A Hong Kong vernacular cultural landscape : cultural mapping of a New Territories village, the case of Nai Wai in Tuen Mun

Abstract

Nai Wai is the first and oldest walled-village in Tuen Mun belonging to the To Clan, the biggest clan in Tuen Mun (陶族). Massive construction work is expected to begin soon for developing the district of Hung Shui Kiu, in which Nai Wai is located, into a New Town. The first stage of this development is expected to complete in 2024, and the whole project is expected to be completed by 2037/38. There is no doubt that the new development will have significant impact on the village of Nai Wai. There is therefore urgency to carry out a study to investigate and document the cultural and historical significance of the village of Nai Wai while it is still intact, before it is impacted by modern development. The author is one of the residents in Nai Wai. This leads the author to consider a cultural mapping of the cultural heritage resources of the village so as to provide a documentation of a Hong Kong vernacular cultural landscape that may be no more in the future. It is hoped that the cultural mapping documentation may serve as a working example for similar exercises to be undertaken on other historic villages and cultural landscapes in Hong Kong.