Tuesday 30 June 2015

Sunday 28 June 2015

Friday 26 June 2015

1583 HKSAR Name of the Day

Canace Lam, RTHK (TV), Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Deletion; Substitution

Wednesday 24 June 2015

1582 HKSAR Name of the Day

Canning Fok, group managing director, Hutchison Whampoa, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation

Tuesday 23 June 2015

Do Artistic Students Have Creative Names?

Students and staff at the HKICC Lee Shau Kee School of Creativity appear to have novel names (please see article below). These include ... Cristo, Yoyo, Walkman and Niko.

Does this mean those who have a "creative bent" are more likely to have, or to consciously choose, creative names for themselves?

This appears to support the view that in Hong Kong those employed in the creative arts are also likely to have novel names. If you want further evidence, simply check out the staff names at the School of Creative Media at the City University of Hong Kong.



Reference (SCMP; paywall)
Students at a school in Kowloon City can express themselves as artists while also striving to meet academic standards
PUBLISHED : Monday, 22 June, 2015, 6:27am


There's a liberal, university-like atmosphere at HKICC Lee Shau Kee School of Creativity in Kowloon City. Along its ground-floor "creative promenade", students and teachers engage in discussions on art and life, addressing one another by first names. It seems unlike any mainstream secondary school in Hong Kong.

Founded in 2006, Lee Shau Kee School is a direct subsidy scheme senior secondary school that offers Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education courses and a creative arts curriculum that it developed itself. Starting this past school year, incoming students in Form Four could enrol in the school's special "double track" curriculum, fulfilling requirements towards both the mainstream school-leaving qualification as well as the recently accredited Diploma in Creative Arts (DCA) before they graduate.

Most students at the school are artistically talented but lack the academic heft valued in conventional organisations.

The school's mission is to provide a liberal environment where they can develop different learning styles and chart diverse career paths.

Students also undertake individual projects. Photo: Franke Tsang 
"We nurture outliers because they are the ones who will bring diversity to our culturally and socially homogeneous society in the future," says deputy principal Lau Tin-ming. "Our students may not be academically talented in the traditional sense, but each of them has a potential that is our job to cultivate."

This humanistic ideal of education is pervasive at the school. "Double track" students devote afternoons to the Creative Professional-Orientated Programme, a hands-on, portfolio-building component of the DCA curriculum. Divided into four areas - performing arts, film art, visual communication and spatial studies - the programme is led by practising artists, performers and other creative professionals, who see themselves more as mentors than teachers.

Aside from the creative guidance from this uniquely qualified faculty, the DCA curriculum also gives students a thorough theoretical grounding in the humanities, exposing them to areas such as Western and Chinese art history, Hong Kong cinema and philosophy, which are not included in the mainstream curriculum.

"The theory portion of our diploma puts our students' creative endeavours in a context of cultural knowledge," says Lau, who has played a big part in designing the curriculum. "As aspiring artists, they need to have a keen understanding of cultural phenomena in the world and be able to form their critique about them in thoughtful ways."

The school's humanistic philosophy is also reflected in the DCA curriculum's assessment framework, which does not include examinations. Theory courses require students to explore their ideas in discussions and presentations, while practical courses assess students based on coursework and a final creative project.

The enthusiasm is palpable in Cristo Lau's spatial studies classroom, where Form Four student Yoyo Kwok is busy drawing a cross-section of an architectural model of her dream home.

"At this school, we always have to be self-motivated," she says, "but that's not hard, as it's so much fun to create and learn in a hands-on way."

In the visual communications classroom, the wall is covered by illustrations of students' English writing assignments - a tribute to the DCA curriculum's emphasis on interdisciplinary learning. "Students devote all their time to creative work in the programme," says instructor Walkman Yip, who has a degree from Polytechnic University and is a practising artist. "It can be intimidating to be in creative mode all the time, but what we bring is our own experience. The liberal environment here definitely makes it easier for us to motivate them."
For their final project in performing arts class, students must prepare an original three-minute solo performance to showcase their creative talent. One student decided to personify the actions of her dog when her family is not around by using the expressive body movements she acquired through the course. Another student performed a stand-up comedy routine showcasing a range of voices he has been exploring with the help of instructor Dick Wong, a seasoned choreographer and theatre professional.

The school's stimulating curriculum is complemented by a range of invaluable extracurricular opportunities. In particular, two campus residency programmes bring in artists to share their work and mentor students. One programme is dedicated to a traditional but obscure Hong Kong craft - this year, two experienced puppet makers led workshops in creating large-scale Chinese paper puppets for an upcoming stage performance.

Students get creative. Photo: Franke Tsang 
The other artist in residence, Niko Leung, came back to Hong Kong after studying and working in the Netherlands. Intrigued by the forms that could be produced on a turning wheel, Leung experiments with the light and spatial characteristics of plaster sculptures with students in her campus studio every day. Her plan is to produce a large-scale sculpture for the school's Creative Promenade based on her research.

Perhaps because of its perceived lack of academic focus, some parents have reservations about the school. But more parents are starting to embrace its liberal philosophy after seeing their unmotivated children grow to love learning in its creative environment. Others are moved to see its students succeed in various avenues, whether further studies or work.

Transcending art and culture, the school's humanistic education philosophy is, at its core, about allowing each individual student to succeed in their own way.

"If we call ourselves an educational institution, we must lead our students to reach their goals, however different they may be," says deputy principal Lau. "We cannot just teach students how to paint or dance; we need to see them as individuals, not entities defined by grades."




Monday 22 June 2015

1581 HKSAR Name of the Day

Chapmond Lo, Mandarin Printing (& Odyssey Stores), Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation

Saturday 20 June 2015

1580 HKSAR Name of the Day

Winfield Chong, district councillor candidate (Central and Western), Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare

Thursday 18 June 2015

Tuesday 16 June 2015

Sunday 14 June 2015

1577 HKSAR Name of the Day

Tommei Tong, chief financial officer, Tom.com, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Phonetic-based?

Friday 12 June 2015

1576 HKSAR Name of the Day

Lancelot Chan Ying-chih, 37, sword-fighting master, Hong Kong




  see another Lancelot Chan 1544 HKSAR Name of the Day


Lancelot Chan chose his own novel name! Pic Edmond So

Lancelot is an example of a Hongkonger who consciously decided to give himself an Anglo- or Western-style first name that is novel:

Chan chose the name Lancelot when he became interested in sword-fighting and after he saw the movie Excalibur. Lancelot ignited his imagination more than the other knights of King Arthur’s Round Table because he “wasn’t a perfect example of virtue”. Lancelot made mistakes and ultimately redeemed himself, explains Chan.

But the name choice seemed stranger than fiction to some.

“I got in trouble while registering for my HKID card; the person didn’t know this is an English name and gave me one day to prove that this was an actual name. I had to run to a bookstore, buy a very thick dictionary that had the name Lancelot and show it to the person, who made a photocopy of the page,” Chan says.

He also got in trouble when he went to his first swordsmanship forum in the United States in the 1990s.

“They didn’t let me register under the name Lancelot. I didn’t realise how strange this name was to them. They asked me to prove it, and I showed them a scanned copy of my HKID card.”
“I said, ‘Now that I’ve proved it, can you apologise?’ The guy refused, and shortened it to Lance.



About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare


Reference (SCMP story)

Hong Kong sword trainer Lancelot Chan brings 'Game of Thrones'-esque action to life

PUBLISHED : Saturday, 30 May, 2015, 1:42pm

Hong Kong is a world away from the epic sword and lightsabre fights on the Game of Thrones and Star Wars. But a local sword-fighting master is bridging that gap between fantasy and reality.

His name, aptly enough, is Lancelot Chan Ying-chih, according to his HKID card. The 37-year-old’s full-time job is creating realistic swords for training purposes, and he also teaches students how to fight with the replica weapons.

Chan says a childhood illness, an iconic movie and make-believe duels brought him to where he is today.

As a child, he would often roughhouse with two friends using broken TV aerials and sticks. Chan used to study martial arts as a boy, but one day, while he was Primary Five student, he suddenly found himself unable to move.

He was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. In secondary school, he took medicines to reduce the inflammation, but he lost the flexibility and endurance he once had. He stopped doing hand-to-hand combat and started training with weapons (for fun), which is less physically demanding.

Later, when he began studying at a technical school, he learned how to use a drill and other equipment to craft swords.

“Before class, we’d all go crazy and fight each other,” he told the South China Morning Post. Our teacher would yell, ‘Stop, or you’ll all get detention.’ He did that from a safe distance, of course.
“Our metalworks teacher wanted us to pay attention to him, so he said if we listened to him, he’d teach us how to make an aluminium ruler. A few of us learned how to make one and that made for an excellent weapon that lasted a long time. That was funny, but that’s also why I can’t tell you which school I went to,” he said.

He has come a long way from fighting with rulers. He now makes a variety of training weapons, including Chinese swords, a German bastard sword, Japanese katanas, a European rapier and a Zulu war spear.

He has around 20 students training under him as part of the Ancient Combat Association, where he is the swordsmanship director. The association, founded in 2003, promotes “freestyle swordsmanship” or allowing students to train with a variety of swords.

The number of practitioners is unclear but several countries including Canada, the US and China have sword-fighting schools. In March, Russia launched a mixed martial arts division where fighters dress up as knights and fight with swords and shields.

Chan chose the name Lancelot when he became interested in sword-fighting and after he saw the movie Excalibur. Lancelot ignited his imagination more than the other knights of King Arthur’s Round Table because he “wasn’t a perfect example of virtue”. Lancelot made mistakes and ultimately redeemed himself, explains Chan.

But the name choice seemed stranger than fiction to some.

“I got in trouble while registering for my HKID card; the person didn’t know this is an English name and gave me one day to prove that this was an actual name. I had to run to a bookstore, buy a very thick dictionary that had the name Lancelot and show it to the person, who made a photocopy of the page,” Chan says.

He also got in trouble when he went to his first swordsmanship forum in the United States in the 1990s.

“They didn’t let me register under the name Lancelot. I didn’t realise how strange this name was to them. They asked me to prove it, and I showed them a scanned copy of my HKID card.”
“I said, ‘Now that I’ve proved it, can you apologise?’ The guy refused, and shortened it to Lance. That happened at several forums I went to when I was younger. But later I got more famous, or maybe organisers just became more liberal, so it’s fine now.”

Chan studied information technology in university and upon graduation started teaching IT with his father. But his real passion called; he took up sword-fight training in earnest.
In 2001, he figured out how to make training weapons that weighed and felt like real swords – but without the risk of injuring someone.

His swords have a steel core and are wrapped with an outer layer of foam rubber, similar to the material used for foam blocks or pool noodles. The replicas cost around HK$800 to HK$1,000 each.
His wife, Annie Ma Cheuk-yin, says he was already into sword-fighting when she met him but at first thought he was just bragging about his skills. Chan sometimes spars with Ma, who uses a spear.

Chan tries out real swords so that he can mimic the look and feel of the weapons as closely as possible. When there are weapon exhibitions in the city, Chan contacts the organisers and arranges a private viewing session. He also requests hands-on experience with the ancient swords.

In May last year, he was able to try out the swords of Chinese master Hu Xiaojun, whose work was displayed in Hong Kong that month. He also grasped in his hands the swords from Macau’s “Masters of Fire” exhibition almost a decade ago.

Students in a sword fighting class taught by Lancelot Chan Ying-chih (centre) in Mong Kok. Photo: Bruce Yan

As long as he proves that he makes swords for a living and signs a liability waiver, Chan says he can handle the genuine weapons. Besides, he says, he knows most of the exhibitions’ organisers.

He says hands-on exhibits are more popular now: the swords are placed inside acrylic glass cases with a hole in the middle, so that people can feel the hilt.

Chan has been making swords and teaching sword-fighting full time since 2005, and says he has no control over the number of clients and students. His experience in the trade also gives him access to a network of potential customers worldwide.

“This comes from the blood and sweat of a lot of my supporters,” Chan says of his business. “Once you lose your health and your basic mobility, there’s not much you can really do. [So] now that I’m somewhat healthy, I decided to just take the plunge.”

Chan says most of his students are men – among them Taku Mak Ming-ting, 30, who has been learning from Chan since 2008. Mak even made his own armour from plastic boards and sometimes brings his wife to trainings.

Mak, who knows Taekwondo, said he wanted to try an activity that felt more like actual combat.
“I feel like if you’re learning martial arts, of course you want to find something that’s as close to the real thing as possible. It’s like when you’re driving: you don’t want to drive a fake car; you want to drive a real car, or even a racecar.”

Mak and Chan both say that they pay attention to sword-fighting sequences in TV shows and movies, though most of them are disappointing.

“In a real fight, the goal is to not let your opponent know how you’re going to strike. If even the audience can see what you’re going to do, your opponents definitely do, too, so they can easily block your attacks.”

Chan cites Highlander, a 1986 action-fantasy film about immortal warriors, as having the most realistic fight scenes. The movie stars Christopher Lambert, Sean Connery and Clancy Brown.

Chan says he knows of only two other full-time sword enthusiasts like him: a man in Japan who lives with his family, and another in Germany who sells sword-fighting videos online.

Chan says he will stick to his craft despite challenges. “I’ve been doing this since 2005 and if I get back on the job market now, I won’t be able to find a job,” he says. “I’ll keep doing this until the property prices drive me out of business.”


Wednesday 10 June 2015

Monday 8 June 2015

1574 HKSAR Name of the Day

Panda Lee Yiu-fai, Outdoor adventure consultant, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Nature-based

Saturday 6 June 2015

Thursday 4 June 2015

Wednesday 3 June 2015

Pele's Curse Strikes Again

We all love Pele's pronouncements because after they are made the total opposite usually happens. Failing that, Pele just gets it plain wrong.

It was perfect timing when Pele announced his full support for Joseph "Sepp" Blatter on being re-elected as FIFA president during the current FIFA corruption crisis. That's when the writing was on the wall for Blatter! Subsequently, the beleaguered Blatter announced his resignation the next day.

Thank you Pele. You are the greatest!!

Pelé in Havana to see New York Cosmos face Cuba in a friendly on June 2, 2015. Pic: Enrique De La Osa/REUTERS



Reference (The Guardian)

Pelé backs Sepp Blatter’s re-election as Fifa president for fifth term

‘He’s a man who has been there for 25 years, you have to respect him’
New York Cosmos to play Cuba in historic friendly on Tuesday
Ex-Fifa vice president Jack Warner swallows Onion spoof
Pelé has welcomed the re-election of Sepp Blatter as Fifa’s president, despite the crisis surrounding the organisation. Blatter secured a fifth term in charge at Fifa’s annual congress in Zurich last week after seeing off the challenge of Jordan’s Prince Ali bin al-Hussein. The 79-year-old faced calls to step down after the FBI arrested 14 Fifa executives and officials over “rampant and systemic” corruption allegations. However, Pelé backed Blatter’s re-election and believes his experience made the Swiss the only choice for the post.

“I was in favour. It was necessary because it is better to have people with experience,” Pelé said Sunday after arriving in Havana see a charity match. “He’s a man who has been there for 25 years [with Fifa], you have to respect him, it was an election.”

Pelé is in Cuba where he will watch his former club New York Cosmos play the national team at the Pedro Marrero Stadium in Havana on Tuesday. The match, which will make Cosmos the first professional American sports team in 16 years to play in Cuba, has been organised to mark the thawing of relations between the two countries.

The Brazilian club Mogi Mirim, who have the former Brazil and Barcelona star Rivaldo as president, have fired Pelé’s son Edinho as coach. The 44-year-old leaves the second division side just four matches into the league season.

Before joining Mogi Mirim, Edinho was one of the assistant coaches for Santos, the club where his father thrived in the 1960s. He briefly played for the club as a goalkeeper in the 1990s.

Edinho recently made headlines after being convicted in a money laundering case that involved a drugs gang. He is appealing a 33-year prison sentence.


Tuesday 2 June 2015

1571 HKSAR Name of the Day

Stevenson Fung Hon-yuen, professor, Hong Kong University, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Son-suffix