Phan Rang–Tháp Chàm
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Phan Rang-Tháp Chàm Thành phố Phan Rang - Tháp Chàm Panduranga |
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|---|---|
 Phan Rang-Tháp Chàm
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| Coordinates: 11°34′N 108°59′E / 11.567°N 108.983°E | |
| Country |
 Vietnam
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| Province | Ninh Thuận |
| Area | |
| • Total | 78.9 km2 (30.5 sq mi) |
| Population (2015) | |
| • Total | 166,871 |
| • Density | 2,115/km2 (5,480/sq mi) |
Phan Rang–Tháp Chàm, also called Panduranga, is a new city in Vietnam and the capital of Ninh Thuận Province. The community has a population of 161,000 (2004), of which 91,000 (2004) live in the main city. During the Vietnam War, Phan Rang was the site the United States Air Force's Phan Rang Air Base. The airfield had been established by the Japanese in World War II and was later used by the French.
The ancient Panduranga, the capital of the southernmost of city-states of Champa was located where Phan Rang is now. The town of Phan Rang was established in 1917 by edict of Emperor Khải Định and remained the provincial capital of Ninh Thuận Province until 1976, when the province merged with Bình Thuận Province to form Thuận Hải Province. The town was divided into Phan Rang in the east, which became part of Ninh Hải District and Tháp Chàm in the west, which became part of An Son district. The two were again combined in 1992 to become Phan Rang–Tháp Chàm, the capital of Ninh Thuận Province, achieving city status in 2007.
Tháp Chàm and Pham Rang district has become a centre for the maintenance of Cham culture. Much of the district is occupied by Cham people where they have rice paddies, orchards of grapes and peaches, flocks of goats and Brahman cattle. Their towers (the 'Thap') are beautiful memorials to their kings and queens. There are several Cham sites with dilapidated towers along the central coast of Vietnam and major sites in Mỹ Sơn and Nha Trang.
However, there are two sites in the Tháp Chàm - Phan Rang district being maintained and culturally active. Two kilometers west of the Tháp Chàm Railway Station, there is excellent hilltop Cham tower complex dedicated to the king Po Klong Garai, the last reigning king; his likeness is depicted on a lingam in the sanctuary of the central tower. A second tower for the king Po Re Do is located about 20 km south west of Tháp Chàm, via Phu Quy to Phouc Hou and the village Hau Sanh; this tower is undergoing extensive renovation (July 2012).
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