Annam
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Annam (literal meaning "Pacified South") is a region of central Vietnam that fell under Chinese rule in 111 BC as Annan. Known locally as Trung Bộ, meaning "Central Boundary", it was formerly a kingdom with its capital at Huế. It had been seized by the French by 1884.
The other two Vietnamese regions that were first under the Chinese rule, then the French after the Sino-French War, are Cochinchina and Tonkin.
The earliest printed book of Vietnam was published in 1335: the 20-volume An Nam Chí Lược (The Concise Records of Annam), written by Lꠔắc (黎崱 li4 ce4).
The name gave rise to the Annamitic Chain (la Cha Annamitique), also translated as Cordillera, Ridge, Mountains, a 1100-km with a height of 2958 metres, that divides Vietnam and Laos.
References
- Adapted from the Wikipedia article, "Annam" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annam, used under the GNU Free Documentation License
