History

Vietnam has its history of about 3,000 to 4,000 years. Archaeologists have found evidence to prove that the Viet tribe groups had settled down in Vietnam at the beginning of the Old Stone Age. In the New Stone Age, Hoa Binh- Bac Son cultures developed their tactics of feeding animals and cultivating wet-rice.
A. Country’s official name
Van Lang: is the first official name of Vietnam, the capital was located in Phong Chau. The Van Lang nation approximately lasted from the beginning of the first millennium B.C to the 3rd century B.C.
Au Lac: King An Duong Vuong founded Au Lac Nation with groups of Lac Viet and Au Viet tribes. Later, Trieu Da, King of Nam Viet (China), invaded Au Lac country and King An Duong Vuong lost his nation.
Van Xuan: In 544, Ly Bi declared himself King of Van Xuan Kingdom. The existence of Ly Bi’s administration was very brief. He was defeated by the Chinese imperial army and then the name Van Xuan was changed.
Dai Co Viet: In 968, Dinh Tien Hoang defeated the twelve lords and unified the country. He declared himself King and named the country Dai Co Viet. This name remained throughout the Dinh Dynasty and to the year 1054.
Dai Viet: In 1504, the King Ly Thanh Tong changed the name of the country to Dai Viet. He moved the capital from Hoa Lu to Dai La, and renamed Thang Long.
Dai Ngu: In 1400, Ho Quy Ly usurped the throne of King Tran Thieu De and founded the Ho Dynasty and changed the country’s name to Dai Ngu. This name only lasted for very short time when the Ming enemy invaded Dai Ngu and defeated the Ho Dynasty. After many years of resistance against the Ming occupation, Le Loi declared himself King of Le Dynasty and changed the name of the country back to Dai Viet.
Vietnam: The first King Nguyen founded the Nguyen Dynasty and changed the country’s name to Vietnam. However, the words “Vietnam” has already appeared very early in history. In the 14th century, there was a book of code entitled “Viet Nam the Chi,” edited by Doctor Ho Tong Thoc, and in the book by scholar Nguyen Trai entitled Du Dia Chi at the beginning of 15th century, the words Viet Nam were repeated several times.
Dai Nam: Minh Mang declared himself King of Minh Dynasty and he wanted to change the name Vietnam into Dai Nam but failed. In 1839, King Minh Mang officially announced the new official name Vietnam.
Vietnam: On September 2nd 1945, President Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the nation’s independence and the national name Democratic Republic of Vietnam was born. Although Vietnam suffered from war and separation in the following 30 years, the sacred words "Viet Nam" were very popularly used from the North to the South, and were deeply imprinted in the hearts of the Vietnamese people. Following the liberation of Southern Vietnam on April 30 1975, the entire country of Vietnam was completely unified. In the first meeting of the National Assembly of the Unified Vietnam on July 2nd 1976, the assembly decided to name the country The Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The constitution of 1980, and 1992, continued its affirmation of the country’s official name, legally and actually.
B. National Flag
The Socialist Republic of Vietnam's National flag is a rectangular - shaped flag with the width equal to 2/3 of the length. It has a red background with a five - pointed gold star placed in the middle.
C. National Emblem
The Socialist Republic of Vietnam's National Emblem is a circle - shaped emblem. It has a red back ground with a five - pointed gold star in the center. There are some surrounding rice flowers, a central semi-cog wheel and a sentence saying: Socialist Republic of Vietnam.