Southern Vietnam (Vietnamese:Nam Bộ) is one of the three geographical regions ofVietnam, the other two beingNorthern andCentral Vietnam. It includes 2 administrativesubregions, which in turn are divided into 19First Tier units, of which 17 areprovinces and 2 aremunicipalities.
Known asNam Bộ today in Vietnamese, it was historically calledGia Định (1779–1832),Nam Kỳ (1832–1945, during Nguyễn'sLục tỉnh andFrench Cochinchina),Nam Bộ (1945 to the present, encompassing theEmpire of Vietnam and theDemocratic Republic of Vietnam), andNam Phần, sometimesNam Việt (1948–1975, during theState of Vietnam and theRepublic of Vietnam).[1]Cochinchina is a historical exonym for this region during the colonial period, which referred to the entire domain ofĐàng Trong in the feudal period. A more accurate term for the southern region isLower Cochinchina, orBasse-Cochinchine in French.
In the early period, Southern Vietnam was under theKingdom of Funan (from the 1st century CE until the 7th century CE) and later theKhmer Empire (from the 9th century CE to the 15th century). Southern Vietnam was conquered by theNguyễn lords in the 17th and 18th centuries.[2]
The main ethnicities in Southern Vietnam areKinh,Khmer andHoa.[3]
| Administrative region | First Tier units | Area (km2)[4][5] | Population (2022)[4] | Population density (people/km2) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southeast (Đông Nam Bộ, Miền Đông) | Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu | 23,551.42 | 18,810,780 | 798.71 |
| Mekong River Delta (Đồng Bằng Sông Cửu Long) orSouthwest (Tây Nam Bộ, Miền Tây) | An Giang | 40,922.58 | 17,432,120 | 425.98 |
^†Municipality (thành phố trực thuộc trung ương)
Southern Vietnam travel guide from Wikivoyage| International | |
|---|---|
| Other | |
