In the 16th century the Portuguese arrived on Macao, seeing it as a good location to expand their regional trading empire. The Portuguese leased the island from the Chinese, with the island remaining under sovereign China, In 1849 the Portuguese declared Macao independent of China, and stopped paying rent. Portugal also expanded the territory of Macao around this time, acquiring a number of smaller nearby islands. In 1974, Portugal had its Carnation Revolution, and gave up all of its territories throughout the world. With the installment of the new government, Portugal immediately entered into negotiations with China to arrange a peaceful transfer of power over the island. In 1999 control of Macao was transferred to China, with the provision that the region would continue to be administered in much the same way for at least the next 50 years. Portuguese Macau was renamed to Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China.

As of 2015, Macau has a population of nearly 600,000 of which 95% are Chinese, primarily Cantonese and some Hakka, both from nearby Guangdong Province. The remainder are of Portuguese or mixed Chinese-Portuguese ancestry. Some Japanese, including descendants of Japanese Catholics who were expelled by shoguns, also live in Macau.

Updated On: 15.06.06