Hanoi Travel Package Tours, Vietnam Tour Information Hotel Guide

HANOI CITY OVERVIEW

Geography	Demographics	Telephone
Location: Northern Vietnam Area: Red River Delta	Population: 3,145,300 Density: 3,348/km2 Ethnicities: Kinh, Hoa	Calling code: 04
Districts
Urban district:Hoan Kiem, Hai Ba Trung, Hoang Mai, Ba Dinh, Dong Da, Thanh Xuan, Cau Giay, Long Bien. Suburban districts: Tu Liem, Thanh Tri, Dong Anh, Soc Son

General Information

Hanoi is one of the most beautiful of the colonial Indochinese cities is often the start or end point of a trip to Vietnam, and what a great welcome or farewell it is. Simply oozing charm, Hanoi has gone through wholesale changes in the last decade since Vietnam swung open its doors to tourism, yet it remains an amazing city to experience.
The capital of Vietnam, Hanoi is located in the Red River Delta. It is encompassed by Thai Nguyen Province to the north, Vinh Phuc and Ha Tay to the west and south, Bac Giang, Bac Ninh and Hung Yen provinces to the east and south-east. Hanoi means �the hinterland between the rivers� (Ha: river, Noi: interior).
Most Vietnamese and Westerners are familiar with the phrase Ha Noi ba muoi sau Pho Phuong or Ha Noi 36 quarters. This phrase often causes much confusion for most people since, on the one hand Pho means a street or a place for merchants to gather to do business, on the other hand Phuong means a district or a guild of artisans specializing in a particular trade (phuong cheo, phuong tho, etc.). In any case, there is some truth to the use of both descriptions.
Similar to the Guilded age of Europe, Ha Noi's 36 quarters is Vietnam's version of the guild concept. Long ago, as artisans moved to the capital city to do business, they gathered together in an area as a way to share resources. As a result, many of the streets are named after the crafts that were sold on that street. Pho Hang Bun (Vermicelli), Pho Hang Ma (paper product), Pho Hang Bac (Jewelry) are a few of the streets carrying the name of the products sold on the street.
Today, the 36 pho or old quarters remains in Vietnamese literature as a quaint and familiar description of this part of Ha Noi. Although many of the streets no longer have the products for which they were named, some still do. Today, on many of the streets, there are still shrines dedicated to the individual deity of the trades for which the streets are named.

History
The area around modern Hanoi has been inhabited since at least 3000 BC. One of the first known permanent settlements is the Co Loa citadel founded around 200 BC.
Through history, Hanoi was known by many names, all of its name are chinese origin. During Chinese domination of Vietnam, it was known as Tong Binh and later LongDo. In 866, it was turned into a citadel and was named Dại La .
In 1010, Ly Thai To, the first ruler of the Ly Dynasty, moved the capital of Dai Viet to the site of the ?ại La Citadel. Claiming to have seen a dragon ascending the Red River, he renamed it Thang Long - a name still used poetically to this day. It remained the capital of Vietnam until 1397, when the capital was moved to Thanh Hoa, also known as Tay Do . Thang Long then became Dong Do.
In 1408, Vietnam was invaded by Chinese troops from the Ming Dynasty and Dong Do was renamed Dong Quan by the Chinese. In 1428, Vietnam was liberated from Chinese rule by Le Loi, the founder of the Le Dynasty and ?�ng Quan was renamed Dong Kinh . During the Tay Son Dynasty, it was named Bac Thanh.
In 1802, when the Nguyen Dynasty was established and then moved the capital down to present-day Hue, it was renamed Thang Long. However, the second syllable of the toponym is actually a homonym of the word long, and so, actually suggests �to flourish� as opposed to �dragon�. Therefore, the name would then have appeared as , roughly to ascend and flourish. In 1831 the Nguyen Dynasty renamed it Ha Noi . Hanoi was occupied by the French in 1873 and passed to them ten years later. It became the capital of French Indochina after 1887.
The city was occupied by the Japanese in 1940, and liberated in 1945, when it became the seat of Vietnam's government. From 1946 to 1954, it was the scene of heavy fighting between the French and Viet Minh forces. At that point, the city became the capital of an independent North Vietnam.
During the Vietnam War Hanoi's transportation facilities were disrupted by the bombing of bridges and railways, which were, however, promptly repaired. Following the end of the war, Hanoi became the capital of Vietnam when North and South Vietnam were reunited on July 2, 1976.
In 2004, a massive part of the 900 years old citadel was discovered in central Hanoi, near the site of Ba Dinh square.

Population
Hanoi's population is constantly growing, a reflection of the fact that the city is both a major metropolitan area of Northern Vietnam, and also the country's political centre. This population growth also puts a lot of pressure onto the infrastructure, some of which is antiquated and dates back from the early 20th century.
When you talk to Hanoians, they will concede that most people you meet in Hanoi these days are from somewhere else. If you define a native Hanoian as someone who has been here for three generations or more, that number is likely to be very small as compared to the overall population of the city. Even in the Old Quarter, where commerce started hundreds years ago and was mostly a family business, many of the street-front stores nowadays are owned by merchants and retailers from other provinces. The original owner family may have either rented out the store and moved to live further inside the house, or just moved out of the neighbourhood altogether. The pace of change has especially escalated after the abandonment of central-planing economic policies, and the loosening of the district-based household registrar system.
The considerate and genteel nature of Hanoians is occasionally quoted in idioms and literature, which may appear as annoyingly snobbish. In reality, they are a reflection of a past where Hanoi is the convergent point for much of the country's talents in arts and education. They are also a reflection of a system heavily entrenched in Confucian values where modesty and consideration of others were regarded with a higher priority than one's self. As the opening up of the economy has brought in other pressures on people's daily life, advocates for traditional social and family values are in many ways helping to counter an "everyone for himself" mentality.

Economy
Hanoi has the highest Human Development Index among the cities in Vietnam. Though representing only 3.6 percent of the country's population and 0.3 percent of the national territory, Hanoi contributes 8 percent to the national GDP and 45 percent of the Red River Delta's economy.
Industrial production in the city has experienced a rapid boom since the 1990s, with average annual growth of 19.1 percent from 1991�95, 15.9 percent from 1996�2000, and 20.9 percent during 2001�2003. In addition to eight existing industrial parks, Hanoi is building five new large-scale industrial parks and 16 small- and medium-sized industrial clusters. The non-state economic sector is expanding fast, with more than 25,000 businesses currently operating under the Enterprise Law.
Trade is another strong sector of the city. In 2003, Hanoi had 2,000 businesses engaged in foreign trade, having established ties with 161 countries and territories. The city's export value grew by an average 11.6 percent each year from 1996�2000 and 9.1 percent during 2001�2003. The economic structure also underwent important shifts, with tourism, finance, and banking now playing an increasingly important role.
Agriculture, previously a pillar in Hanoi's economy, has striven to reform itself, introducing new high-yield plant varieties and livestock, and applying modern farming techniques.
Together with economic growth, Hanoi's appearance has also changed significantly, especially in recent years. Infrastructure is constantly being upgraded, with new roads and an improved public transportation system. The rate of telephone users was 30 per 100 people in 2003. New urban areas are growing rapidly, with 1.5 million square metres of housing constructed during 1996�2000 and 1.3 million square metres built in 2003 alone.
Social services have been developed in both scale and quality. The public healthcare network has been strengthened, ensuring at least one doctor for each commune and ward. Thanks to these accomplishments, Hanoi has the highest development index in the country. Movements such as raising donations for poor people or promoting a "cultural lifestyle", have received support from local people and been maintained.