♦ Dr. Nguyen Quang Anh

♦ Dr. Le Thi Thu Huong

The present-day landscape of Hanoi is the result of successive administrative reconfigurations, most notably those occurring throughout the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century

Before 1954:

thuongAccording to the book Vietnam through the ages (Đất nước Việt Nam qua các đời) by Đào Duy Anh, during the Hán dynasty, the expanded area of Hanoi belonged to the districts of Mê Linh, Chu Diên, and part of Liên Lâu district.

thuongIn the feudal period before 1831,  the imperial citadel of Thăng Long covered an area roughly equivalent to today’s 14 wards: Ba Đình, Ngọc Hà, Giảng Võ, Hoàn Kiếm, Cửa Nam, Đống Đa, Láng, Ô Chợ Dừa, Kim Liên, Văn Miếu - Quốc Tử Giám, Hai Bà Trưng, Bạch Mai, Vĩnh Tuy, and Hồng Hà. After Emperor Minh Mệnh’s administrative reform dividing the country into 29 provinces, Hanoi province was bounded by the Red River (to the north and east) and the Đáy river (to the west and south). Hanoi province included Thăng Long citadel, Hoài Đức prefecture of Sơn Tây citadel, and three prefectures of Ứng Hòa, Thường Tín, Lý Nhân of Sơn Nam citadel. Hoài Đức prefecture comprised 3 districts: Thọ Xương, Vĩnh Thuận, and Từ Liêm. Thường Tín prefecture included 3 districts: Thượng Phúc, Thanh Trì, and Phú Xuyên. Ứng Hòa prefecture included 4 districts: Sơn Minh, Hoài An, and Chương Đức. Lý Nhân prefecture included 5 districts: Nam Xang, Kim Bảng, Duy Tiên, Thanh Liêm, and Bình Lục.

thuongIn 1888, Emperor Đồng Khánh issued an edict ceding most of the land of Thọ Xương and Vĩnh Thuận districts to France as cessions. On July 18, 1888, the President of France ordered the establishment of Hanoi city. The concession lands from Thọ Xương district and Vĩnh Thuận district were merged to form Hàm Long district. In 1889, the outskirts of Hanoi were established, comprising several communes from the districts of Vĩnh Thuận, Thọ Xương, Từ Liêm, and Thanh Trì. 

thuongIn 1890, Lý Nhân prefecture was separated to form Hà Nam province, and by 1902, Cầu Đơn province was established, comprising the remaining parts of the former Hanoi province. At that time, Hanoi city was the only place bearing the name Hanoi. In 1904, Cầu Đơ province was renamed Hà Đông province. During French colonial period, Hà Đông province included Hà Đông town, the prefectures of Hoài Đức, Mỹ Đức, and Ứng Hòa; and the districts of Chương Mỹ, Đan Phượng, Thanh Trì, Thường Tín, Phú Xuyên, and Thanh Oai. 

thuongUntil 1954, Hanoi’s inner city had not expanded compared with the inner city at the end of the 19th century, when Emperor Đồng Khánh issued an edict ceding Hanoi citadel to France as cessions (1888). The suburban area (Hoàn Long administrative district) only surrounded the city to the north as far as West Lake, to the west along Tô Lịch River, and to the south as far as Hoàng Mai and Vĩnh Tuy (now part of Hoàng Mai district).

 

Map of Hanoi in 1873  (Source: National Archives Center No. 1)

From 1955 to 2008:

thuongFrom 1955 onwards, Hanoi has undergone many adjustments to its administrative boundaries, most significantly in 1961, 1978, 1991, and 2008.

 

Map of Hanoi in 1955

From 1961 to 1978: 

thuongIn 1961, according to the Resolution of the 2nd National Assembly dated April 20, 1961, Hanoi expanded for the first time by merging 18 communes, 6 hamlets and 1 township from Hà Đông province, 29 communes and townships from Bắc Ninh province, 17 communes and half of one hamlet from Vĩnh Phúc province, and 1 commune from Hưng Yên province. Subsequently, according to Government Council Decision No. 78/QĐ dated May 31, 1961, Hanoi city was divided into 4 inner-city districts: Ba Đình, Hoàn Kiếm, Hai Bà Trưng, and Đống Đa; and 4 suburban districts: Từ Liêm, Thanh Trì, Gia Lâm, and Đông Anh.

 

Map of Hanoi from 1961 to 1978

From 1979 to 1991:

thuongAt its 4th session on December 29, 1978, the 6th National Assembly issued a resolution approving the merger of the following districts, towns, communes, and townships of Hà Sơn Bình and Vĩnh Phú provinces into Hanoi. 

thuongHà Sơn Bình province included the districts Ba Vì, Phúc Thọ, Thạch Thất, Đan Phượng, Hoài Đức; the towns Sơn Tây, Hà Đông; Tiến Phương commune, Phụng Châu commune; the northern part of route no.6 within Ngọc Hòa commune and Ngọc Sơn commune of Chương Mỹ district; Hữu Hòa commune and the northern part of route no.6 within Phú Lâm commune of Thanh Oai district; the communes Liên Minh, Việt Hưng, Thanh Hưng and Đại Thanh of Thường Tín district; and the communes Tam Hiệp, Hiệp Thuận, Liên Hiệp, Cộng Hòa, Tân Hòa, Tân Phúc, and Đại Thành of Quốc Oai district. 

thuongVĩnh Phú province included Sóc Sơn district, the communes of Chu Phan, Đại Thịnh, Liên Mạc, Mê Linh, Tam Đồng, Thạch Đà, Thanh Lâm, Tiền Châu, Tiền Phong, Tiến Thắng, Tiến Thịnh, Tự Lập, Tráng Việt, Hoàng Kim, Văn Khê, Vạn Yên, Quang Minh, Kim Hoa, and Phúc Yến township in Mê Linh district.

thuongHà Đông town remained the provincial capital of Hà Sơn Bình province.   

thuongOn February 17, 1979, the Government Council issued Decision No.49-CP to adjust the boundaries of several communes and townships in the districts of Sóc Sơn, Mê Linh, Hoài Đức, Phúc Thọ, and Thanh Trì within Hanoi city. 

thuongRegarding administrative organization, in 1981, the inner-city area were officially renamed districts, with wards as the basic administrative units (equivalent to the commune level).

 

Map of Hanoi, 1979 - 1990 and 1991 - 1995

From September, 1992 to July, 2008:

thuongThe boundary adjustment in December 1978 expanded Hanoi to 14 times its size in 1955 and 3.6 times that of 1961. Amid the socio-economic difficulties of the 1980s, this vast suburban area led to dispersed investment (across both urban and rural areas) and reduced management efficiency. Therefore, according to the Resolution of National Assembly dated August 12, 1991, Hanoi’s administrative boundaries were adjusted again: Mê Linh district was transferred from Hanoi to Vĩnh Phú province; Sơn Tây town and 5 districts (Hoài Đức, Phúc Thọ, Đan Phượng, Ba Vì, and Thạch Thất) were transferred from Hanoi to Hà Tây province. As a result, from late 1991, Hanoi comprised 5 suburban districts: Từ Liêm, Thanh Trì, Gia Lâm, Đông Anh, and Sóc Sơn. 

thuongDuring the period from 1991 to before August 1, 2008, there were several adjustments to administrative boundaries, mainly involving the establishment of new districts and the expansion of the inner city.

thuongTây Hồ district was established according to Government’s Decree No. 69/CP dated October 28, 1995.

thuongThanh Xuân district was established according to Government’s Decree No. 74/CP dated November 22, 1996.

thuongCầu Giấy district was established according to Government’s Decree No. 74/CP dated November 22, 1996.

thuongLong Biên district was established according to Government’s Decree No. 132/2003/NĐ-CP dated November 6, 2003.

thuongHoàng Mai district was established according to Government’s Decree No. 132/2003/NĐ-CP dated November 6, 2003.

(To be continued…)