Vietnam Handout and links *Do not copy*

Vietnam

General Information:

• Population: 91,519,289
• 81% atheist
• Communist government

Geography:

• Vietnam is on the Eastern side of the Indochinese peninsula
• It is 331,210 square kilometers
• It is “S” shaped and has 3,444 kilometers of coastline
• It is surrounded by the Gulf of Tonkin, Gulf of Thailand, and South China Sea
• Rugged mountains and plateaus to the north
• Forested hills

Climate:

• Extremely humid
• Varied climate temperatures because of its length

Early History:

• It was one of the longest continuous empires in history, about 10,000 years

• They had 1,000 years of foreign rule, mostly by dynastic China, some by France
• The Hung Dynasty lasted until 258 BC, when it was overthrown by a nearby kingdom, and became known as Au Lac
• In 208 BC, A Chinese general conquered Au Lac, and named it Nam Viet
• Nam Viet battled with The Han Dynasty in China until finally being defeated and conquered by China in 111 BC.
• For the next 1,900 years, Vietnam struggled to maintain its independence

Mythological Beginnings:

• According to tradition, King Lac Long Quan(the Dragon Lord of Lac) married the immortal Au Co
• Au Co bore him 100 sons, and they formed a nation between China and Indonesia (Van Lang)
• They did not believe that they could live together, with their differing backgrounds, so each took 50 sons
• When Lac Long died in about 2879 BCE, his oldest son founded the Hung Dynasty

Dynasties:

• A dynastic period started in 939 CE, when General Ngo Quyen freed Vietnam from China, and founded the Ngo Dynasty. This dynasty lasted between 939-967
• The Dinh Dynasty(968-980 CE) replaced the Ngo Dynasty by unifying the feudal lords that overthrew Ngo.
• The Early Le (lay) Dynasty lasted from 980 to 1009. this dynasty established buddhism as the main religion in Vietnam
• the Ly (lee) Dynasty lasted from 1009 and 1225, and moved the capital to Thang Long, now called Hanoi

• The Tran Dynasty ruled between 1225 and 1400, and successfully defended Vietnam from Kublai Khan
• From 1400 to 1428, the Ho Dynasty ruled, but was also briefly occupied by China
• The Late Le (lay) Dynasty is considered Vietnam's golden age period. they developed guerilla war tactics, and forced China out of Vietnam
• between 1543 and 1776, a civil war divided the country. the north was ruled by the Trinh Dynasty, and the Nguyen Dynasty ruled the south
• The Nguyen Dynasty won the civil war, and unified Vietnam between 1792 and 1883

French Occupation:

• Started in 1883
• Happened because France wanted to introduce Catholicism to SE Asia and Vietnam and when the Vietnamese refused, they invaded to force Catholicism upon them
• France obtained official rule after the Sino-French war in 1884 and 1885
• Ended with Vichy France- Nazi influenced France- when it surrendered Vietnam to Japan in 1949

Vietnam War:

• Started in 1955
• Ho Chi Minh, a Vietnamese Communist leader, led a rebellion against the government
• The US attempted to help the South Vietnamese fight for democracy
• The US was unprepared for the terrain and guerilla warfare
• They used a chemical agent called “Agent Orange” that killed much of the vegetation, and damaged the environment
• The demilitarized zone was at the 38th parallel
• Ended in 1975

Current Issues:

• Vietnam has a high crime rate
• The cleanup from “Agent Orange” is ongoing and may still take years to fully clean up
• There is no freedom of press and the Communist regime is allegedly still jailing people for news articles about democracy and related topics
• Vietnam is in a dispute with China over the Spratly Islands

Culture:

• There is an emphasis on community and family values, hard work, hospitality, and devotion to one's studies
• The majority of Vietnam is atheist, but some major religions in Vietnam are Taoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and the native religions
• Buddhism was most prominent between 1010 and 1440

Cuisine:

• The style of cooking is a blend of Chinese, French and miscellaneous Asian spices, flavors, techniques, and ingredients
• Fish, long grain rice and noodles are a main staple
• All food is served at once, no “courses” in meals

• Influenced by the Asian principle of 5 elements and Mahabhuta
• Wood
• Fire
• Water
• Earth
• Metal/Space

Citations:

Chaney, A. "Geography of Vietnam." Edited by Wikipedia. Princeton University.

Accessed February 11, 2013. http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/

docs/Geography_of_Vietnam.html.

Largo, V. Vietnam: Current Issues and Historical Background. N.p.: Nova Publishers, 2002.

Rosenburg, Matt. "Geography and Map of Vietnam." About.com. Accessed February 7, 2013.  http://geography.about.com/library/cia/blcvietnam.htm.

Encyclopædia Britannica Online, s. v. "Vietnam War", accessed February 19, 2013,

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/628478/Vietnam-War.

Encyclopædia Britannica Online, s. v. "Sino-French War", accessed February 19, 2013,

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/546163/Sino-French-War.

Monier-Williams, Monier. "Mahabhuta." In Sanskrit Dictionary, by Monier

-Williams. N.p., 1899.

"History of Vietnamese Food ." Food of Vietnam. http://www.xuvn.com/foodofvietnam/history_of_vietnamese_food.htm

(accessed February 13, 2019).

“Major Cities of Vietnam” http://itouchmap.com/i/map/vm.gif