Three quarters of Viet Nam's territory consists of mountains and hills. Viet Nam is divided into four distinct mountainous zones.

Viet Nam has a variety of mineral resources. Located beneath the subsoil are precious stones, coal and valuable minerals such as tin, zinc, silver, gold and antimony. Viet Nam also has large deposits of oil and gas on its offshore islands and on the mainland.

At the beginning of the Bronze Age, the Viet tribe groups had settled down in the North and in the north of Central Viet Nam. There were about 15 groups of Lac Viet tribesmen living mainly in the northern highland and delta and a dozen Au Viet groups of tribesmen living in Viet Bac, the northern region of old Viet Nam.

Prehistoric Era of Viet Nam include: Pre-Paleolithic Age and Neolithic Age.

In the 3rd century BC, the Han people who lived in the Yellow River basin unified China, merging the various ethnic groups who lived in southern China to the south of the Yangtze River into a centralized empire. This feudal empire soon spread southwards.

The grim resistance by the population against Chinese imperialist domination, which persisted century after century, time and again, broke out in the form of armed insurrection.

Ngo King (939-944) Later Ngo King (950-965)

Name of ethnic group: Ba Na (To Lo, Krem, Con Kde, Ala Cong, Krang). Population: 174,456 people (Year 1999). Locality: Kon Tum Province and the western parts of Binh Dinh and Phu Yen Provinces.

Name of ethnic group: Bo Y (Chung Cha, Trong Gia, Tu Di, Tu Din and Pu Na). Population: 1,864 people (Year 1999). Locality: Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Ha Giang and Tuyen Quang provinces.