77 Hanoi Facts: History, Traditions, Tourism, And Much More

Hanoi is the center of Vietnamese culture in Southeast Asia.

Vietnamese food, the stories, and the traditions all come together in this bustling city. The capital of Vietnam boasts beautiful, ancient buildings and life bustling in every corner.

Hanoi is Vietnam's most visited city, welcoming millions of tourists every year. The Hanoi scene is full of beautiful sights, each with an amazing history behind them. The city celebrated its 1000th birthday in 2010, making it one of the oldest cities in the world. The people of Hanoi are known for being extremely hospitable.

Did you know that Hanoi almost has more motorcycles than the number of people living in the city?

Find out why that's the case and more with this extensive list of curated Hanoi facts!

Facts About Hanoi

Here are a few Hanoi facts and tidbits about Vietnam's capital that might surprise you!

The name 'Hanoi' literally means the 'city of lakes' or 'city inside rivers'.

Hanoi is called the city of tube houses. The city is dotted with narrow, tall houses in different colors.

The increasing population in central Hanoi could be a reason for building such narrow houses.

Water puppetry is a popular form of entertainment in Hanoi. The shows were originally performed in rice paddies.

Hanoi is where you can try food from all over Vietnam.

Traffic in Hanoi city is brutal. Winding through the busy, crowded streets is a challenge for most people.

Due to how narrow and crowded the streets are in Hanoi, most people opt for a motorcycle. There are about 5 million motorbikes in the city.

European style, particularly French, architecture is a common sight in Vietnam. Though this may not be surprising as the French had once occupied Vietnam.

Hanoi is home to the world's largest mosaic mural.

Ho Kiem Lake is not only named after a turtle myth, but it also has actual turtles in the water! However, they may be hard to spot because of the color of the water.

The Long Bien Bridge in Hanoi was designed by Alexandre Gustave Eiffel. Recognize the name? He also designed the Eiffel Tower, despite having an intense fear of heights!

Hanoi's History

Hanoi is an extremely old city and has a rich history that still bleeds through the ancient buildings and structures dotted throughout.

The ancient Hanoi region was settled in prehistoric times, during the late Palaeolithic and early Mesolithic ages.

Archaeologists in the early 1970s discovered traces of human presence dating up to 20,000 years ago.

The relics that were discovered were dubbed as that of the Sơn Vi culture.

The early-mid Holocene transgression caused low-lying areas around the coast to be flooded. Until about 4000 years ago, there had been little sign of habitation in the Hanoi region.

Around the third century BC, the capital of Âu Lạc was established by King An Dương or Thục Phán. The area covered what is now modern-day Guangxi and northern Vietnam.

A fortified settlement was constructed in Âu Lạc, known as Cổ Loa. It became the first political center of Vietnamese civilization in the pre-Sinitic era.

In 170 9BC, the kingdom was taken over by Nanyue, an ancient kingdom ruled by Chinese monarchs. This marked the beginning of Chinese rule in Vietnam.

Nanyue was conquered by the Han Dynasty in 111 BC. The kingdom was demarcated into seven commanders of the south, three of which make up part of modern-day Vietnam.

In 40 AD, the first Vietnamese independence movement took place, headed by Trưng Trắc and Trưng Nhị, two sisters who have now become national heroines in Vietnamese history.

Their rebellion began at the Red River Delta but spread out to the south and north, gaining support from 60 towns and settlements.

After two years of the uprising, General Ma Yuan, along with 32,000 men, was commissioned to stop the rebels. Trưng Trắc and Trưng Nhị were beheaded, and their heads were sent to the Han court.

Many more uprisings followed, and in the eighth century, Tang Dynasty Viceroy Zhang Boyi built a fortified settlement called Luocheng, which later came to be known as Jincheng.

In 863, Jincheng was taken over by Nanzhao rebels but they were driven out by General Gao Pian and the city was renamed Daluocheng or Đại La. Đại La became an important center for trade.

By the tenth century, Muslim traders identify what would become modern Hanoi as Luqin or Loukin.

In 1010, King Lý Thái Tổ moved the capital city to the site of the Đại La Citadel and renamed it Thăng Long (Soaring Dragon) as he accounted seeing a dragon on the Red River.

Thăng Long later became Đông Đô or the Eastern Capital.

In 1408, Đông Đô's name was changed to Dongguan by the Ming Dynasty who had taken over Vietnam. After two decades, the Chinese were overthrown by Lê Lợi, a Vietnamese rebel leader, and the city was renamed Đông Quan Đông Kinh or Tonkin.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the Nguyễn dynasty was established and the capital was moved to Huế.

In 1831, Huế was renamed Hà Nội (between rivers) and later began to be known as Hanoi.

French rule in Vietnam began when Hanoi was occupied in 1873. Hanoi became the capital of French Indochina or the Indochinese Union.

Hanoi was liberated in 1945 by the Imperial Japanese but was reoccupied by the French in 1946. The division of Vietnam into the north and south followed, and after a two-decade-long war, the two sides were finally reunited in 1976.

Hanoi's Culture And Traditions

Find out about Hanoi's most important festival, and what they do to celebrate it with these Hanoi facts about the area's culture and traditions. Many things you see in Hanoi are truly unique to Vietnam.

The people of Vietnam take great importance in worshipping their ancestors. In every home, there is a small altar dedicated to those of the family who have long passed on.

Vietnamese families worship dance sisters and pray for guidance and good fortune. Offerings of fruits, food, and candles are placed in front of the altars before prayer.

On special occasions, and especially during Tet (the Lunar New Year) paper offerings called 'votive papers' are burnt.

The originally ancient Chinese tradition originated from the practice of widow burning, which was banned after the onset of Confucianism. Instead, people started burning paper offerings.

These paper offerings, typically made from rice paper or bamboo paper, are believed to reach the dead in the afterlife.

They are usually made to symbolize objects such as money, cars, and even houses.

Since thousands of papers are burned every year, many have speculated about the environmental impact the tradition might have. It has been suggested to do away with the practice, but any long-standing tradition is hard to get rid of.

Animist beliefs are popular in Vietnam. Inanimate objects such as celestial bodies and natural entities, such as mountains and rivers, are worshipped in Vietnam.

These animist beliefs are more common among ethnic communities in the highlands of Vietnam. The communities regularly perform rituals to secure a good harvest and plantation.

Offerings of sticky rice, fruits, wine, and meat are given to appease the forest gods.

Places of worship called pagodas ('chuas' in Vietnamese) are dotted across the landscape of Vietnam. The structures are regularly visited to pray for health, peace, and well-being.

Pagodas are different from Buddhist temples. The latter is strictly meant for Buddhists while pagodas are open to everybody.

The Lunar New Year or Spring Festival is the most important holiday in the Vietnamese calendar.

It takes place for at least three days starting from the first day of the first month according to the lunar calendar.

Tet almost always falls on the same day as the Lunar New Year in Hong Kong and China.

Tet Nguyen Dan, or Tet for short, means 'feast for the first morning'.

The holiday is celebrated by cleaning the house and cooking special food such as dried young bamboo soup, sticky rice, and Bahn tet (a kind of sweetened rice cake with mung bean and pork filling).

Tet is a happy day when families can get together and look forward to the New Year.

Rickshaws are a common sight in Hanoi. They became a mainstream mode of transportation during the French colonial times. Nowadays, they are a popular tourist attraction.

Things To Do In Hanoi

Here are some places you can't afford to miss while visiting Hanoi.

The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is the resting place of the revolutionary leader and former President.

The building is located in Ba Dinh Square and is open to the public.

The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is 70 ft (21 m) tall and has a wide plaza in front of the structure.

The Presidential Palace is another historic building to check out in Hanoi.

The palace was constructed in the early 19th century to house the governor-general of French Indochina, Auguste Henri Vildieu.

The grounds and the palace itself are strikingly European, built in a French architectural style with hints of Italian Renaissance.

The stilt house and carp ponds of the palace grounds were built by President Ho Chi Minh after he blatantly refused to stay in the structure that symbolized the French.

Consider visiting the popular lakes in Hanoi, like Ho Thien Quang Lake (Halais Lake) or Sword Lake.

Hoan Kiem Lake (Lake of the Restored Sword) or Ta Vong Lake (Sword Lake) is a freshwater lake situated in Hanoi.

The center of the lake has the Thap Rua or Turtle Tower.

According to the famous legend, Emperor Le Loi was boating on the lake when he was approached by a golden turtle god, Kim Qui. The god asked the emperor to give him his magic sword, Heaven's Will.

The sword had been given to Le Loi by the Dragon King and the former concluded that the god had come to reclaim his sword. Hence, the name of Hoan Kiem Lake.

The Vietnam National Museum of History, acquired by the Vietnamese government in 1958, has many stories to tell.

The five sections of the museum house millennia of Vietnamese art and history.

Don't miss out on seeing the Hanoi Ceramic Mosaic Mural, a 2.5 mi (4 km) long mural on the walls along the Red River.

Try out popular Vietnamese food like bun cha, Banh duc, and spring rolls.

The Mekong Delta region, Vietnam's most important fishing grounds, are also home to the famous floating markets. The origin of the floating markets can be dated to the Nguyen Dynasty.

Other than the fact that the traders are on boats, the floating markets are very much like any other lively market, with goods and conversation being exchanged non-stop among the hordes of boats.