Vietnam is a populous country.
Vietnam -LRB- ˌ ; -LSB- viət naːm -RSB- -RRB- , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam -LRB- SRV ; , is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia .. Indochina Peninsula. Indochina. Southeast Asia. Southeast Asia. With an estimated 92.7 million inhabitants , it is the world 's 14th-most-populous country , and the ninth-most-populous Asian country .. 14th-most-populous country. List of countries and dependencies by population. ninth-most-populous Asian country. List of Asian countries by population. Vietnam is bordered by China to the north , Laos to the northwest , Cambodia to the southwest , Thailand across the Gulf of Thailand to the southwest , and the Philippines , Malaysia and Indonesia across the South China Sea to the east and southeast .. China. China. Laos. Laos. Cambodia. Cambodia. Thailand. Thailand. Gulf of Thailand. Gulf of Thailand. Philippines. Philippines. Malaysia. Malaysia. Indonesia. Indonesia. South China Sea. South China Sea. Its capital city has been Hanoi since the reunification of North and South Vietnam in 1976 , with Ho Chi Minh City as a historical city as well .. Hanoi. Hanoi. Ho Chi Minh City. Ho Chi Minh City. capital city. capital city. North. North Vietnam. South Vietnam. South Vietnam. The northern part of Vietnam was part of Imperial China for over a millennium , from 111 BC to AD 939 .. China. China. Imperial China. Imperial China. An independent Vietnamese state was formed in 939 , following a Vietnamese victory in the Battle of Bach Đang River .. Vietnamese. Vietnamese people. Battle of Bach Đang River. Battle of Bach Đang River ( 938 ). Successive Vietnamese imperial dynasties flourished as the nation expanded geographically and politically into Southeast Asia , until the Indochina Peninsula was colonized by the French in the mid-19th century .. Vietnamese. Vietnamese people. Indochina Peninsula. Indochina. Southeast Asia. Southeast Asia. Vietnamese imperial dynasties. List of Vietnamese monarchs. colonized by the French. French Indochina. Following a Japanese occupation in the 1940s , the Vietnamese fought French rule in the First Indochina War , eventually expelling the French in 1954 .. Vietnamese. Vietnamese people. Japanese occupation. Japanese invasion of French Indochina. First Indochina War. First Indochina War. Thereafter , Vietnam was divided politically into two rival states , North Vietnam -LRB- officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam -RRB- , and South Vietnam -LRB- officially the Republic of Vietnam -RRB- .. North. North Vietnam. South Vietnam. South Vietnam. North Vietnam. North Vietnam. Conflict between the two sides intensified in what is known as the Vietnam War .. Vietnam War. Vietnam War. The war ended with a North Vietnamese victory in 1975 .. Vietnamese. Vietnamese people. North. North Vietnam. Vietnam was then unified under a communist government but remained impoverished and politically isolated .. communist. Communism. In 1986 , the government initiated a series of economic and political reforms which began Vietnam 's path towards integration into the world economy .. economic and political reforms. Doi Moi. By 2000 , it had established diplomatic relations with all nations .. Since 2000 , Vietnam 's economic growth rate has been among the highest in the world , and , in 2011 , it had the highest Global Growth Generators Index among 11 major economies .. Global Growth Generators Index. 3G ( countries ). Its successful economic reforms resulted in its joining the World Trade Organization in 2007 .. World Trade Organization. World Trade Organization. It is also a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie .. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation. Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie. Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie. Vietnam remains one of the world 's four remaining one-party socialist states officially espousing communism .. one-party. One-party state. socialist. socialist state. socialist states officially espousing communism. socialist state