what was vietnam called before the vietnam war

until 938 A.D., Vietnam was ruled by a succession of Chinese emperors. Primarily based in the north of modern Vietnam, the Vietnamese were but one people competing for power in Southeast Asia. The Vietnamese were an established ethnic group by 200 A.D., but they were neither united nor independent.

It is in this environment that the Vietnamese people lived, fought, and thrived. Vietnam is largely a homogenous nation but it does have a few significant ethnic minorities, including the Degar people of the Central Highlands, whom the French would call “Montagnards” or “mountain people.” Early History Despite this, it is a thin nation – at its smallest, its width is only 30 miles. The nation has an area of 127,881 square miles, roughly the size of Japan. It shares a northern land border with China and western borders with Laos and Cambodia. Modern Vietnam is situated along the South China Sea, stretching for more than 1,500 miles as it curves in an “S” shape along the coast. Yet, the history of the country and people of Vietnam helps explain the problems encountered by the French and subsequently the United States in their efforts to control the country. Vietnam is first and foremost a war for many Americans and a country second. Despite this massive commitment of forces, many in the United States knew very little about the land their boys were being sent off to. Exactly one year later, there would be 184,300 U.S. On December 31, 1964, there were 23,300 American soldiers in Vietnam.

What was vietnam called before the vietnam war