Hŏng, n.

n. [Chinese hang, Canton dialect hong, a mercantile house, factory; hang-shang, a wholesale merchant; yeng-hang-shang, a wholesale merchant licensed by the government for foreign trade.] A large factory or mercantile house in Canton, where each nation has a separate department, likewise called hong.

Hong merchant, a Chinese who is authorized to trade with these hongs. Buchanan.