Macau History and Society is the most authoritative, comprehensive, and up-to-date account of Macau from its inception as a Portuguese colony to its present-day status as a special administrative region. In this new edition, Zhidong Hao includes research on the most pressing issues facing Macau: ethnic and class stratification, the politics of education, and problems related to the gambling industry. Macau is, above all, a place where cultures interact. This book shows how such an interaction has been a source of both opportunities and tension. In addition, Hao shows how Macau has been uniquely exposed to local, regional, and global forces, the conjunction of which has demanded a constant effort from the people of Macau; they are expected to be cosmopolitan yet uniquely local. The essence of their identity thus remains a fascinating subject of research.