Hoi An
|
Hoi An Hội An 會安 |
||
|---|---|---|
| City | ||
A view of the old town - UNESCO World Heritage Site
|
||
|
||
 Hoi An
|
||
| Coordinates: 15°53′N 108°20′E / 15.883°N 108.333°ECoordinates: 15°53′N 108°20′E / 15.883°N 108.333°E | ||
| Country |
 Vietnam
|
|
| Province | Quảng Nam Province | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 60 km2 (20 sq mi) | |
| Population | ||
| • Total | 121,719 | |
| • Density | 2,000/km2 (5,300/sq mi) | |
| Hội An | |
|---|---|
| Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List | |
 |
|
| Location | Vietnam |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | ii, v |
| Reference | 948 |
| UNESCO region | Asia-Pacific |
| Inscription history | |
| Inscription | 1999 (23rd Session) |
Hội An (
listen), formerly known as Fai-Fo or Faifoo, is a city with a population of approximately 120,000 in Vietnam's Quảng Nam Province and noted since 1999 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Old Town Hội An, the city's historic district, is recognized as an exceptionally well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century, its buildings and street plan reflecting a unique blend of influences, indigenous and foreign. Prominent in the city's old town, is its covered "Japanese Bridge," dating to the 16th-17th century.
Hội An () translates as "peaceful meeting place". In English and other European languages, the town was known historically as Faifo. This word is derived from Vietnamese Hội An phố (the town of Hội An), which was shortened to "Hoi-pho", and then to "Faifo".
Between the seventh and 10th centuries, the Cham (people of Champa) controlled the strategic spice trade and with this came tremendous wealth. The former harbour town of the Cham at the estuary of the Thu Bồn River was an important Vietnamese trading centre in the 16th and 17th centuries, where Chinese from various provinces as well as Portuguese, Japanese, Dutch and Indians settled. During this period of the China trade, the town was called Hai Pho (Seaside Town) in Vietnamese.
Originally, Hai Pho was a divided town with the Japanese settlement across the "Japanese Bridge" (16th-17th century). The bridge (Chùa cầu) is a unique covered structure built by the Japanese, the only known covered bridge with a Buddhist temple attached to one side.
...
Wikipedia