# Điện Biên province

Điện Biên (chữ Hán: 奠邊) is a province in the Northwest region of Vietnam. It is bordered by Lai Châu to the northeast, Sơn La to the southeast, Pu'er City, Yunnan, China, to the northwest, and Phongsaly province in Laos to the west. The province covers an area of about 9,540 km$^2$ (3,683 sq mi) and as of 2024 it had a population of 657,400 people.

## History

The name "Điện Biên" means "stable frontier" (referring to Điện Biên's location on the border between Lan Xang and Vietnam). Điện Biên has various ancient monuments including the caves Thẩm Khương, as well as Thẩn Búa in Tuần Giáo. The original settlers were the Ai Lao or Tai people who are a direct ancestor of Lao people in Laos today. The names of some villages and towns still use words of Tai origin, such as Mường (city) and Tham (cave).
In the 9th and 10th centuries, the Lự in Mường Thanh were the most developed in the area and controlled Sìn Hồ, Mường Lay, and Tuần Giáo.
In the 11th and 12th centuries, Tai people (not to be confused with the Thai people of Thailand) from Mường Ôm and Mường Ai occupied Mường Lò in Nghĩa Lộ and Mường Thanh in Điện Biên. They eventually gained control of the whole area between Mường Lò and Mường Thanh (Điện Biên).

## Places

Chua ta cave: Located at an altitude of nearly 1,000m above sea level, in a limestone mountain range with a geological tectonic process of millions of years, Tham Khen cave in Muong Dun commune, Tua Chua district has also been recognized by the Ministry of Culture. Sports and Tourism ranked national relics and scenic spots according to decision No. 3086/QD-BVHTTDL dated October 27, 2020. In addition to being unique like other caves, Chua Ta cave also has two typical types of ecosystems: Limestone mountain ecosystem and cave ecosystem. This place converges the diverse properties of nature.

## Climate

Điện Biên province has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cwa).
Climate data for Điện Biên Phủ, elevation 479 m (1,572 ft) :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 32.4 (90.3) | 35.0 (95.0) | 36.1 (97.0) | 38.5 (101.3) | 38.6 (101.5) | 37.9 (100.2) | 36.0 (96.8) | 36.0 (96.8) | 35.0 (95.0) | 35.5 (95.9) | 34.0 (93.2) | 31.1 (88.0) | 38.6 (101.5) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 23.8 (74.8) | 26.2 (79.2) | 29.0 (84.2) | 31.0 (87.8) | 31.7 (89.1) | 31.1 (88.0) | 30.4 (86.7) | 30.4 (86.7) | 30.5 (86.9) | 29.2 (84.6) | 26.7 (80.1) | 23.9 (75.0) | 28.6 (83.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 16.5 (61.7) | 18.3 (64.9) | 21.0 (69.8) | 23.8 (74.8) | 25.5 (77.9) | 26.3 (79.3) | 25.9 (78.6) | 25.6 (78.1) | 24.9 (76.8) | 22.9 (73.2) | 19.7 (67.5) | 16.5 (61.7) | 22.2 (72.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 12.5 (54.5) | 13.5 (56.3) | 15.8 (60.4) | 19.3 (66.7) | 21.7 (71.1) | 23.4 (74.1) | 23.3 (73.9) | 23.0 (73.4) | 21.7 (71.1) | 19.4 (66.9) | 15.7 (60.3) | 12.4 (54.3) | 18.5 (65.3) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −1.3 (29.7) | 4.8 (40.6) | 5.3 (41.5) | 11.6 (52.9) | 14.8 (58.6) | 17.4 (63.3) | 18.7 (65.7) | 10.7 (51.3) | 14.2 (57.6) | 7.7 (45.9) | 4.0 (39.2) | 0.4 (32.7) | −1.3 (29.7) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 26.0 (1.02) | 30.3 (1.19) | 64.1 (2.52) | 133.8 (5.27) | 222.9 (8.78) | 305.3 (12.02) | 359.6 (14.16) | 324.8 (12.79) | 168.6 (6.64) | 71.7 (2.82) | 44.1 (1.74) | 26.0 (1.02) | 1,784.3 (70.25) |
| Average rainy days | 5.7 | 5.4 | 7.5 | 13.7 | 17.9 | 22.0 | 24.4 | 22.3 | 15.6 | 10.1 | 6.8 | 4.6 | 155.9 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 82.4 | 80.2 | 80.2 | 81.7 | 82.2 | 83.9 | 86.4 | 87.5 | 86.3 | 84.2 | 83.1 | 83.1 | 83.4 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 159.8 | 177.3 | 198.4 | 202.0 | 202.3 | 141.3 | 132.7 | 148.6 | 168.4 | 170.5 | 160.5 | 160.0 | 2,025.4 |
| Source: Vietnam Institute for Building Science and Technology ||||||||||||||
Climate data for Pha Din, elevation 1,347 m (4,419 ft) :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 29.3 (84.7) | 31.8 (89.2) | 36.0 (96.8) | 36.5 (97.7) | 36.6 (97.9) | 35.5 (95.9) | 36.0 (96.8) | 33.8 (92.8) | 32.6 (90.7) | 31.4 (88.5) | 31.2 (88.2) | 29.1 (84.4) | 36.6 (97.9) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 17.2 (63.0) | 19.6 (67.3) | 22.7 (72.9) | 25.0 (77.0) | 25.2 (77.4) | 24.6 (76.3) | 24.2 (75.6) | 24.5 (76.1) | 24.2 (75.6) | 22.4 (72.3) | 19.7 (67.5) | 17.1 (62.8) | 22.2 (72.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 12.5 (54.5) | 14.5 (58.1) | 17.7 (63.9) | 20.0 (68.0) | 20.7 (69.3) | 20.8 (69.4) | 20.6 (69.1) | 20.6 (69.1) | 20.0 (68.0) | 18.1 (64.6) | 15.2 (59.4) | 12.4 (54.3) | 17.7 (63.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 9.8 (49.6) | 11.3 (52.3) | 14.3 (57.7) | 16.6 (61.9) | 17.9 (64.2) | 18.7 (65.7) | 18.7 (65.7) | 18.6 (65.5) | 17.7 (63.9) | 15.8 (60.4) | 12.7 (54.9) | 10.0 (50.0) | 15.2 (59.4) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −0.4 (31.3) | 0.1 (32.2) | −0.1 (31.8) | 5.9 (42.6) | 11.0 (51.8) | 13.1 (55.6) | 14.0 (57.2) | 15.0 (59.0) | 10.9 (51.6) | 8.3 (46.9) | 4.2 (39.6) | −1.2 (29.8) | −1.2 (29.8) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 26.0 (1.02) | 30.3 (1.19) | 64.1 (2.52) | 133.8 (5.27) | 222.9 (8.78) | 305.3 (12.02) | 359.6 (14.16) | 324.8 (12.79) | 168.6 (6.64) | 71.7 (2.82) | 44.1 (1.74) | 26.0 (1.02) | 1,784.3 (70.25) |
| Average rainy days | 5.7 | 5.4 | 7.5 | 13.7 | 17.9 | 22.0 | 24.4 | 22.3 | 15.6 | 10.1 | 6.8 | 4.6 | 155.9 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 81.4 | 75.8 | 71.1 | 75.5 | 83.0 | 89.7 | 91.4 | 90.5 | 86.9 | 86.0 | 83.9 | 81.9 | 83.2 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 179.7 | 172.6 | 205.9 | 213.4 | 192.5 | 119.7 | 125.6 | 140.5 | 162.4 | 164.9 | 162.7 | 180.9 | 2,019.9 |
| Source: Vietnam Institute for Building Science and Technology ||||||||||||||

## Administrative divisions

Điện Biên is subdivided into 10 district-level sub-divisions:
| Second Tier subdivisions | Area (km²) | Third Tier subdivisions | Third Tier subdivisions | Third Tier subdivisions |
| Second Tier subdivisions | Area (km²) | Ward | Township | Commune |
| Điện Biên Phủ city | 64.27 | 7 | | 2 |
| Mường Lay town | 114.03 | 2 | | 1 |
| Điện Biên District | 1639.85 | | | 25 |
| Điện Biên Đông District | 1206.39 | | 1 | 13 |
| Mường Ảng District | 443.52 | | 1 | 9 |
| Mường Chà District | 1199.42 | | 1 | 11 |
| Mường Nhé District | 1573.73 | | | 11 |
| Nậm Pồ District | 1498.00 | | | 15 |
| Tủa Chùa District | 679.41 | | 1 | 11 |
| Tuần Giáo District | 1136.29 | | 1 | 18 |
They are further subdivided into five commune-level towns (or townlets), 116 rural communes, and nine wards.

## Places in Điện Biên

* Mường Thanh Valley