heavily. Many were the lessons that the Portuguese learnt during the one hundred years of Hongkong’s existence!
The severest trial of the Portuguese in Hongkong came when they were overtaken by the cataclysm of the 8th December, 1941. The Portuguese community, in common with their fellow residents of Hongkong, were overwhelmed. Numerous deaths and many heart-rending experiences, the breaking up of quiet, happy homes through the enforced separation of parents, children and friends, not to speak of the enormous material losses incurred when people, of comfortable means, were reduced to utter destitution in a matter of hours, were the lot of the Portuguese, amongst countless others, in Hongkong. For the first time in its history, Hongkong tasted the horrors of war, with all its awful aftermath. Their sad plight moved the Governor of Macao to render aid and succour to his helpless and distressed nationals. Thus it came about that in Macao, the land of their forefathers, their sorrows and anxieties have been partially assuaged, and they are given practical assistance and a shelter where they may perhaps forget, if they will, the bitter experiences that they, in common with so many other victims of this War, have suffered. A benign Providence, in whom the faith of the Portuguese community rests, will ensure that they will emerge with fresh courage and hope undimmed from the dark times through which they have passed.
The bitter trials and tribulations of the past few years have provided the crucial test for the peoples of the world. The Portuguese of Hongkong have not escaped the anguish of so severe a test. But Providence may yet cast the Portuguese character in a new mould – “Under proper guidance” – from which a community invigorated and purged from the dross of egotism will arise, imbued, let us hope, with a strong sense of their communal duties and obligations, thus to fulfil their destiny in a new and better world: the attainment under Divine guidance of their greater well-being. A.M.D.G.![f]
A compilation from the earliest Hongkong directories available, viz., for 1849 and 1861, gives some idea of the Portuguese employed in Hongkong Government offices and mercantile establishments in those days, with a few others doing business on their own account. Some of the men listed are the grandfathers and great-grandfathers of many of the present generation of Hongkong Portuguese.94
I give, first, the names of those Portuguese who started on their own account, compiled from the Hongkong Almanack and Directory for 1849:-95
| FIRM | NAMES |
| Victoria Dispensary | J. J. Roza Braga (Managing Proprietor) |
| Medical Hall | José L. Pereira (Managing Proprietor) |
| C. Markwick | (Government and General Appraiser) |
| António Luiz d’Encarnação | (Auctioneer) |
| Albano António Cordeiro | (Teacher of Music and Piano tuner) |
| Conceição Pinto | (Violinist) |
Portuguese employed in commercial establishments are listed below:
| FIRM | EMPLOYEES |
| Blenkin, Rawson & Co | F. F. Marques |
| Dent & Co. (a partner of which was Mr. Eduardo Pereira) | Joaquim V. Caldas |
| J. d’Almeida Pereira | |
| Fletcher & Co | António M. Cortella |
| Gibb, Livingston & Co | António Gonsalves |
| J. Skinner | Cândido J. Osório |
| Jardine, Matheson & Co | J. A. Barretto |
| José M. do Outeiro | |
| Floriano A. Rangel | |
| Albino Silveira | |
| Lindsay & Co | A. Barradas |
| B. dos Remédios | |
| Macvicar & Co | J.P. Campos |
| F. Grande-Pré | |
| Turner & Co | Manuel V. Marques |
| Camajee, Pochajee & Co | J. M. Monteiro |
| Bush & Co | R. Rangel |
| M. de Sousa | |
| A. de Sousa | |
| F. Barradas | |
| N. Duus & Co | A. Lubeck |
| J. Barreto | |
| Oriental Bank | José de Noronha |
| Hongkong Dispensary | Jesuíno da Rosa |
| Florencio de Sousa | |
| A. Botelho | |
| Norcott D’Esterre Parker | A. Gutierres |
| F. A. dos Remédios | |
| W. Gaskell | M. Telles |
| C. Markwick | Joaquim Vítor de Jesus |
| G. Duddell | Rufino Gutierres |
| A. L. d’Encarnação | Manuel Francisco Barradas |
| Smith & Brimelow | Lauriano F. Vieira Ribeiro |
| R. Rutherford | João Câncio Vieira Ribeiro |
| J. Inness | Francisco de Sá |
Similarly, separate lists are made out, as above, from the China Directory for the year 1861:
| PORTUGUESE FIRMS | EMPLOYEES |
| Medical Hall Dispensary (J. J. Braga, Proprietor) | João L. Britto |
| A. Botelho | |
| F. da Rosa | |
| F. d’Azevedo | |
| J. Jesus | |
| Queen’s Road Dispensary (A. de Sousa, proprietor) | D. Danenberg |
| Roberto Duarte Silva (chemist) | Inácio Quadros |
| A.L. Agabeg, Jr | G. L. Agabeg |
| J. J. dos Remédios (Ship-owner) | A.G. Romano |
| A. A. dos Remédios | |
| J. A. dos Remédios | |
| E. O. dos Remédios | |
| I. M. Cruz (Proprietor and manager) | |
| Querino Gutierrez | R. Ribeiro |
| Filomeno Rosa | |
| Delfino Noronha (Printer) | J. J. da Silva e Sousa |
| Vicente Barradas | |
| H. Rodrigues | |
| L. d’Azevedo | |
| C. Sanches | |
| H. C. Pereira | |
| J. M. da Silva. (Proprietor and manager) | |
| C.J. and V.E. Braga (Chemists) | F. Braga |
| Hongkong Soda Water Co. (J.P. da Costa and D. A. D’Eça, proprietors) | F. Neves |
| P.P. Rosário (Proprietor and manager) | |
| F. P. Soares & Co. (General Merchants) |
Among the Portuguese in Hongkong Government employ, according to the Directory for 1861, were the following:
| DEPARTMENT | EMPLOYEES |
| Colonial Secretariat | L. d’Almada e Castro |
| J.M. d’Almada e Castro | |
| D. Pio Marques | |
| Colonial Treasury | J. A. Carvalho |
| Auditor-General | J.M.A. da Silva |
| Surveyor-General | F.X. Chagas |
| A. F. Alves | |
| Police and Lighting Rates | Alexandre Grand-Pré |
| Cláudino Marques | |
| Ciríaco de Sousa | |
| Supreme Court | Rafael do Rosário |
| L. J. Fernandes | |
| Post Office. | D. J. Barradas |
| A. Leiria | |
| F.G. Machado | |
| J.M.S. Alves | |
| I. P. Pereira (Agent in Macao) | |
| Medical Service | F. Noronha |
| Miss M. Noronha | |
| Magistracy | R. A. do Rozario |
| Charles Osmund | |
| Luiz Fernandes | |
| Gaol | F. Xavier |
| Mateus Chagas | |
| Naval Dockyard | J. da Cunha |
| J. Danenberg | |
| British W.I. Emigration Agency | Luiz Barreto |
| Royal Engineers | L.F. Carvalho |
| Military Stores | F.C. Silveira |
| Francisco Ferreira | |
| Military Medical Department | V. Maher (Staff Asst. Surgeon) |
| F. Fernandes (Apothecary) |
Among the Portuguese employed in British and other commercial establishments (not being Portuguese firms) in Hongkong, at the time, were:
| FIRM NAME | EMPLOYEES |
| James A. Brooks | J. do Rosário |
| Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London & China | D. A. da Silva |
| Honorato Jorge | |
| P. M. Carvalho | |
| M. A. da Silva | |
| Commercial Bank of India | G. A. da Gama |
| Oriental Bank Corporation | Joze Noronha |
| Henrique Noronha | |
| José G. Brandão | |
| Hongkong Club | L. Graça |
| Edward H. Pollard | Florentino dos Remédios |
| Matias Azevedo | |
| Filomeno Guedes | |
| S. C. Fox. | R.F. Gutierrez |
| Birley & Co | A.B. da Rosa |
| D.P. Simoens | |
| M. da Rosa | |
| John Burd & Co | M. de Sousa |
| Bull, Purdon & Co | António dos Santos |
| N. Duus & Co. | H. Hyndman |
| Dent & Co | C.J. Osório |
| Francisco A. Gomes | |
| Augusto J. Gomes | |
| Simão da Rosa | |
| Silvano dos Remédios | |
| Ellissen & Co | F.V. Ribeiro |
| E. J. Rosário | |
| J. Machado | |
| Fletcher & Co | H.A. Leiria |
| J. C. dos Remédios | |
| J. P. Xavier | |
| Gibb, Livingston & Co | L. J. da Silva |
| A. F. dos Remédios | |
| Gifford & Co | L. J. Gutierrez |
| Gilman & Co | J. da Costa |
| T. da Silva | |
| Heard & Co | F.A. Seabra |
| H. C. V. Figueiredo | |
| L. F. Vandenburg | |
| Charles Jameson | N. Campos |
| Jardine, Matheson & Co | J. A. Barretto |
| António d’Eça | |
| José F. da Costa | |
| José Maria d’Outeiro | |
| A. F. Vandenburg | |
| Johnson & Co. | F. A. Marçal |
| B. Bottado | |
| Royal Engineers | L. F. Carvalho |
| Lyall, Still & Co | C. A. Osório, Jr. |
| L. A. Rosário | |
| M. A. de Sousa | |
| L. A. d’Encarnação | |
| Lindsay & Co | A. Barradas |
| J. L. Pereira | |
| G. dos Remédios | |
| F. dos Remédios | |
| D. W. Mackenzie & Co. | N.T. da Costa |
| Olyphant & Co | J. F. d’Oliveira |
| Oxford & Co. | A. do Rosário |
| Russell & Co | Q. A. Gutierres |
| E. A. Encarnação | |
| B. Pereira | |
| Sassoon, Sons & Co | M.J. d’Aquino |
| V.F. Rocha | |
| Eduard Schellhass & Co. | G. da Silva |
| Smith, Kennedy & Co | H. Marçal |
| N. Simoens | |
| Stephenson & Co. (Mr. M.C. do Rosário was a partner) | |
| Turner & Co | M. A. Carvalho |
| J.A. Jesus | |
| Vaucher Freres | C. T. Gonsalves |
| Wetmore, Cryder & Co. | M. Simoens |
| A. de Barros | |
| J. de Simoens | |
| Walker, Borradaile & Co | L. C. da Silva |
| China Mail Office | Francisco D. Barradas |
| Miguel B. do Rosário | |
| Alexandre Marçal, Jr. | |
| Albino T. F. Gordo | |
| Dorindo T. Rosário | |
| Januário do Rosário | |
| Adelino V. Ribeiro | |
| Zeferino Vieira | |
| António A. Pereira | |
| Daily Press Office | António J. da Silva e Sousa |
| Pedro Tavares | |
| F.M. Franco | |
| António Cardoso | |
| J. Ribeiro | |
| E. Pina | |
| T. Santos | |
| Hongkong Register Office | M.L. Rosa Pereira |
| João A. da Luz | |
| Eduardo S. Ferreira | |
| António Diniz | |
| Ângelo A. da Silva, Jr. | |
| J. C. Cowper. | Januário da Luz |
| Harper & Co | J.G. de Jesus |
| A.F. de Jesus | |
| Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Co | V. Gutierres |
| M. Gutierres | |
| J.P. Campos | |
| J. de Brito | |
| E.P. Campos | |
| P. Lopes | |
| L.P. Campos | |
| A.O. Gutierres | |
| S.C. Gutierres | |
| A.L. d’Encarnação | |
| Lane, Crawford & Co | Francisco de Sá |
| E. Senna | |
| F. Louis Juvet | W. Silveira |
| Douglas Lapraik | H. A. do Rosário |
“A report had been received from Ke-shen, setting forth the attack on and capture of certain forts by the English. The rebellious dispositions of these foreigners being plainly manifest, there remains no other course but to destroy and wash them clean away, and thus display the majesty of the empire. Troops from Szechuen, Kansi, and Hunan, in all 100,000, were ordered to Canton.”
| FIRM | NAMES |
| Victoria Dispensary | J. J. Roza Braga (Managing Proprietor) |
| Medical Hall | José L. Pereira (Managing Proprietor) |
| C. Markwick | (Government and General Appraiser) |
| António Luiz d’Encarnação | (Auctioneer) |
| Albano António Cordeiro | (Teacher of Music and Piano tuner) |
| Conceição Pinto | (Violinist) |
Portuguese employed in commercial establishments are listed below:
| FIRM | EMPLOYEES |
| Blenkin, Rawson & Co | F. F. Marques |
| Dent & Co. (a partner of which was Mr. Eduardo Pereira) | Joaquim V. Caldas |
| J. d’Almeida Pereira | |
| Fletcher & Co | António M. Cortella |
| Gibb, Livingston & Co | António Gonsalves |
| J. Skinner | Cândido J. Osório |
| Jardine, Matheson & Co | J. A. Barretto |
| José M. do Outeiro | |
| Floriano A. Rangel | |
| Albino Silveira | |
| Lindsay & Co | A. Barradas |
| B. dos Remédios | |
| Macvicar & Co | J.P. Campos |
| F. Grande-Pré | |
| Turner & Co | Manuel V. Marques |
| Camajee, Pochajee & Co | J. M. Monteiro |
| Bush & Co | R. Rangel |
| M. de Sousa | |
| A. de Sousa | |
| F. Barradas | |
| N. Duus & Co | A. Lubeck |
| J. Barreto | |
| Oriental Bank | José de Noronha |
| Hongkong Dispensary | Jesuíno da Rosa |
| Florencio de Sousa | |
| A. Botelho | |
| Norcott D’Esterre Parker | A. Gutierres |
| F. A. dos Remédios | |
| W. Gaskell | M. Telles |
| C. Markwick | Joaquim Vítor de Jesus |
| G. Duddell | Rufino Gutierres |
| A. L. d’Encarnação | Manuel Francisco Barradas |
| Smith & Brimelow | Lauriano F. Vieira Ribeiro |
| R. Rutherford | João Câncio Vieira Ribeiro |
| J. Inness | Francisco de Sá |
Similarly, separate lists are made out, as above, from the China Directory for the year 1861:
| PORTUGUESE FIRMS | EMPLOYEES |
| Medical Hall Dispensary (J. J. Braga, Proprietor) | João L. Britto |
| A. Botelho | |
| F. da Rosa | |
| F. d’Azevedo | |
| J. Jesus | |
| Queen’s Road Dispensary (A. de Sousa, proprietor) | D. Danenberg |
| Roberto Duarte Silva (chemist) | Inácio Quadros |
| A.L. Agabeg, Jr | G. L. Agabeg |
| J. J. dos Remédios (Ship-owner) | A.G. Romano |
| A. A. dos Remédios | |
| J. A. dos Remédios | |
| E. O. dos Remédios | |
| I. M. Cruz (Proprietor and manager) | |
| Querino Gutierrez | R. Ribeiro |
| Filomeno Rosa | |
| Delfino Noronha (Printer) | J. J. da Silva e Sousa |
| Vicente Barradas | |
| H. Rodrigues | |
| L. d’Azevedo | |
| C. Sanches | |
| H. C. Pereira | |
| J. M. da Silva. (Proprietor and manager) | |
| C.J. and V.E. Braga (Chemists) | F. Braga |
| Hongkong Soda Water Co. (J.P. da Costa and D. A. D’Eça, proprietors) | F. Neves |
| P.P. Rosário (Proprietor and manager) | |
| F. P. Soares & Co. (General Merchants) |
Among the Portuguese in Hongkong Government employ, according to the Directory for 1861, were the following:
| DEPARTMENT | EMPLOYEES |
| Colonial Secretariat | L. d’Almada e Castro |
| J.M. d’Almada e Castro | |
| D. Pio Marques | |
| Colonial Treasury | J. A. Carvalho |
| Auditor-General | J.M.A. da Silva |
| Surveyor-General | F.X. Chagas |
| A. F. Alves | |
| Police and Lighting Rates | Alexandre Grand-Pré |
| Cláudino Marques | |
| Ciríaco de Sousa | |
| Supreme Court | Rafael do Rosário |
| L. J. Fernandes | |
| Post Office. | D. J. Barradas |
| A. Leiria | |
| F.G. Machado | |
| J.M.S. Alves | |
| I. P. Pereira (Agent in Macao) | |
| Medical Service | F. Noronha |
| Miss M. Noronha | |
| Magistracy | R. A. do Rozario |
| Charles Osmund | |
| Luiz Fernandes | |
| Gaol | F. Xavier |
| Mateus Chagas | |
| Naval Dockyard | J. da Cunha |
| J. Danenberg | |
| British W.I. Emigration Agency | Luiz Barreto |
| Royal Engineers | L.F. Carvalho |
| Military Stores | F.C. Silveira |
| Francisco Ferreira | |
| Military Medical Department | V. Maher (Staff Asst. Surgeon) |
| F. Fernandes (Apothecary) |
Among the Portuguese employed in British and other commercial establishments (not being Portuguese firms) in Hongkong, at the time, were:
| FIRM NAME | EMPLOYEES |
| James A. Brooks | J. do Rosário |
| Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London & China | D. A. da Silva |
| Honorato Jorge | |
| P. M. Carvalho | |
| M. A. da Silva | |
| Commercial Bank of India | G. A. da Gama |
| Oriental Bank Corporation | Joze Noronha |
| Henrique Noronha | |
| José G. Brandão | |
| Hongkong Club | L. Graça |
| Edward H. Pollard | Florentino dos Remédios |
| Matias Azevedo | |
| Filomeno Guedes | |
| S. C. Fox. | R.F. Gutierrez |
| Birley & Co | A.B. da Rosa |
| D.P. Simoens | |
| M. da Rosa | |
| John Burd & Co | M. de Sousa |
| Bull, Purdon & Co | António dos Santos |
| N. Duus & Co. | H. Hyndman |
| Dent & Co | C.J. Osório |
| Francisco A. Gomes | |
| Augusto J. Gomes | |
| Simão da Rosa | |
| Silvano dos Remédios | |
| Ellissen & Co | F.V. Ribeiro |
| E. J. Rosário | |
| J. Machado | |
| Fletcher & Co | H.A. Leiria |
| J. C. dos Remédios | |
| J. P. Xavier | |
| Gibb, Livingston & Co | L. J. da Silva |
| A. F. dos Remédios | |
| Gifford & Co | L. J. Gutierrez |
| Gilman & Co | J. da Costa |
| T. da Silva | |
| Heard & Co | F.A. Seabra |
| H. C. V. Figueiredo | |
| L. F. Vandenburg | |
| Charles Jameson | N. Campos |
| Jardine, Matheson & Co | J. A. Barretto |
| António d’Eça | |
| José F. da Costa | |
| José Maria d’Outeiro | |
| A. F. Vandenburg | |
| Johnson & Co. | F. A. Marçal |
| B. Bottado | |
| Royal Engineers | L. F. Carvalho |
| Lyall, Still & Co | C. A. Osório, Jr. |
| L. A. Rosário | |
| M. A. de Sousa | |
| L. A. d’Encarnação | |
| Lindsay & Co | A. Barradas |
| J. L. Pereira | |
| G. dos Remédios | |
| F. dos Remédios | |
| D. W. Mackenzie & Co. | N.T. da Costa |
| Olyphant & Co | J. F. d’Oliveira |
| Oxford & Co. | A. do Rosário |
| Russell & Co | Q. A. Gutierres |
| E. A. Encarnação | |
| B. Pereira | |
| Sassoon, Sons & Co | M.J. d’Aquino |
| V.F. Rocha | |
| Eduard Schellhass & Co. | G. da Silva |
| Smith, Kennedy & Co | H. Marçal |
| N. Simoens | |
| Stephenson & Co. (Mr. M.C. do Rosário was a partner) | C. Marques |
| Turner & Co | M. A. Carvalho |
| J.A. Jesus | |
| Vaucher Freres | C. T. Gonsalves |
| Wetmore, Cryder & Co. | M. Simoens |
| A. de Barros | |
| J. de Simoens | |
| Walker, Borradaile & Co | L. C. da Silva |
| China Mail Office | Francisco D. Barradas |
| Miguel B. do Rosário | |
| Alexandre Marçal, Jr. | |
| Albino T. F. Gordo | |
| Dorindo T. Rosário | |
| Januário do Rosário | |
| Adelino V. Ribeiro | |
| Zeferino Vieira | |
| António A. Pereira | |
| Daily Press Office | António J. da Silva e Sousa |
| Pedro Tavares | |
| F.M. Franco | |
| António Cardoso | |
| J. Ribeiro | |
| E. Pina | |
| T. Santos | |
| Hongkong Register Office | M.L. Rosa Pereira |
| João A. da Luz | |
| Eduardo S. Ferreira | |
| António Diniz | |
| Ângelo A. da Silva, Jr. | |
| J. C. Cowper. | Januário da Luz |
| Harper & Co | J.G. de Jesus |
| A.F. de Jesus | |
| Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Co | V. Gutierres |
| M. Gutierres | |
| J.P. Campos | |
| J. de Brito | |
| E.P. Campos | |
| P. Lopes | |
| L.P. Campos | |
| A.O. Gutierres | |
| S.C. Gutierres | |
| A.L. d’Encarnação | |
| Lane, Crawford & Co | Francisco de Sá |
| E. Senna | |
| F. Louis Juvet | W. Silveira |
| Douglas Lapraik | H. A. do Rosário |
Some of the firms named above call for special mention.
One of the most noteworthy is the great American firm of Messrs. Russell & Company, a very prominent commercial establishment in the Far East, also well known in Boston and New York, with its fine fleet of Clipper ships, trading in tea and other Far Eastern produce. The senior partner of the firm at that time was Mr. Warren Delano, a relative of Mr. Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the present President of the United States of America. For a long time did Russell & Co’s. house-flag appear in China waters, from the early part of the XIXth century, when the firm had an office at Macao, till it was superseded by Messrs. Shewan, Tomes & Company later in the same century. Messrs. Russell & Co. employed Portuguese assistants in Macao, and in 1816, out of the seven employees serving under Mr. Delano in Hongkong, three were Portuguese. Never has Portuguese association with Russell & Co., or their successors in business, Shewan, Tomes & Co., been disrupted. To this day Portuguese continue in the service of the latter firm.
The Portuguese were also long associated with Messrs. Dent & Company. In the days before the closure of the English East India Company, Dent & Company had established commercial connections at Macao, where their agent was Mr. Manuel Pereira, owner of the Gardens of Camoens. When the East India Company left the Far East, Dent & Co. who were still doing a thriving business moved into the large premises which still stand in these gardens, but gave them up when the firm was permitted to purchase property of its own in Macao. The Gardens of Camoens were then taken over by Mr. Lourenço Marques from his father-in-law, Mr. Manuel Pereira. Among the properties purchased by Dent & Co. was the fine estate known as “Santa Sancha”, now the residence of the Governor of Macao. “Santa Sancha” had been the country home of Baron Cercal, grand-father of the well-known Macao merchant, Mr. A. A. de Mello. It is interesting to recall that, when other firms, including Portuguese houses, had lost interest in Macao as a trading centre, and gone over to Hongkong, Dent & Co. remained behind and continued to carry on a considerable tea and silk trade from the Portuguese colony. Among the partners of Messrs. Dent & Company was Mr. Eduardo Pereira, son of the veteran Councillor Manuel Pereira of Macao. Mr. Eduardo Pereira held a prominent position in the Portuguese community of Hongkong by virtue of his association with the important firm of Dent & Co. He was one of the founder members of the Hongkong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society and a member of the Committee as well, a distinction which I believe he has been the only Portuguese to hold. Mr. Pereira was of a retiring disposition and took little interest in the affairs of his fellow-nationals. This was a pity since he might have done much for the Portuguese in Hongkong.
The name of Jardine, Matheson & Co. also revives recollections of an old friendship with the Portuguese. The firm, which has been in existence for more than a century, succeeded the earlier Magniac and Company, of which firm Dr. William Jardine and Mr. James Matheson were partners. Successive heads of “Jardine’s” have had occasion to praise the loyalty of their Portuguese employees, and Mr. James Matheson himself, as we have seen in an earlier chapter, felt moved to offer a token to the Macao Government for the help he received from the Portuguese. It is gratifying to record that Portuguese assistants have been employed by Jardine, Matheson & Co. – one of the most enterprising of Hongkong’s big commercial “hongs” – from its earliest days, not only in Macao and Hongkong but also in its branch offices in the Far East. The Company has always been closely connected with shipping, its ships as well as those of the firm’s associated companies, being well known in the principal trading ports of the East. In the old days Portuguese were also employed in the junior posts on board “Jardine” ships.
Another very old Hongkong firm is Messrs. Gibb, Livingston & Company. This concern has also been closely identified with the development of Hongkong’s mercantile activities and like nearly every firm in Hongkong has found how useful are the services of their Portuguese assistants. This Company’s ships figured prominently in the China trade for many years.
Reference to the old Banks in Hongkong shows how enterprising the British colonists were – Macao did not have its Portuguese bank until the year 1900! The banking establishments of Hongkong have all employed Portuguese clerks. Of the banks named in the list of early Hongkong business concerns, the Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London and China, has been absorbed by the Chartered Bank of India, Australia & China, but the other two banks mentioned did not survive the financial crises of 1866. The Oriental Bank Corporation took a prominent part in the early financial organisation of Hongkong and was well known in business circles all over the Far East. Just before this bank’s closure, the better known Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation was established in 1865, and survives as one of the greatest financial institutions in this part of the world.
Olyphant & Co. is a name not remembered to-day, but it was a firm with a fine reputation in the old Canton and Macao days. This concern, which was closely identified with the tea trade, was one of the very few businesses which steadfastly refused to have anything to do with the opium trade. The Olyphants were ardent supporters of missionary work in Macao and South China, and their names recur frequently in the early records of the missionary societies when acknowledgment is made for the accommodation given to missionaries seeking passage in their ships.
The mention of the Peninsular & Oriental S. N. Company also recalls an old link with the past. Hongkong was, and still is, an important port of call of “P. & O”. ships, and for a long time the Company’s vessels provided the principal link between Europe and the Far East. Besides the clerical staff, the P. & O. Company had several Portuguese in the employ of their harbour department. The names of these do not appear in the Directory.
The firm of Lane, Crawford & Company is another of Hongkong’s earliest concerns. The Company flourished in the shipping trade, with a stevedoring department figuring prominently in Hongkong’s directories for many years, and like most of the other British business establishments in the Colony “Lane, Crawford’s” have employed Portuguese assistants continuously.
Of the early Portuguese firms in Hongkong I shall have more to say, but it is interesting to observe here that for the first few decades of Hongkong’s existence the principal chemists in the British colony were Portuguese. I regret that my fellow-nationals of succeeding generations did not follow in the footsteps of their ancestors in the chemists’ calling. As it is, the Portuguese can regard with a certain pride the fact that they, for a number of years at the beginning, maintained nearly all the pharmacies of Hongkong.
In their old home in Macao, the Portuguese had made a good living from the sea, deriving their wealth from overseas trade. In the home of their adoption, Hongkong, they assisted others in building up and maintaining an immense sea-borne commerce. Had the Portuguese at Macao not forgotten that their “destiny is on the sea,” and had they not frittered away their substance, they might have retained at Macao much of the former importance of their Portuguese settlement as an entrepot of trade, and provided employment for many Macaenses in commercial pursuits. But this was not to be, and with the passing of the years, it was to the neighbouring British colony that most of the sons of Macao looked for a living.
If the Portuguese pioneer settlers in Hongkong had recalled the lessons of the past they might have repeated the success of their fore-fathers. The changing nature of trade and the greatly increased cost of ships created new problems, it is true, but the difficulties of the newer age could have been overcome had the Portuguese been willing to club together in joint stock enterprises. Unfortunately, however, the peculiar jealousy they harboured of one another’s success proved to be an impediment to any attempt at Portuguese collective enterprises. The children of those who did succeed seldom inherited the thrifty and business-like traits of their fathers, and great fortunes were lost by the second or third generation.
Of the early Portuguese settlers in Hongkong, there was one at least who did very well in business. He was Mr. J. J. dos Remedios, who took with him a fortune from Macao and continued to prosper in Hongkong. He was an enterprising man and among his ventures was a shipping service. Among the ships owned by him I remember hearing my grandfather speak of the “Maria”. It is said that at the time of his death his estate exceeded a million dollars – a vast fortune for that time.
Another Portuguese shipping man was Mr. Marcos do Rosário, about whom I shall have something to say in a later chapter. He was a partner of Messrs. Stephenson & Co., having business dealings with Australian ports, and did well. Like Mr. J. J. Remedios he left a large estate at his death.
One looks in vain, in the old Hongkong Directories, for the names of the Portuguese merchants who flourished at Macao earlier in the century – the Veigas, the Barretos, the Cortelas, the Andrades, the Paivas, the Marqueses, the Almeidas. Most of them had wound up their businesses and returned to Portugal. They were replaced by a new generation – the Mellos, the Jorges, the Fernandeses, the Gomeses – who prospered in a new generation.
I must not overlook the name of Mr. Roberto Duarte Silva, a Portuguese chemist who moved over to Hongkong from Macao in 1859 seeking wider scope for his professional activities. He made the acquaintance of officers of the French Expeditionary Force, quartered in Hongkong during the “Arrow” war, and at the suggestion of his French friends, Silva accompanied them to Paris at the conclusion of the Sino-French hostilities. In Paris he distinguished himself to such an extent that he was elected President of the Society of Chemists of Paris, the highest honour French chemists could confer upon a foreigner. Mr. Silva died in Paris.
No account of the Portuguese in Hongkong can ignore one of the most important of the early services rendered by the Portuguese to the British at Hongkong, and in many other places in the Orient also – that of language interpretation between the new colonists and the natives of the place. This service is seldom, if ever, mentioned in books dealing with the early history of the colonies of the East; it is nevertheless one which was of the very greatest importance.
During the early period of Hongkong’s settlement, the British officials and merchants had not yet begun to learn Chinese, nor did the Chinese merchants know sufficient English to express themselves intelligibly in the strange Western tongue. There was a “pidgin” English, it is true, but this was not satisfactory for the transmission of ideas on anything but minor social relations and petty trading. Later, Chinese residents of Hongkong applied themselves to the study of English and some of them, when they had acquired a smattering of the language, earned a living by teaching what they knew to their fellow-countrymen in Hongkong; but it was many years before it was really possible for Britons and Chinese to converse together direct without the help of an interpreter. It was during those early years, in business establishments and Government offices, that the Portuguese interpreters proved to be so valuable to the British community of Hongkong.
I have referred previously to the work of the priests of the Royal College of St. Joseph, at Macao, in the teaching of languages to the young Portuguese who became interpreters to the British authorities. In this connection the name of Father Joaquim Afonso Gonsalves, a Lazarist priest from Portugal, deserves special mention.
Father Gonsalves dedicated himself to the study of Chinese and soon mastered the intricacies of the language, making a name for himself later as a sinologue. He compiled Chinese-Portuguese dictionaries and other books on the study of Chinese, which were printed and published at the printing press of the College, and were used by him for teaching Chinese to his students.
Among his pupils were Mr. João Rodrigues Gonçalves, Mr. José Martinho Marques, Mons. Jean Marie Callery, and several others. Mr. Gonçalves was the official interpreter and translator for the Macao Government for many years, and Mr. Marques was also employed by the Portuguese authorities in the same capacity. After the death of Mr. James R. Morrison the Hongkong Government experienced difficulty in obtaining a suitable interpreter to replace him, whereupon Mr. Marques, by invitation from the British authorities was appointed on the 1st March, 1847, “Interpreter to the Hongkong Government and Interpreter and Translator to the Supreme Court at Hongkong”. The remuneration was so low, however, that Mr. Marques returned to Macao not long afterwards and continued in the service of the Macao Government till his death.
One of the Portuguese interpreters whose work has merited the attention of historians is Mr. Rafael do Rosário, who is referred to by Mr. Norton Kyshe in the following terms:96
“An old interpreter of Chinese in the Supreme Court in the person of Mr. Rafael Aconjo do Rosário died on the 26th March (1881), at the age of fifty-six. Mr. Rosário joined the service during the troublous times when want of correct interpretation in the Courts formed the focus of most dissensions then prevalent. He was appointed Interpreter to the Police Court in 1857, and subsequently gave very valuable service as Interpreter to the British Expeditionary Force to Canton during the war with China and received a medal and clasp in recognition of his merits. He was always active in the discharge of his duties, and frequently aided in the capture of pirates. In June, 1862, he was appointed an Interpreter in the Supreme Court; he spoke several Chinese dialects; and, although his interpretation at times was questioned he, nevertheless, proved a valuable acquisition to the Court at a time especially when no really trustworthy interpreter was to be had in Hongkong for ‘love or money’ and especially so after the dismissal of Mr. Caldwell, who not only considered himself as the most valuable and ‘irreplaceable’ of the public servants of the time but was actually looked upon as such by the Government.”
Mr. Rosário was not, let it be noted, a Chinese scholar; he had not studied the language and his knowledge of Chinese came from a natural aptitude for languages. There were many like him among the early Portuguese settlers in Hongkong, and it is very likely that most of the clerks in the employ of British firms did a great deal of interpretation as well as the ordinary clerical work for which they had been engaged. They were thus of two-fold use to their employers. Had there been sufficient inducement, by way of satisfactory remuneration for a knowledge of the Chinese language, it is safe to assume that many of the Portuguese would have applied themselves to a study of the language instead of being content with a common-place smattering of colloquial Cantonese. It is much to be regretted that no encouragement was given to the Portuguese in this matter. The Government was equally at fault. If more generous rewards of office had been offered to the Portuguese interpreters – a more liberal scale of salaries and better service conditions – it is likely that others among the young Portuguese would have devoted themselves to the mastery of languages, so as to qualify for official posts as interpreters. The Portuguese might thus have rendered even better service in this connection to the community of Hongkong than they did. Many of the Portuguese have a natural aptitude for languages which would have served them in good stead. Penalized as they were by differential treatment, which did not improve with the passing years despite official declarations to the contrary, the Portuguese worked on patiently, reaping little for their years of long service with the Government.
The influence of the services rendered by the Portuguese as interpreters lingers on in many an Asiatic tongue, and although the Portuguese language had lost most of its importance in Far Eastern trade by the time Hongkong was established, it is interesting to observe the manner in which the Portuguese interpreters, in contact with the British, introduced words into the English language as well. I make no claim to a knowledge of philology, but feel that I should mention how, partly as a result of the work of Portuguese interpreters, first at Macao and later in Hongkong, many Portuguese and other words used by them have become adsorbed into the English language, while several Portuguese terms are in wide use by English-speaking people throughout the Far East. My task has been made all the easier by information derived from a talk on the subject by Mr. Jack M. Braga, which was broadcast from the Macao Radio Club.97 We learn that:
The influence of European words on Asiatic tongues and dialects has engaged the attention of a number of scholars, prominent among whom are Sir Henry Yule and Mr. A. C. Burnell, who produced the authoritative Hobson-Jobson, and Monseigneur Sebastião Rodolfo Dalgado, who compiled Glossário Luso-Asiático, while Mr. David Lopes, studying Portuguese influences, wrote the book A Expansão da Lingua Portuguesa no Oriente.
“It would be interesting,” the speaker said, “to trace the course of words introduced by the Portuguese from Macao. This little colony, as is generally known, has – or rather had – a colloquial all its own, compounded out of the successive Portuguese contacts with widely-dispersed races over the world. Modern teaching has definitely discouraged, and even condemned, the old patois, but this patois has left an unmistakable impress on other tongues.
“A profound philological study of Hongkong’s language and business terminology would show, for instance, that Macao’s contribution has been quite an interesting, if not a sufficient, one. It would repay investigation to trace many of the words used by those men from Macao a hundred years ago.
“Some of the terms used by those early interpreters in Hongkong were already in use in Macao before the establishment of the British colony, and can still be seen in old records and documents. Not few of the old words employed have dropped out of use in Hongkong. But many are still retained. Some of these are peculiar to Hongkong only, but quite a number have found their way into the English dictionary and are to-day in common use, while a few have even become completely Anglicized. Not many people ever give any thought to discover their origin.
“A number were taken direct from the Portuguese language; others had been adopted by the old Portuguese pioneers from native languages, in various parts of the world, given a Portuguese form, and then passed on.”
It is worthy of note that most of the words which survive today are closely connected with trade. Referring to currency and money, for example, the Portuguese employed their own terms to describe Chinese and other Asiatic weights and measures, and these are still used in English, to wit, picul, catty, tael, mace, and candareen. They are distinctly not of Chinese origin, and they were first used by the Portuguese in their own trade and finally found their way into the English language. On the other hand, sycee and cash were corrupted by the Portuguese from a Chinese and an East-Indian word, respectively, and thus came into common use. Of words commonly used in Hongkong, praia or praya is unadulterated Portuguese, while bazaar and compound were introduced by the Portuguese from India, and savee, maskee, and cumsha, to name only a few, were adopted into pidgin-English at Macao, and used certainly by the Portuguese interpreters at Macao, in the early days of the English East India Company’s China trade.
Other words employed in Hongkong’s business parlance include such terms as compradore, a pure Portuguese word, and linguist, shroff, factory, and factor, used by the Portuguese traders in Asia three hundred years before Hongkong entered anybody’s mind. The origin of amah, coolie, and lascar is not difficult to discover; the words were picked up by the Portuguese long ago in various places in the East and travelled farther Eastward. Chop and chit are English variations of Chinese words and were first popularised by the Portuguese with a slightly different spelling.
In another sphere, mandarin is Portuguese in form; pagoda, caste, bonze, and fetish are Anglicized forms of words which had been employed by the Portuguese for a very long time, while joss, first used in pidgin-English, is also derived from a Portuguese word.
The use of sampan, junk, pirate, typhoon, and monsoon can also be traced to the Portuguese, who derived them a great many years ago from Asiatic tongues in slightly different form; from the Portuguese these words passed into the English language. The advent of steamships and the passing of the sailing ship are responsible for the dropping of many Portuguese words from the vocabulary of the British in the Far East, of which lorcha and sea-cunny are typical of quite a few.
Articles of household use the names of which came into the English language through the Portuguese are porcelain, parasol, palanquin, cuspidor, kimono, calico, tafeta, and nankeen; tank had its origin with the Portuguese in India; verandah also came from India through the Portuguese language.
Other examples of terms employed for articles of commerce, of Portuguese origin, or which were first introduced by the Portuguese, are bamboo, banana, mango, mangosteen, plantain, saffron, sago, camphor, sandalwood, lac, teak, beche-de-mer, cocoa, coconut, agar-agar, arrack, copra, and ginseng, to name a few, while terms like cholera, beri-beri, malaria, though not of Portuguese origin, were used by the Portuguese and later employed in other European languages. The names in English of some animals and insects, like mongoose, alligator, garoupa, cobra, and mosquito, also owe their origin to Portuguese use.
It is not to be wondered at that the Portuguese gave hundreds of names to places all over the world, and though very many of these place-names have been replaced by others of later origin in modern atlases, quite a number have survived unaltered or but slightly changed from their original form. A limited number of these old names might have been used before by earlier travellers, like Marco Polo, but it can be claimed for the Portuguese that they familiarised these names. There are, nevertheless, many places that still bear the old Portuguese original names. In this last class we find Formosa (The Beautiful), the Ladrones (The Pirate Lairs), Pratas (The Silver Reefs), Pedra Branca (White Rock), the Moluccas (The Islands of the Kings), Flores (The Flowery Isles), and Bocca Tigris (The Tiger’s Mouth – from the Chinese original), to mention a few of the places with which South China residents are familiar.
The Portuguese also gave names adapted from native words to many other places in Asia, a good number of which survive at the present time in the form which the old Portuguese gave to them. Examples of these are Canton, Korea, Japan, Borneo, Cochin-china, Singapore (Portuguese: Singapura), Burma, Malacca, Johore, Sumatra, Sunda, Celebes, Colombo, Bengal, and Bombay.
The name Canton, it is probably not well known, arose from a mistake. The term is really a corruption by the Portuguese pioneers of a Chinese name; they gave to the city of Canton the name of the province of Kwangtung in place of the name by which the Chinese call the city (Kwong Chow), and the mistakes remains unaltered to the present day. Numbers of other similar mistakes have been perpetuated in modern atlases.
Some of the names given by the old Portuguese remained in use for many years and have been changed only in recent times. For instance, Siam has been dropped for Thailand. The Japanese have adopted the name Taiwan (the original Chinese name) in place of Formosa, so pleasing to the ear and much the more suitable name. The very mention of “Formosa” evokes visions of the beautiful island: the wild grandeur of the rock-bound eastern coast, with range upon range of dark-green mountains towering beyond; the gently-rising west coast, with verdure clad hills merging into the mountainous interior Not all changes make for improvement!
Portugal’s impress on the Chinese language, too, has not been unimportant, and has formed the subject of study by Chinese scholars, the fruits of whose researches have yet to be revealed to foreign readers.
The Portuguese language as the lingua franca of the Orient served for well-nigh three hundred years those who came to the East seeking trade; but it was eventually displaced. The English language, with all its vigour, usefulness, adaptability, yes, and beauty, too, has come to be the medium whereby millions of the peoples of Eastern lands are able to communicate with one another. Many of the Portuguese in Hongkong and in other places in the Far East have been enabled by a knowledge of English to make a fair living, while some have attained a certain degree of proficiency in the language. Had the standard of English taught in the Hongkong schools been higher than it was, it is just possible that the Portuguese community of Hongkong might have contributed to some extent – who knows? – to English letters in the Far East!