Guangzhou

Author: Sarmu

Guangzhou, also known as Canton or Kwangchow, is a sub-provincial city and the capital of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. It is one of the five National Central Cities. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about 120 km (75 mi) northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key transportation hub and trading port.

Guangzhou is the third largest city in China and southern China's largest city. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 6 million, and an urban area population of roughly 11.85 million, making it the most populous city in the province and the third most populous metropolitan area in China. Some estimates place the population of the entire urban agglomeration as high as 24.2 million, making it the 2nd biggest urban area in the world after Tokyo. The Guangzhou government's official estimate of the city's population at the end of 2009 was 10,334,500, an addition of 152,500 people from the previous year.