Vietnam Vietnam, a nation located along the eastern coast of mainland Southeast Asia, has had a turbulent history. Emerging as a distinct civilization during the first millennium BC, Vietnam was conquered by China during the early Han dynasty and subjected to 1,000 years of foreign rule. In AD 939 the Vietnamese restored their independence and gradually expanded southward along the coast from their historic homeland in the YUAN (Red) River valley. In the 19th century Vietnam was conquered on...