The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of Its economy is larger than that of any other province in the nation and the 4th largest sub-national economy in the world with GDP of 1. Located in this zone are two of the four top Chinese cities and the top two Chinese prefecture-level cities by GDP ; Guangzhou, the capital of the province, and Shenzhen , the first special economic zone in the country.
These two are among the most populous and important cities in China, and have now become two of the world's most populous megacities. The province of Guangdong surpassed Henan and Shandong to become the most populous province in China in January , registering Its population increase since the census has been modest, the province registering ,, people in Guangdong has a diversified economy.
It was known as the starting point of the Maritime Silk Road of ancient China. As of , Guangdong's GDP reached 1. Guangdong has benefited from its proximity to the financial hub of Hong Kong , which it borders to the south. Guangdong also hosts the largest import and export fair in China, the Canton Fair , hosted in the provincial capital of Guangzhou.
After the unification of Lingnan region in the Qin dynasty , the immigrants from the Central Plains moved in and formed the local culture with a unique style. With the outward movement of the Guangdong people , the Hakka and Cantonese languages , music , cuisine , opera and tea ceremony have been spread throughout the nation, Southeast Asia and other countries.
Guangdong was also the birthplace of the father of modern China and the founder of the Republic of China, Sun Yat-sen where he later declared a military government in the Warlord Era. The two special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau fall within the scope of Guangdong cultural influence, and Guangdong culture still has profound influences on the Chinese in Singapore and Malaysia. Because of the prestige of Canton and its accent, Cantonese sensu lato can also be used for the phylogenetically related residents and Chinese dialects outside the provincial capital.
