Maung Kung Uk

Maung Kung Uk

Maung Kung Uk is a Hakka indigenous village in the Sai Kung District of Hong Kong. Its main residents include indigenous families surnamed Yu, Shing, and Lau, each with their own ancestral hall, as well as families surnamed Fung. All three ancestral halls are single-story tiled-roof houses.

Maung Kung Uk was established in the early Qing Dynasty. The founding ancestor of the Yu family was Yu Dekui, a branch from Ting Kok Village in Tai Po. The founding ancestor of the Shing family was Shing Bing-yuen, who migrated from Xingning County, Guangdong Province to Lam Tsuen in Tai Po during the early Qing Dynasty. His son, Shing Kwok-chun, later founded Maung Kung Uk.

The Family Bond Between the Shing and Cheung Clans

In the early Qing Dynasty, Shing Bing-yuen, an ancestor of the Shing family in Maung Kung Uk, Sai Kung Hang Hau, went out for business but was killed by robbers. His wife, Zou, seeing that her husband had not returned, sought help from Cheung Sau-hing, a friend of her husband, in Tai Shui Hang, Sha Tin. Soon after, they found Shing Bing-yuen’s body, which had been decapitated. To ensure his friend’s widow and children would not be left destitute, Cheung took them in. Later, he married Zou, and they had a son together, Cheung Tsz-lung. To ensure his deceased friend’s lineage would continue, Cheung Sau-hing instructed Shing Kwok-chun, the son of Shing Bing-yuen, to resume the Shing surname when he grew up, and helped him establish roots in Maung Kung Uk. This story is recorded on the “Stele of the United Shing and Cheung Clans” inside the ancestral halls of both families.

In gratitude for his stepfather’s upbringing, Shing Kwok-chun would visit Tai Shui Hang with his wife and children every second day of the Lunar New Year. Descendants continued this tradition. Every year on the second day of the first lunar month, the entire Shing clan, young and old, would set off from Maung Kung Uk. Led by a lion dance, they would hike through paths via Hing Keng Shek, Mao Ping, and Mei Zi Lam to reach Tai Shui Hang. Together with the lion, they would pay respects at the Cheung ancestral hall. The Shing and Cheung clans, sharing the same maternal lineage, would also perform lion dances to celebrate the New Year with one another. Their lion dance style differs from usual celebratory performances—two lions dance face to face, expressing longing and remembrance, a tradition that has been passed down for over 300 years. By the early 1990s, the Shing and Cheung clans changed to alternating annual visits between the two villages. The Shing clan would visit Tai Shui Hang in years ending with “Jia, Bing, Wu, Geng, Ren,” while the Cheung clan would visit Maung Kung Uk in years ending with “Yi, Ding, Ji, Shen, Gui.”

The Shing and Cheung clans are like siblings. The two clans do not intermarry and join together every Chung Yeung Festival in autumn to pay respects to their common matriarch, Zou, at Nam Wai in Sai Kung. They also support each other in times of need.

Dispute Over Building Ancestral Halls

When the Liu, Yu, and Shing families were building their ancestral halls, a dispute arose, leading to a stalemate. The Shing family believed that the Liu and Yu families were ganging up on them, so they sent someone to seek help from the Cheung family in Tai Shui Hang, who shared the same maternal lineage. Over a hundred members of the Cheung family arrived in Maung Kung Uk to show support, surrounding the entire village. Eventually, the Liu and Yu families agreed to let the Shing ancestral hall be built in the middle of the three connected halls.

Transportation Guide

Location: Clear Water Bay Road, Sai Kung District, Hong Kong

Transportation: Take KMB Bus 91; or New Territories minibuses 103M, 103, or 16