University of Hong Kong

University of Hong Kong
香港大學
MottoSapientia et Virtus (Latin)
明德格物 (Classical Chinese)
Motto in English
Wisdom and Virtue
TypePublic
Established1 October 1887; 137 years ago (1887-10-01) (as Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese)
30 March 1911; 113 years ago (1911-03-30) (as University of Hong Kong)
ChancellorJohn Lee Ka-chiu[note 1]
PresidentXiang Zhang
Vice-presidentGong Peng[1]
Ian Holliday[1]
Max Shen[1]
ProvostY.C. Richard Wong[1]
Pro-chancellorDavid Li
Academic staff
9,288 (2023)[2]
Administrative staff
4,427 (2023)[2]
Students39,166 (2023)[3]
Undergraduates18,491 (47.2%) (2023)[3]
Postgraduates20,675 (52.8%) (2023)[3]
Location,
Hong Kong

22°17′03″N 114°08′16″E / 22.28417°N 114.13778°E / 22.28417; 114.13778
CampusUrban
17.7 hectares (0.177 km2) (Main campus)
70.1 hectares (0.701 km2) (Total)[4]
NewspaperUndergrad HKUSU (Chinese)
Colours  Dark green[5]
Affiliations
MascotLion
Websitehku.hk Edit this at Wikidata
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese香港大学
Traditional Chinese香港大學
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinXiānggǎng Dàxué
Yue: Cantonese
Yale RomanizationHēunggóng Daaihhohk
JyutpingHoeng1gong2 Daai6hok6
IPA[hœŋ˥.kɔŋ˧˥ taj˨.hɔk̚˨]

The University of Hong Kong (HKU) is a public research university in Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It was founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese by the London Missionary Society and formally established as the University of Hong Kong in 1911. It is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong.[6]

The university was established and proposed by Governor Sir Frederick Lugard in an effort to compete with the other Great Powers opening universities in China. The university's governance consists of three bodies: the Court, the Council and the Senate. These three bodies all have their own separate roles. The Court acts as the overseeing and legislative body of the university, the Council acts as governing body of the University, and the Senate as the principal academic authority of the university.

The university currently has ten academic faculties and 20 residential halls and colleges for its students, with English being its main medium of instruction and assessment.

The university has educated many notable alumni in many fields. Among them is Dr Sun Yat-sen, the founder of the Republic of China, a graduate of the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, the predecessor of HKU. Notable alumni in the field of politics include Anson Chan, Carrie Lam, Jasper Tsang and Regina Ip.


Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).

  1. ^ a b c d "President's Office". The University of Hong Kong. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  2. ^ a b "QuickStats – Staff Profiles". The University of Hong Kong. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  3. ^ a b c "QuickStats – Student Profiles". The University of Hong Kong. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
  4. ^ "QuickStats – Space". The University of Hong Kong. 2022. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  5. ^ "The "HKU 100" Logo". The University of Hong Kong Centenary. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
  6. ^ "About HKU – History". The University of Hong Kong. Retrieved 16 July 2013.