♦ Dr. Le Thi Thu Huong

The Process of Settlement and the Formation of Hanoi’s Resident

 

Community

 

Before the land of Hanoi was chosen as a political center throughout different historical periods, its naturally favorable conditions - located in the Red River Delta with fertile alluvial soil - had already drawn prehistoric inhabitants from mountainous and midland areas to converge here. They settled on elevated riverbanks along the waterways surrounding Hanoi, gradually forming ancient villages. Archaeological traces found across Hanoi indicate that humans appeared in this area as early as the Late Paleolithic period. Naturally, thanks to the advantageous environment, people from various places first gathered here to engage in wet-rice cultivation, fishing, and trade - activities conducted primarily via river routes. Over the course of history, this land later became the political center of successive administrations. This, too, was a crucial factor shaping patterns of settlement and the formation of Hanoi’s resident community. In the nation - building and nation-defending process, local communities created material and spiritual values that laid the foundations for the civilization of the ancient Vietnamese. Artifacts such as the Co Loa bronze drum (comparable to the Ngoc Lu bronze drum), bronze plowshares of many types, and especially tens of thousands of bronze arrowheads, all attest that the inhabitants of the Hanoi area were ancient Vietnamese. They bore characteristic features of the ancient Vietnamese communities of the Northern Delta: living by wet-rice farming and traveling mainly by boat. It was the people of this region who began to shape the Vietnamese character, reflected in their ways of life, daily practices, customs, and beliefs.

 

When the Au Lac state of An Duong Vuong fell into the hands of the Trieu dynasty (179 BCE), the ancient Hanoi area was among the first places to come under the domination of northern feudal regimes, and the local population began to experience disruptions. The majority of residents were still those who had long lived in this land. Alongside them, however, people from other localities across the country migrated here to make a living, and northerners also came to settle - thereby advancing policies of rule and the assimilation of the Vietnamese. Along with the struggle for independence, resistance to assimilation unfolded with equal intensity on the land of ancient Hanoi. Through a thousand years under northern domination, many Han elements were continuously introduced but were gradually Vietnamized; the people of this area nonetheless preserved distinctive traits of ancient Vietnamese communities - the builders of Red River civilization. This became the essential foundation that, once independence was regained, enabled the residents of Thang Long - Hanoi to strongly develop the values of Red River civilization and thereby create the Thang Long cultural tradition and the Dai Viet civilization.

 

The Eastern Gate of the Citadel of Thang Long

 

From 1010, when Ly Cong Uan chose this land as the capital with the aspiration that it would become an enduring imperial center, the forces of convergence and crystallization became clearly visible in the community of Thang Long - Hanoi. The diverse and rich culture of Thang Long was forged from the labor, talent, and creativity not only of Hanoi’s indigenous inhabitants but also of people from other regions who, under different circumstances, gathered in this imperial city.

 

During the Nguyen dynasty, following Minh Mang’s administrative reforms of 1831, Thang Long was renamed Hanoi and became a province. In practice, however, Hanoi remained one of the country’s leading centers of economy, culture, and education. The values of Thang Long - Hanoi culture became deeply rooted in the consciousness of local residents, shaping distinctive traits in the character of Thang Long - Hanoi people - long a source of pride not only for Hanoians but also for people across the country.

 

After the French colonial invasion, and by 1888, Hanoi officially became a French concession. As a concession, the French had the basis to plan and redesign Hanoi to serve their purposes. They built European quarters featuring distinctive French architecture alongside the old quarters of Hanoi’s earlier inhabitants. During the period of French rule, Hanoi became the capital of French Indochina[1] (comprising five territories: Tonkin, Annam, Cochinchina, Laos, and Cambodia). For that reason, the city continued to exert a strong pull on people from different regions who came to live and work here. Across historical periods, Hanoi’s population density was among the highest in the country. In 1945, after the success of the August Revolution, Hanoi became the capital of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, and its resident community continued to grow. With its new position, the people of Hanoi continued to contribute to the struggle to defend national independence and to the building of a socialist country.

 

 (To be continued…)

--------------------------------------

[1] French Indochina comprised five territories: Tonkin, Annam, Cochinchina, Laos, and Cambodia. The Office of the Governor-General of Indochina was located in Hanoi.