The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong (香港日治時期) began after the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Mark Young, surrendered the territory of Hong Kong to Japan on 25 December 1941 after 18 days of fierce fighting by British, Indian and Canadian defenders against overwhelming Japanese Imperial forces. The occupation lasted for three years and eight months until Japan surrendered. The length of this period (in Chinese, 三年零八個月) later became a metonym of the occupation.

During the Japanese invasion of China in 1937, Hong Kong was not invaded or occupied, being part of the British empire. Nevertheless, its situation was influenced by the war in China due to proximity to the mainland. In early March 1939, during a bombing raid on Shenzhen, a few bombs fell accidentally on Hong Kong, destroying a bridge and a train station.

In the autumn of 1941, the Third Reich was at its height of power. German forces had overrun much of Western Europe and were racing towards Moscow in the invasion of the Soviet Union. Although still officially neutral, United States was actively supporting Britain, the British Commonwealth and the Soviet Union in their war against Germany, and had imposed a 100% embargo on the sale of oil to Japan after less aggressive forms of economic warfare had failed to bring about changes in Japanese foreign policy in China and French Indo-china (Vietnam). This prompted Japan to launch a sudden attack against the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 (Honolulu time), against American military bases in the Philippines, and against strategic targets elsewhere in the Pacific and East Asia.

Coordinates: 22°16′42″N 114°09′32″E / 22.27833°N 114.15889°E / 22.27833; 114.15889

Hong Kong (Chinese: 香港) is one of two special administrative regions (SARs) of the People's Republic of China (PRC), the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is known for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour. With a land mass of 1,104 km² (426 sq mi) and a population of seven million people, Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated areas in the world. Hong Kong's population is 95 percent ethnic Chinese and 5 percent from other groups. Hong Kong's Han Chinese majority originate mainly from the cities of Guangzhou and Taishan in the neighbouring Guangdong province.

Hong Kong became a colony of the British Empire after the First Opium War (1839–42). Originally confined to Hong Kong Island, the colony's boundaries were extended in stages to the Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 and then the New Territories in 1898. It was occupied by Japan during the Pacific War, after which the British resumed control until 1997, when China resumed sovereignty. The region espoused minimum government intervention under the ethos of positive non-interventionism during the colonial era. The time period greatly influenced the current culture of Hong Kong, often described as "East meets West", and the educational system, which used to loosely follow the system in England until reforms implemented in 2009.

Japanese Occupation may refer to: