500 Years of Italians in Hong Kong & Macau
VIEW EVENT DETAILSHong Kong History Series
Evening Presentation by: GIANNI CRIVELLER, Sinologist, Historian, Professor of Theology; ANGELO PARATICO, Historian & Novelist
Drinks reception 6:30pm
Presentation 7:00pm
Close 8:00pm
Italians were actively involved in the European presence on the China coast in the earliest days of the sixteenth century, almost five hundred years ago. Throughout the intervening five centuries, Italians have made, and continue to make, major contributions to the development of Hong Kong and Macau. Important figures such as Alessandro Valignano, Matteo Ricci and Eugenio Zanoni Volpicelli lived in or passed through Hong Kong and Macau before moving to China or other East Asian countries. They had a significant role in the history of these two cities, which have been, and still are, a meeting place between China and the rest of the world. The Italian legacy remains powerfully evident, including the Ruins of Saint Paul’s Cathedral in Macau - a UNESCO World Heritage Site - and Hong Kong’s education system.
Gianni Criveller has spent 22 years in Greater China, and is currently Professor at The Holy Spirit Seminary College of Theology and Philosophy in Hong Kong and Honorary Research Associate at the Centre for Catholic Studies at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He obtained a Doctorate in Dogmatic Theology at the San Thomas Aquinas Theological Faculty of Naples, with a thesis on early Jesuits’ China missions. Professor Criveller presided over the historical commission for the beatification of Matteo Ricci, the great China missionary. His books include Preaching Christ in Late Ming China and From Milan to Hong Kong, 150 Years of Mission.
Angelo Paratico has been a resident in Hong Kong for the past 30 years. A businessman, historian and novelist, he is also a freelance journalist with the South China Morning Post. Mr. Paratico is also the author of novels, like Black Hole, The Karma Killers and Ben. Recently he has published the first translation in English of Girolamo Cardano's (1501-1576) Nero: An Exemplary Life.
A complimentary copy of "500 Years of Italians in Hong Kong & Macau" will be available to participants. The book is an initiative of the Consulate General of Italy in Hong Kong and Macau, in collaboration with the Italian communities in the two cities.
Introductory remarks will be made by Ms. ALESSANDRA SCHIAVO, Consul General of Italy in Hong Kong & Macau.