Language Archives - Zolima City Magazine

Pop Cantonese: 點心 – Touching Heart

Zolima CityMagMay 28, 2020

The heart-warming history of an emblematic series of Cantonese dishes. ...

CultureFoodLanguage0 Comments479 views 06 min read

Pop Cantonese: 心 – Heart

Zolima CityMagApril 22, 2020

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from? The heart has many dimensions in Cantonese. Learn the origin of this versatile word....

CultureLanguage0 Comments418 views 05 min read

Hong Kong Numerology: Nine for Eternity

Zabrina LoFebruary 4, 2020

You don’t need nine lives, but the number nine is useful for leading a long life....

CultureLanguageTradition0 Comments278 views 04 min read

On the Hunt for Hong Kong’s Old-Style Sweet Snack Shops

Zabrina LoJanuary 8, 2020

We trace the origins and timeless flavours of five old Hong Kong snacks....

A Little BreakCultureFoodLanguageWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments981 views 010 min read

Pop Cantonese: Husking Peanuts Like An Electric Lightbulb 電燈膽剝花生

Zabrina LoDecember 4, 2019

How electricity and a common snack became symbols of an unwanted intrusion on romance....

CultureLanguage0 Comments255 views 04 min read

Hong Kong Numerology: Lucky Number Eight

Rachel LeungNovember 20, 2019

Four might be unlucky, but double it and you'll get the most auspicious number in the Chinese-speaking world....

CultureLanguage0 Comments720 views 03 min read

Pop Cantonese: 生舊叉燒好過生你 – Better to Give Birth to Char Siu Than You

Zabrina LoNovember 15, 2019

Ever wonder where some of the words we use every day in Hong Kong lingo come from? Here’s why some parents dream of giving birth to char siu....

CultureFoodLanguage0 Comments1652 views 04 min read

hong kong international literary festival 2019

The Hong Kong International Literary Festival – How Did It All Begin?

Zabrina LoNovember 2, 2019

The founders of the Hong Kong International Literary Festival tell the odd tale of how a pioneering event took root in Hong Kong....

BooksCultureLanguage0 Comments53 views 09 min read

Pop Cantonese: 裝假狗 – Installing a Fake Dog

Zabrina LoOctober 24, 2019

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from? Why are dogs associated with pretence and fakery?...

CultureLanguage0 Comments576 views 04 min read

Hong Kong Numerology: Why Is Four So Unlucky?

Rachel LeungOctober 16, 2019

Here's why you won't find the fourth floor in many Hong Kong buildings....

CultureLanguage0 Comments910 views 03 min read

Jyutping or Yale? How to Write Cantonese in the Roman Alphabet

Christopher DewolfSeptember 26, 2019

Jyutping lets you accurately read and write Cantonese in Roman script. So why isn't it more popular?...

CultureLanguage0 Comments1283 views 011 min read

Pop Cantonese: 炒魷魚 Stir-Fried Squid

Zabrina LoSeptember 19, 2019

What does Hong Kong’s favourite homemade dish have to do with being sacked?...

CultureLanguage0 Comments382 views 03 min read

Forgotten Hong Kong Icon: Silky Smooth Tofu Pudding at Kung Wo

Zabrina LoAugust 21, 2019

The owner of a historic tofu shop reflects on what makes cold tofu pudding such a classic dessert....

A Little BreakCultureFoodLanguagePeoplePortraitsWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments1746 views 08 min read

Forgotten Icon: How a Letterpress Workshop Keeps Hong Kong Heritage Alive

Cardin ChanJuly 3, 2019

After Hong Kong's printing industry went into decline, one shop owner decided to turn his family's business into a living museum....

CultureHeritageHistoryLanguageTradition0 Comments868 views 09 min read

Pop Cantonese: 十下十下 – Ten Down Ten Down

Andrea LoJune 13, 2019

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from? What does a common Cantonese expression have to do with dog meat?...

CultureLanguage0 Comments676 views 03 min read

Pop Cantonese: 九唔搭八 – Nine Not Following Eight

Andrea LoMay 29, 2019

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from?...

CultureLanguage0 Comments663 views 03 min read

Reading the City’s Hidden Poetry—城市詩意—A New Series by Photographer Romain Jacquet-Lagrèze

Christopher DewolfMay 29, 2019

Romain Jacquet-Lagrèze continues his documentation of Hong Kong's urban landscape, this time with a poetic twist. ...

ArtCultureLanguagePhotographyVisual Art0 Comments612 views 06 min read

Pop Cantonese: 唔三唔四 – Not Three Not Four

Andrea LoApril 3, 2019

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from? ...

CultureLanguageTradition0 Comments1098 views 13 min read

Do You Speak Hong Kong English?

Christopher DewolfMarch 29, 2019

How Hong Kong's second language has evolved over the years. ...

CultureHistoryLanguage0 Comments15818 views 010 min read

Pop Cantonese: 熱氣/寒涼 – Heaty and Cool

Andrea LoFebruary 21, 2019

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from? ...

CultureFoodLanguageTradition0 Comments1102 views 03 min read

Pop Cantonese: 食死貓 – Eating a Dead Cat

Andrea LoJanuary 23, 2019

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from?...

CultureLanguage0 Comments1622 views 03 min read

The DFA Awards is Drawing a New Future for Hong Kong’s Young Designers

Amanda SheppardDecember 3, 2018

A new generation of designers is unleashed by the annual Design for Asia Awards...

DesignLanguageProduct Design0 Comments90 views 06 min read

Hong Kong Bites: Stinky Tofu – 臭豆腐

Andrea LoNovember 14, 2018

It’s pungent – that’s impossible to deny. But does it taste good? The story behind the notoriously stinky tofu...

CultureFoodLanguageTradition0 Comments3490 views 16 min read

Pop Cantonese: 朝行晚拆 – HK-Style Pop-Up

Andrea LoOctober 30, 2018

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from? Hong Kong’s adaptability is embedded in a phrase that refers to a local kind of pop-up culture....

CultureLanguage0 Comments541 views 04 min read

Strangers at Home: Hong Kong Poets Tammy Ho Lai-Ming and Kate Rogers

Sarah KaracsOctober 4, 2018

Two Hong Kong poets explore what it means to be at home in Hong Kong. ...

BooksCultureLanguagePeople0 Comments917 views 012 min read

Hong Kong Bites: XO Sauce – XO醬

Andrea LoOctober 4, 2018

Hong Kong Bites: XO Sauce...

CultureFoodLanguage0 Comments941 views 05 min read

Hong Kong Bites: Fishballs 魚蛋

Andrea LoSeptember 5, 2018

The story behind Hong Kong’s favourite savoury snack....

CultureFoodLanguage0 Comments2094 views 15 min read

Pop Cantonese: 泥鯭的士 – Rabbitfish Taxi

Andrea LoAugust 8, 2018

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from? ...

CultureLanguage0 Comments584 views 03 min read

Pop Cantonese: 砌生豬肉 – Building Raw Pork

Andrea LoJuly 10, 2018

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from?...

CultureLanguage0 Comments447 views 04 min read

Why is it So Hard to Find Hong Kong Literature in English?

Sarah KaracsJuly 5, 2018

Hong Kong's story has been told through beautiful works of fiction – and yet they are strangely hard to find in translation. ...

BooksCultureLanguage0 Comments2209 views 08 min read

Pop Cantonese: 緣分 – Fate Destiny

Andrea LoMay 23, 2018

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from?...

CultureLanguage0 Comments1070 views 03 min read

Why a Canadian University is Fascinated by Hong Kong

Christopher DewolfApril 25, 2018

As local identity becomes a sensitive topic, the University of British Columbia has launched a new Hong Kong Studies Initiative that examines Hong Kong's culture, history and language. ...

BooksCultureHeritageHistoryLanguage0 Comments1296 views 010 min read

Pop Cantonese: 食皇家飯 – Eating Royal Rice

Gabriella ZanzanainiMarch 29, 2018

Ever wonder where some of the words we use everyday in Hong Kong lingo come from?...

CultureFoodLanguage0 Comments560 views 02 min read

Why Hong Kong is Fertile Ground for English Poetry

Sarah KaracsNovember 1, 2017

Hong Kong's multilingualism has given it an edge in a new era of English language poetry, where languages and cultures collide....

BooksCultureLanguage0 Comments1408 views 07 min read

The Lines Between: Madeleine Thien on Writing, Language and Family

Christopher DewolfOctober 18, 2017

After a year of touring the world to promote her acclaimed novel Do Not Say We Have Nothing, Madeleine Thien is back in Hong Kong, a place loaded with meaning for the Chinese-Canadian author....

BooksCultureInterviewsLanguagePeopleUncategorized0 Comments451 views 011 min read

Why Jason Li is Paying Homage to His Mother’s Childhood in a Hong Kong Shantytown

Christopher DewolfAugust 25, 2017

A Hong Kong comic artist finds creative inspiration in his family's roots....

BooksCultureLanguage0 Comments424 views 08 min read

Hongkongers often have fond memories of the things we grew up with. If there is nostalgia for old tea houses or retro-style cha chaan teng, there is also nostalgia for the si6 do1 (士多), the “store.” Si6 do1 is yet another English loanword that Hong Kong has made its own; it is the local Cantonese […]...

CultureLanguage0 Comments725 views 04 min read