# What's The Largest World City You've Never Heard Of? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 3, 2010, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131 "2010-03-03T15:32:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/61 "2010-03-04T06:15:28Z")
Karachi, although I’ve probably heard it a million times on the news and just never recognized it. Then Wuhan. Man I suck at these. I’m so ego-geo-centric. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/62 "2010-03-04T06:25:27Z")
Chennai, although I was a little shaky on some of the Chinese cities. ---
**Author:** ![Mosier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ea924/32.png) [@Mosier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mosier)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/63 "2010-03-04T06:35:40Z")
#3 Karachi I would have said was in India. That’s the first one I would not have known the correct country for, but I have heard of the city before. #17 Kinshasa is the first one I’ve never heard the name of. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/64 "2010-03-04T08:09:22Z")
> [@The\_Man\_With\_The\_Golden\_Gun](#): > > Chennai here. Think of it as “Madras”. 😃 I’ve (quite honestly) heard of all of the cities on that list. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/65 "2010-03-04T12:22:44Z")
So have I. Lahore? I mean has no one read Kipling? ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/66 "2010-03-04T12:26:49Z")
> [@Mosier](#): > > #3 Karachi I would have said was in India. That’s the first one I would not have known the correct country for, but I have heard of the city before. > > #17 Kinshasa is the first one I’ve never heard the name of. For Karachi, before 1947 you would have been right. Kinshasa! Rumble in the Jungle. ---
**Author:** ![lee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lee/32/7455_2.png) [@lee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lee)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/67 "2010-03-04T12:58:26Z")
Wuhan, the slogan should be, “the largest city you have never heard of.” ---
**Author:** ![YamatoTwinkie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/cc9497/32.png) [@YamatoTwinkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YamatoTwinkie)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/68 "2010-03-04T15:27:06Z")
additional vote for Wuhan ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/69 "2010-03-04T17:48:17Z")
32 ---
**Author:** ![BleizDu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@BleizDu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BleizDu)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/70 "2010-03-04T17:49:18Z")
Wuhan also! ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/71 "2010-03-04T17:52:51Z")
> [@lee](#): > > Wuhan, the slogan should be, “the largest city you have never heard of.” Agreed, true for me, too! ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/72 "2010-03-04T18:22:08Z")
I got through the list, but I’m a massive geography nerd. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/73 "2010-03-04T18:22:14Z")
I didn’t know Wuhan. I did know most of the rest, though. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/74 "2010-03-04T19:29:07Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > …I’m so ego-geo-centric. Y’know, if you were with Keanu in Brazil, you could be Neo-Rio-ego-geo-centric. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/75 "2010-03-04T19:36:33Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > #14, Wuhan. Ditto. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/76 "2010-03-04T19:55:15Z")
> [@Wilson](#): > > Surat for me. I had no idea there was that large a city between Mumbai and Ahmadabad. I was born there! Also, I thought I had never heard of Pune. But then I realized that we call it Poona. For me, it was #17 - Kinshasa ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/77 "2010-03-04T20:07:18Z")
Woah, I had no idea Seoul was that big. I figured it was top 50, but not top 10. For me it’s #24, Dhaka. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/78 "2010-03-04T20:07:19Z")
Chongqing #31 (the only other city I didn’t know was #45) ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/79 "2010-03-04T20:44:42Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > Chongqing #31 Better known in the U.S. as Chungking. ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131/80 "2010-03-04T21:06:00Z")
Made it through the list considering I knew the cities with their former names. For funsies, I sorted the list because I suspected a pattern…sorted by population density…and bang! India knows how to pile on the people (with the exception of #1-Cairo). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-world-city-youve-never-heard-of/531131.md?page=5)