Vancouver (Listeni/væŋˈkuːvər/ or /vænˈkuːvər/), officially the City of Vancouver, is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. The 2011 census recorded 603,502 people in the city, making it the eighth largest Canadian municipality.[1] Vancouver is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities in Canada; 52% of its residents have a first language other than English.[3][4] The Greater Vancouver area of around 2.4 million inhabitants is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country[1] and the most populous in Western Canada.
The City of Vancouver encompasses a land area of about 114 square kilometres, giving it a population density of about 5,249 people per square kilometre (13,590 per square mile). Vancouver is the most densely populated Canadian municipality, and the fourth most densely populated city over 250,000 residents in North America, behind New York City, San Francisco,[5] and Mexico City.
The original settlement, named Gastown, grew around the Hastings Mill logging sawmill and a nearby tavern, both established in 1867. Enlarging to become the townsite of Granville, with the announcement that the railhead would reach the site it was renamed "Vancouver" and incorporated as a city in 1886. By 1887, the transcontinental railway was extended to the city to take advantage of its large natural seaport, which soon became a vital link in a trade route between the Orient, Eastern Canada, and London.[6][7] As of 2009, Port Metro Vancouver is the busiest and largest port in Canada, and the most diversified port in North America.[8] While forestry remains its largest industry, Vancouver is well known as an urban centre surrounded by nature, making tourism its second-largest industry.[9] Major film production studios in Vancouver and Burnaby have turned Metro Vancouver into one of the largest
