Nam Định

Nam Định[naːm˧˧:ɗḭ̈ʔŋ˨˩] is a capital-city ofNam Định provincein theRed River Deltaof theNorthern Vietnam.
From August 18–20 of each year, there is a festival held in Nam Định called theCố Trạch. This celebration honors GeneralTrần Hưng Đạo, a 13th-century national hero who led Annamese forces to victory over the invadingMongols.
Before theTrần dynasty, the land of modern Namdinh City of a northern area of an area was called asHiển-khánh district, which corresponds to half of the modern area ofNam Định province. This was the intersection of three large rivers, so it was very convenient for trade.
The name of the city, underTrần dynasty, wasThiên Trường(天長) meant "where the Sky remains for Eternity". It is first mentioned to mark the birth of the city in 1262 by EmperorTrần Thái Tông. The name Thiên Trường was probably the name for a wholephủ, which at the time would be equivalent to a special prefecture or province nowadays. UnderTrần dynasty, the city was considered to be the second capital, besidesThăng Long.
UnderLê dynasty, the city belonged to the Prefecture ofSơn Nam(山南), meant "Southern Mountains" or "to the South of the Mountains" in 1466 by EmperorLê Thánh Tông, andSơn Nam Hạ(山南下), meant "The South Prefecture of the Southern Mountains" in compared toSơn Nam Thượng(山南上), meant "The North Prefecture of the Southern Mountains".
The modern name of the city, Nam Định (南定), literally means "The pacified South", was first mentioned in 1831 under the reign of EmperorMinh Mệnhof theNguyễn dynastyas the capital of Nam Định Province. In international context, the name of this urban area is often signed asNamdinh City(in English) orla ville de Namdinh(in French).
According to a Resolution announced by 2021 and officially applied by 2023, the entireMỹ Lộcrural district area was merged into Nam Định City.
Namdinh City's long-standingcustomscome from the intersection of three groups of people :Kinh,HoaandFrench.
Namdinh City's oldest space is often divided bytourismresearchers into two parts : The North is the settlement surrounding Vị Xuyên Lake and Dragon Market, which is calledNamdinh Old Town(Nam-định lão-nhai) ; the South is a textile industry planned by the French from the 1880s, which is now calledHòa-vượng New Urban Complex(khu đô-thị Hòa-vượng).
Besides : 3-2 Square, Canton Temple, Doraemon Lane (previously River Resettlement hamlet), Đò-Quan Bridge, Đầu-mom Hamlet, Gốc-Mít Lane, Hakka Temple, Hoàng-văn-Thụ Street (previously Hải-phòng Road), Lê-hồng-Phong High School, Mả-lạng Area, Mỹ-tho Market, Namdinh Cheo Theatre, Ngõ-Ngang Market, Phù-long Market, Teochew Temple, Statue of Hưng-đạo Prince, Truyền-thống Lake, Trường-chinh Avenue (previously Giải-phóng Road and Lò-trâu Slope), Poet Tú-Xương's House and Tomb, Vọng-cung Temple...
Namdinh City is often considered as the birthplace ofphoby the majority. However, this dish is considered the best what only exists in Nguyễn Du, Hàng Sắt and Hàng Thao Streets. All of them are close to the 3-2 Square.Phohas some esoteric formulas stored by the descendants of theTeochew families, who have becomeKinh peoplesince the 1970s. Thenoodlesof Namdinh'sphoare thought to always be as thin ascloudsand they even can dissolve at the tip of thetongue, while thebrothmust smell thecow'sboneandonion.
Namdinh is also known as the only place inVietnamthat can produce Polka Bread(bánh-mì Ba-lan) since 1969 until present. This is a type ofboat-shapedbreadbut has a very thickintestine. It is maken by a special type ofoven, which has been provided with an exclusive patent globally and isPoland'stechnologysecret.
Fish saucein Namdinh City is also different from many localities inVietnam. It is usually mixed with boiledwaterfrom thecow'sbone. This method will make thefish saucelose the smell and become fragrant likepeppermint. Besides, there areshrimp sauce(mắm tôm & mắm tép), which is used to wake the taste of boiledvegetables.
Some other specialties of Namdinh City :Bánh cuốn,bánh mì pa-tê,bánh gối,toastwithhoney, fishbún(friedrohu,snake-headorcatfishis served withtomatobrothand slicedlettuce&spinach),bún đũa,xôi(xôi vò, xôi khúc, xôi đỗ đen),bánh bèo(rice flouris wrapped byseaweedleaves, with waterfatand roastedonion),Seochew sweet(kẹo Sìu-châu)...
Nam Định has two sports facilities,Thiên Trường Stadium (formerly Cuối Stadium)and Trần Quốc Toản Indoor Stadium, which are host tofootballandvolleyballmatches. Both sports centers are located on Hùng Vương Street.
Hà Nam Ninh won the National Football Champions (V.League) in 1985 with star player Nguyễn Văn Dũng. In 2001, Nam Định took second place in the National Championships, losing toBình Định F.C.In 2007, the Nam Định football team changed its name toĐạm Phú Mỹ Nam Địnhand won its firstNational Cupunder its new name. In 2009 the Nam Định Football team changed its name to Megastar Nam Định F.C and failed in standing on V.League to 1st level tournament 2010.
In 2024, theNam Dinh F Cwon theV.League 1championship for the first time in 39 years.
Besides :Giác Hải,Bùi Công Kỳ,Đặng Gia Mẫn,Đặng Phương Nam,Đặng Minh Phương,Bằng Cường,Đặng Thị Diệu Hương,Trần Thị Diễm Hương,Josephine Mai Thị Mậu,Giuse Hoàng Văn Tiệm,Giuse Maria Đinh Bỉnh,Giuse Trần Xuân Tiếu,Lương Kim Định,Hoàng Minh Chính,Hoàng Ngọc Hiến,Đinh Thế Huynh,Đinh La Thăng,Kiwi Ngô Mai Trang,Giuse Đinh Đức Đạo,Lôrensô Chu Văn Minh,Đa Minh Nguyễn Chu Trinh,Phêrô Nguyễn Văn Tự,Nguyễn Cao Kỳ Duyên...
Sister towns and sister cities
Starting from 00:00 on January 1, 2025, theareaof Nam Định city was automatically divided into 21commune-leveladministrative unitsby the Resolution of the City People's Committee.
The wholeterrainof Nam Định city is almost flat, manylocationsare still lower than thesea level, thus they face many disadvantages when therainy seasoncomes. However, Nam Định is also known as the conformity of the threerivers, which is extremely convenient forwaterway traffic, such as :Đào,Đáy,Hồng. In particular, Đào river was originally an artificialcanalfrom theTrần Dynasty, then gradually expanded with the width equivalent to the other tworivers. Its name means "digging" inVietnamese language. However, before theXX century, it was still called Vị Hoàng river (洧黃川), which had been in a folk subconscious as the nickname of Nam Định city. Besides, it is also called customarily as "Accretion river" (sông Lấp).
Nam Định is 90 km Southeast ofVietnam's capital,Hanoi. It is also known as the center of the Southern of theRed River Delta. Not only by its importance ofpoliticsandeconomy, but for thetraffic.
Besides, Tân Đệ Riverport (bến phà Tân Đệ) has long been an important transport center of theRed River Delta, which can lead to theTonkin Gulf.
According to the census in January 2023, thepopulationof Nam Định city was about 364,181.
Due to thehistoryof its formation very early, theareaof Nam Định city has manyethnic groupssettling together.Kinh peopleaccount for the majority, but besides that, there isHoa communitiessettled in the Old Quarters for manygenerations. Although they have been registered as Hoa or Kinh since 1978, in the composition of many groups such as : Tanka, Hakka, Seochew, Teochew, Canton, Hokkien...
There is also a small community ofTàyandNùngwho has been refugees due to the influence of theborder conflict. Also since the 2000s, there were a number of other groups from the international community, who were naturalized after only a short time living here.
By preliminary statistics, at least 10% of Nam Định citizens areCatholic.Nam Định city was also one of the earliest Annameselocationto receive theGospel, which was about the beginning of theXIX century, by theParis Missionary Association. Theterritoryof old Nam Định city and former Mỹ Lộc rural district has previously belonged to two different dioceses, which were Hà Nội and Nam Định. However, sinceChristmasin 2024, expanded Nam Định city has become part of the Hanoi Diocese, belonging to theHanoi Archdiocese. Theirpatron saintisOur Lady of Immacilization.
In September 2024, Nam Định experienced heavy flooding from sever rainfall that forced many residents to evacuate their homes.