POPULATION 81,098,416
BUDDHIST 84 percent
CHRISTIAN 10 percent
CAO DAI 3 percent
HOA HAO 2 percent
OTHER 1 percent

Country Overview

Introduction

Extending south from China in a long, narrow S-curve, Vietnam is a tropical country occupying the east coast of the Indochinese Peninsula. It is often described by Vietnamese as resembling a peasant's carrying pole with a rice basket hanging at each end. The Red River Delta in the north forms one basket, and the Mekong Delta in the south is the other. The narrow stretch of land that is central Vietnam constitutes the carrying pole connecting the two deltas.

Long ago ancient peoples moved into what is today Vietnam from the north and from the islands to the south. Today these people constitute the bulk of the Vietnamese population, with Chinese, Cambodians, and Montagnards being the largest minority groups. China ruled what is today northern Vietnam from 111 B.C.E. until 939 C...