Foshan (UK: /foʊˈʃæn/, US: /-ʃɑːn/; Chinese: 佛山) alternately romanized as Fatshan is a prefecture-level city in central Guangdong Province, China.

The city is part of the western side of the Pearl River Delta megalopolis, a conurbation housing 86,100,000 inhabitants, making it the biggest urban area of the world.

[6] By the early Ming, Foshan had grown into one of the four great markets in China, primarily on the strength of its local ceramics but also on account of its metalwork.

[7] Under the Qing, its harbor on the Fen River was limited to ships of a thousand tons' burden but it remained well connected with Guangdong's other ports.

[7] By the 19th century, Foshan was considered the "Birmingham of China", with its steel industry responsible for the consumption of the majority of the province's iron production.

[7] Its economy stagnated as a result of the Cultural Revolution—traditional ceramic ware was forbidden and its workshops were turned to producing Maoist and Revolutionary folderol—but it continued to grow, reaching 300,000 people by the 1970s, making it the province's second city after Guangzhou.

This permitted its party secretary Tong Mengqing and mayor Yu Fei to take full advantage when Deng Xiaoping introduced his Opening Up policies after the fall of the Gang of Four.

[citation needed] Since 2020, a Japanese-themed street in Foshan has become a hit with young people unable to travel abroad due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Guangzhou lies 25 kilometers (16 mi) to the northeast, Zhongshan to the southeast, Jiangmen to the south, Qingyuan to the north, and Zhaoqing to the west.

[citation needed] Shunde District in particular has a high manufacturing output, with its 3,000+ electronical appliance factories responsible for more than half of the world's air conditioners and refrigerators.

The existing line of FMetro network: Foshan is a main interchange for railway routes linking Guangzhou, Hong Kong and western Guangdong Province.

Sunray Cave then moved to Guangzhou, although did play the final games of the 2013 China League One back at Century Lotus Stadium.