Mekong Delta
Delta · 3,597 km²
Mekong Delta is a delta in Asia, covering an estimated 3,597 km².
The Mekong Delta, also known as the South-western Region (Vietnamese: Tây Nam Bộ) or the Western Region (Vietnamese: Miền Tây), is the region in southwestern Vietnam where the Mekong River approaches and empties into the sea through a network of distributaries. The Mekong delta region encompasses a large portion of south-western Vietnam, of an area of over 40,500 km2 (15,600 sq mi). The size of the area covered by water depends on the season. Its wet coastal geography makes it an important source of agriculture and aquaculture for the country.
The delta has been occupied as early as the 4th century BC. As a product of Khmer, Vietnamese, Chinese, and French settlement in the region, the delta and its waterways have numerous names, including the Khmer term Bassac to refer to the lower basin and the largest river branch flowing through it. After the 1954 Geneva Conference, Vietnam was split into two with South Vietnam inheriting the southern half of Vietnam becoming the State of Vietnam and eventually the Republic of Vietnam, also known as South Vietnam, with their own administrative states (see Category:Provinces of South Vietnam).
Adapted from Wikipedia: Mekong Delta (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Feature class
- Delta
- Mapped extent
- 3,597 km²
- Size rank
- #141 of 231 landforms
- Region
- Asia
- Coordinates
- 9.9184°, 106.7916°
- Summits:
- Phnom Aural (1,813 m), Ngoc Linh (2,598 m), Gunung Tahan (2,190 m)
- Ranges:
- Dângrêk Range (Asia), Barisan Mountains (Asia)
- Settlements:
- Tra Vinh (50 km), Vung Tau (58 km), Truc Giang (58 km)
More about Mekong Delta
Geography
The Mekong Delta, as a region, lies immediately to the west of Ho Chi Minh City (also called Saigon by locals), roughly forming a triangle stretching from Mỹ Tho in the east to Châu Đốc and Hà Tiên in the northwest, down to Cà Mau at the southernmost tip of Vietnam, and including the island of Phú Quốc.
The Mekong Delta region of Vietnam displays a variety of physical landscapes, but is dominated by flat flood plains in the south, with a few hills in the north and west. This diversity of terrain was largely the product of tectonic uplift and folding brought about by the collision of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates about 50 million years ago.
History
The Mekong Delta was likely inhabited long since prehistory with the civilizations of Funan and Chenla maintaining a presence in the Mekong Delta for centuries. Archaeological discoveries at Óc Eo and other Funanese sites show that the area was an important part of the Funan civilization, bustling with trading ports and canals as early as in the first century AD and extensive human settlement in the region may have gone as far back as the 4th century BC. While there is no clear consensus on the ethnic makeup of those living in the region during the Funan, archaeologists suggest that they may have had connections to Austroasiatic people. Khmer inscriptions appear during the Chenla period.
Angkor Borei is a site in the Mekong Delta that existed between 400 BC-500 AD.
Economy
The Mekong Delta is by far Vietnam's most productive region in agriculture and aquaculture, while its role in industry and foreign direct investment (FDI) is much smaller.
2.6 million ha in the Mekong Delta are used for agriculture, which is one fourth of Vietnam's total. Due to its mostly flat terrain and few forested areas (except for Cà Mau province), almost two-thirds (64.5%) of the region's land can be used for agriculture. The share of agricultural land exceeds 80% in Cần Thơ and neighbouring Hậu Giang province and is below 50% only in Cà Mau province (32%) and Bạc Liêu province (42%). The region's land used for growing cereals makes up 47% of the national total, more than northern and central Vietnam combined. Most of this is used for rice cultivation.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Mekong Delta (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Mekong Delta: Key Facts
| Area | 40,577 km² |
|---|---|
| On | Mekong River |
Facts from Wikidata Q1052867 (CC0).