Does this video remind you of any city? This isn't cyberpunk sci-fi. This is Guangzhou at night.

Behind the futuristic glow lies centuries of history in Guangzhou. Long before 1842, Guangzhou was China's only port open to foreign trade. At the time, locals often referred to the city as the provincial capital, and foreigners confused it with the entire province of Guangdong. Then, Canton, a transliteration of Guangdong, became the name used to represent the city of Guangzhou.

Over time, Canton became deeply embedded in global memory, giving rise to highly recognized names like  Canton Fair  (China Import and Export Fair), Canton Tower (the most iconic modern landmark in Guangzhou), and Cantonese (a prominent dialect spoken in Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao, and overseas Chinese communities).  

In September 1977, the Third United Nations Conference on the Standardization of Geographical Names adopted a resolution recommending the use of the Hanyu Pinyin (Chinese phonetic alphabet) system to romanize Chinese place names as the international standard. Subsequently, China's State Council approved and implemented this resolution, officially designating "Guangzhou" as the city's standardized English name.

Today, China embraces great openness to the world, further facilitating international exchange with policies like  visa-free transit. As of December 2024, eligible travelers from 54 countries can stay in China for up to 240 hours (10 days) without a visa. Guangzhou, as a thousand-year-old commercial capital and one of the open ports in the visa-free policy, still plays its role as a major hub for international business and tourism.  

Author | Chen Longyan

Video & poster | Chen Longyan

Editor | Wei Shen, Huang Qini, James, Shen He