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Vietnam

Vietnam is defined as a southeast Asian country on the South China Sea.

(noun)

An example of Vietnam is the country east of Cambodia.

See Vietnam in Webster's New World College Dictionary

country on the E coast of the Indochinese Peninsula: ruled by the French from mid-19th cent. until 1945; partitioned into two republics ( & ) in 1954; war between the two republics (see Vietnam War) ended with the defeat of South Vietnam & reunification of the two republics (1976) as the : 127,246 sq mi (329,566 sq km); pop. 64,412,000; cap. Hanoi

Origin: Vietnamese Viet, name of people + nam, south

See Vietnam in American Heritage Dictionary 4

A country of southeast Asia in eastern Indochina on the South China Sea. It comprises the historical regions of Tonkin, Annam, and Cochin China, much of which was under Chinese control from the 3rd century B.C. to the 15th century A.D. Portuguese traders arrived in 1535, and the area came under French influence in the mid-19th century as part of French Indochina. After the fall of the French garrison at Dien Bien Phu in 1954, it was partitioned into North Vietnam and South Vietnam. The Vietnam War (1954-1975) grew out of the attempt by Communist Vietcong guerrillas backed by North Vietnam to overthrow the U.S.-supported regime in the south. The South Vietnamese government collapsed in 1975, and the country was reunited in 1976. Hanoi is the capital and Ho Chi Minh City the largest city. Population: 85,300,000.

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