A History of Nam Chung
Nam Chung was under the jurisdiction of Panyu County (番禺縣) in Nanhai Jun (南海郡) during the Qin Dynasty. The history of the area changed over generations until it was transferred to Xin’an County (新安縣) in the first year of the Wanli reign (萬曆元年) of the Ming Dynasty (1573). In the early Qing Dynasty, under the influence of the Great Clearance (遷海令) (1662-1669), the people plunged into misery and suffering while the land withered. After the resumption of the border, the government enlisted Hakka people to come and open up the land for development, ending up with a vast number of Hakka people in Xin’an County. Some of the lands are now within Hong Kong. As the arable land in the plains had long ago been occupied by the local tribes (Punti people), the Hakka people settled and built their villages in more remote and deserted areas such as Sha Tau Kok (沙頭角), Sai Kung (西貢) and Lam Tsuen (林村).
Hakka Villages
There is no record of Nam Chung in the Kangxi edition of ‘Gazetteer of Xin’an County’ (康熙版《新安縣志》) (1688), while records of ‘Nam Chung Wai (南涌圍)’ first appear in the Jiaqing edition of ‘Gazetteer of Xin’an County’ (嘉慶版《新安縣志》) (1819) under the section of ‘Hakka village management of Guanfu magistrate’ (「官富司管屬客籍村莊」).
The five existing villages in Nam Chung, namely Li Uk (李屋), Cheung Uk (張屋), Lo Uk (羅屋), Cheng Uk (鄭屋) and Yeung Uk (楊屋), are all Hakka villages. Cheung Uk was the earliest to be established, Lo Uk was created after the village was established in Lo Lung Tin (老龍田), and the Yeung Uk people moved in from Kuk Po (谷埔) at the end of the Ching Dynasty. ‘Uk (屋)’ in the Hakka dialect means ‘home (家),’ which is why ‘Uk’ is used to name the Hakka villages. The more prominent families in the village built their houses in a unified style, and added an extra character ‘Wai (圍)’ after ‘Uk (屋)’. The existing stone monument at the Li Uk junction is one example.
Photo: Lee Uk, Nam Chung.
Wanjing Jai
As for the Wanjing Temple (蘊貞堂) in the mid-levels of Nam Chung, it was built in the early 20th century and was one of the few places in Hakka villages where unmarried women could live.
Tung Wo Market
During this period, villages in the Sha Tau Kok area formed into ten covenants. To facilitate trade among the villages, Tung Wo Market (東和墟), (Sha Tau Kok Market (沙頭角墟), and the present Chung Ying Street (中英街) area) was built between Shenzhen Market (深圳墟) (the present Dongmen (東門) area of Shenzhen) and Tai Po Market (大埔墟). Nam Chung belonged to the eighth of the ten covenants, the ‘Nam Luk Covenant (南鹿約)’.