Đà Nẵng is the largest city in central Vietnam and one of the country’s most important ports. Ringed by mountains on one side and the East Sea on the other, Đà Nẵng has numerous sites of natural beauty and historical interest. Da Nang is the third largest city in Vietnam, after Ho Chi Minh City and Ha Noi[citation needed], with an area of 1,255.53 km² and a population of 887,069 (figure in 2009) and is estimated to reach one million inhabitants in 2014 [1] Da Nang borders Thua Thien-Hue Province to the north (with Hai Van Pass as the border), Quang Nam Province to the south and west, Bien Dong to the east. It has several white sand beaches with seaside resorts.
According to Hỏi đáp về Quảng Nam-Đà Nẵng (Questions and Answers about Quảng Nam-Đà Nẵng) by Bùi Minh Quốc, Đà Nẵng's name originated from the Cham word Da Nak, meaning "opening of a big river".
[edit] History
The city’s origins date back to the ancient Champa Kingdom, established by Indonesian settlers in 192 AD. At its peak, the Cham’s sphere of influence stretched from Huế to Vũng Tàu. The expansion of the Vietnamese led to the decline and fall of the Cham by the mid-15th century.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, French and Spanish traders and missionaries made landfall at Hội An, just south of Đà Nẵng. By the 19th century, Đà Nẵng had superseded Hội An as the most important seaport in the central region. The presence of the French in the 19th and early 20th centuries and the Americans in the 1960s, led to continued growth of Đà Nẵng, and it is now Vietnam’s fourth largest city.
In 1847, French vessels dispatched by Admiral Cécille bombarded Đà Nẵng, ostensibly on the grounds of persecution of Roman Catholic missionaries.
In August 1858, French troops landed under the orders of Napoleon III, beginning colonial occupation in the area. As a concession, it was renamed Tourane in French. It came to be considered one of Indochina’s five major cities, among Hanoi, Saigon-Cholon, Haiphong, and Huế. During the Vietnam War, the city was home to a major air base that was used by both the South Vietnamese and United States air forces. The population has since increased to over 1 million inhabitants. Refugees from the city of Huế have contributed to the rise since the aftermath of Huế in 1968.
The final U.S. ground combat operations in Vietnam ceased on 13 August 1972, when a residual force of the 196th Light Infantry Brigade stood down in Đà Nẵng. B Battery 3rd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment fired the final U.S. artillery round and the 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment finished their final patrols. This residual force was known as "Operation Gimlet".
Before 1997, the city was part of Quảng Nam-Đà Nẵng province. On January 1, 1997, Đà Nẵng was separated from Quảng Nam province to become the fourth municipality of Vietnam.
