Definition of "Canton"

Canton¹

/ˌkænˈtɒn/

proper noun
1. Several places in China:
  1. Guangzhou, the capital and largest city of Guangdong, China.
    Quotations
    The Province of Quantung lies along upon the Sea-ſhore, having many convenient Havens and Harbors ; it contains ten Counties, and eighty great and ſmall Cities. Quancheu, or Canton by the Portugals, is the Metropolis and chief of the Province ; exceedingly beautified with Pagodes, Palaces, ſtately Structures, and Triumphal Arches ; fortified with ſtrong Walls, Towers, Bulwarks and Redoubts, defended by five Caſtles.
    1693, Robert Morden, “Of China”, in Geography Rectified; or a Description of the World‎, 3rd edition, pages 441–442
    Canton is alſo the name of a large, populous, and wealthy city and port-town of China, ſituated on the river Ta, about fifty miles from the Indian ocean... It is a fortified place, within the walls of which no Chriſtians are permitted to enter, notwithſtanding their great trade thither; it being from thence that they import all manner of Chineſe goods, as china-ware, tea, cabinets, raw and wrought ſilks, gold-duſt, &c.
    1771, Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1st ed., Vol. II, p. 28
    Though much of the mountain land is still in forest and not occupied by man, the fertile valleys and extended plains are very thickly settled, so that China’s population to the square mile is very great. The most populous city is probably Canton, with a million and a half inhabitants, then comes Peking, the capital, and other seaports and centers of population, as Shanghai, Foochow, Han-kow, etc.
    1895, Rosswell Hobart Graves, Forty Years in China: Or, China in Transition‎, Baltimore: R. H. Woodward Company, pages 14–15
    The earliest pioneer of British free trade in Canton was Mr. William Jardine, founder of the still flourishing firm of Jardine, Matheson, and Co., who visited China off and on between the years 1802 and 1818, and resided in Canton continuously from 1820 to January 31, 1839.
    1920, Cades Alfred Middleton Smith, The British in China and Far Eastern Trade‎, London: Constable & Co. Ltd., page 23
    Four days later Chiang Kai-shek, now commander-in-chief of the garrisons in Canton, was in full control of the city. The left wing of the Kuomintang was firmly established in power, and Chiang was its acknowledged head.
    1938, Robert Berkov, Strong Man of China: The Story of Chiang Kai-shek‎, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, page 49
    In China, a combination of television, radio, posters, inexpensive print is used with great effectiveness as reenforcement for programs to teach Mandarin Chinese. I have observed this admirable program in Canton.
    1974, J. Roby Kidd, Whilst Time is Burning‎, International Development Research Centre, page 51
    A handbill strongly condemning Teng Hsiao-ping was circulated in Kwangtung early last month by a human rights group based in Fushan near Canton according to an intelligence report.
    1979 May 6, “Human rights group”, in Free China Weekly‎, volume XX, number 17, Taipei, page 3
    Chinese traders, mostly from the southern ports of Amoy (Hsia-men) and Canton, took raw silk, fabrics, and apparel to Manila, where these cargoes were sold for silver and carried back for sale in the New World.
    2007, Ronald Findlay, Kevin H. O'Rourke, Power and Plenty‎, Princeton University Press, page 173
    He consequently denounced the naval and air assaults on Shanghai, the injuries visited upon Nanjing, and later (June 1938) the aerial bombardment of Canton.
    2013, David Mayers, FDR's Ambassadors and the Diplomacy of Crisis‎, Cambridge University Press, page 22
  2. Guangdong, a province of China.
    Quotations
    XVIII. Quanton, or Canton, lies Eaſt and South from Quanſi, and is the moſt Southern Province of the Empire. Nieuhoff ſays, here are ſeveral ſafe Harbours and Roads, that it produces all Neceſſaries for Life, and has two Harveſts a year. Their Winter is very warm, and their Fields always verdant.
    1721, John Senex, A New General Atlas, Containing A Geographical And Historical Account Of All The Empires, Kingdoms And Other Dominions Of The World‎, London, page 216
  3. (dated) the Pearl River, a river in southern China.

Canton²

/ˈkæntən/

proper noun
1. A hamlet in Ontario, Canada.
2. Several places in the United States:
  1. A former settlement in El Dorado County, California.
  2. A town in Hartford County, Connecticut.
  3. A city, the county seat of Cherokee County, Georgia.
  4. A city in Fulton County, Illinois.
  5. An unincorporated community in Washington Township, Washington County, Indiana.
  6. An unincorporated community in Jackson County and Jones County, Iowa.
  7. A small city in McPherson County, Kansas; named for the city in Ohio.
  8. A small town in Oxford County, Maine; named for the town in Massachusetts.
  9. A neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland.
  10. A town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts.
  11. A township in Wayne County, Michigan.
  12. A tiny city in Fillmore County, Minnesota; named for the city in Ohio.
  13. A city, the county seat of Madison County, Mississippi.
  14. A small city in Lewis County, Missouri; named for the city in Ohio.
  15. A submerged ghost town in Broadwater County, Montana.
  16. An unincorporated community in Lower Alloways Creek Township, Salem County, New Jersey.
  17. A town and village in St. Lawrence County, New York; the village is the county seat.
  18. A town in Haywood County, North Carolina; named for the city in Ohio.
  19. A city, the county seat of Stark County, Ohio.
  20. A small town in Blaine County, Oklahoma.
  21. A borough of Bradford County, Pennsylvania; named for the town in Massachusetts.
  22. A city, the county seat of Lincoln County, South Dakota.
  23. A city, the county seat of Van Zandt County, Texas.
  24. An unincorporated community in Doddridge County, West Virginia.
  25. A small town in Buffalo County, Wisconsin.
  26. An unincorporated community in Barron County, Wisconsin.

Canton³

proper noun
1. An inner city district and community in Cardiff, Wales (OS grid ref ST1676).

Canton⁴

proper noun
1. A topographical surname from French.