Page 81 - Ancient Kingdoms: Thailand, Laos, Cambodia & Vietnam

• Geography: It is about a thousand miles long and ranges in width from 30 miles in
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There are two mountainous areas, covered largely by forests or jungles: the Northern
Highlands, located in the northwest, and the Annamite Range that extends from it
down the western portion of the country towards Ho Chi Minh City. The two delta
areas—the Red River Delta in the north and the Mekong Delta in the south—hold most
of the country’s population and also provide the majority of the country’s farmland. The
Coastal Lowlands, which lie between the delta areas, are also heavily populated.

• Population: 93,421,835

• Religions: Buddhist 9.3%, Catholic 6.7%, Hoa Hao 1.5%, Cao Dai 1.1%, Protestant 0.5%,
Muslim 0.1%, none 80.8%. (Although Communists have discouraged the practice of
religion, those who do practice are generally Buddhists.)

• Time zone: Vietnam is twelve hours ahead of U.S. EST. When it is 6am in Washington
D.C., it is 6pm in Hanoi.

National Holidays: Vietnam

In addition to the holidays listed below, =P`YTʭNL_TZY /Ld
Vietnam celebrates a number of national
05/01 Labor Day
holidays that follow a lunar calendar. To
ʭYO Z`_ TQ dZ` bTWW MP _]LaPWTYR O`]TYR _SP^P 09/02 Independence Day
holidays, please visit www.timeanddate.
com/holidays. 12/24 Christmas Eve

01/01 New Year’s Day 12/25 Christmas Day

February Tet Lunar New Year (moves each 12/31 New Year’s Eve
year; see note above)

Historical Overview of Vietnam

Vietnam’s earliest known residents were hunters and farmers who migrated into the area
from the north and south. At the end of the third century B.C., the Red River Delta area and
a portion of southeastern China became a kingdom named Nam Viet. The Chinese conquered
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Jiao Zhi and later, Annam.

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the country Dai Co Viet. The next 900 years saw Dai Co Viet grow into an empire ruled by
powerful family dynasties. During the eleventh and twelfth centuries the Ly dynasty ruled, the
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175 years.

The army of Dai Co Viet continued to defend the country’s independence, defeating Mongol
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self-rule was the period between 1407 and 1427, when the Chinese again took control. The

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