Ho Chi Minh City: History, Former Names & Timeline

Port on the edge of the Mekong delta, capital of French Cochinchina and of the Republic of Vietnam.

Map showing Ho Chi Minh City in 1945 — Border map for 1945. See the world in 1945.

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Former names of Ho Chi Minh City

From	Name	Note
1698	Sài Gòn
1976	Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh

Timeline of Ho Chi Minh City

Year	Event
1698	The Nguyễn lords set up Gia Định prefecture
1859	French forces take Saigon
1955	Becomes capital of the Republic of Vietnam
1975	The fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War

Who ruled Ho Chi Minh City

Derived from the border maps; each row runs until the next recorded border change.

Period	State
500 BC–401 BC	Unclaimed / no data
400 BC–324 BC	Austro-Asiatic rice cultures
323 BC–201 BC	Unclaimed / no data
200 BC–101 BC	Mon-Khmer
100 BC–499	Unclaimed / no data
500–699	Funan
700–799	Champa
800–899	Chen-La
900–1491	Khmer Empire
1492–1782	Cambodia
1783–1814	Đại Việt
1815–1899	Annam
1900–1919	French Indochina
1920–1959	Cochin China
1960–today	Vietnam

Famous people of Ho Chi Minh City

Lived	Person
1890 – 1969	Ho Chi Minh	Vietnamese revolutionary leader

Nearby cities

Angkor · about 425 km

Questions about Ho Chi Minh City

What was Ho Chi Minh City called in the past?

Ho Chi Minh City has been known as Sài Gòn (from 1698); Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh (from 1976). Its present name dates from 1976.

Which states have ruled Ho Chi Minh City?

On the historical border maps from 500 BC to today, Ho Chi Minh City lies within 12 different states: Austro-Asiatic rice cultures, Mon-Khmer, Funan, Champa, Chen-La, Khmer Empire, Cambodia, Đại Việt, Annam, French Indochina and others.

What are the key dates in the history of Ho Chi Minh City?

1698: The Nguyễn lords set up Gia Định prefecture. 1859: French forces take Saigon. 1955: Becomes capital of the Republic of Vietnam. 1975: The fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War.

Which famous people are connected with Ho Chi Minh City?

Ho Chi Minh (vietnamese revolutionary leader, 1890 – 1969).

Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.