Đông Ba Market () is a traditional market in

Huế Huế (formerly Thừa Thiên Huế province) is the southernmost coastal Municipalities of Vietnam, city in the North Central Coast region, the Central Vietnam, Central of Vietnam, approximately in the center of the country. It borders Quảng ...

, Vietnam. With a history of more than a hundred years, the market became a landmark of the former capital city of Vietnam.

Location

Đông Ba Market is located on the

Perfume River Perfume (, ) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. Perfumes can be de ...

's north bank, near the southeast corner of the citadel. It has a total area of .

History

According to ''

Đại Nam nhất thống chí The ''Đại Nam nhất thống chí'' (chữ Hán: 大南一統志, 1882) is the official geographical record of Vietnam's Nguyễn dynasty written in chữ Hán ( , ) are the Chinese characters that were used to write Literary Chinese in Vi ...

'', under the reign of Emperor

Gia Long Gia Long (Chữ Hán, Chữ hán: 嘉隆) ( (''Hanoi, North''), (''Ho Chi Minh City, South''); 8 February 1762 – 3 February 1820), born Nguyễn Phúc Ánh (阮福暎) or Nguyễn Ánh (阮暎), was the founding emperor of the Nguyễn dynas ...

, the market was located right outside of the Eastern Gate of the citadel. A roofed house called ''đình Quy Giả'' was built at the center of the market so the market itself was also known as "Quy Giả market". In 1885, the market was completely burnt down in the Battle of the Huế Imperial City. It was not until 1887 did Emperor

Đồng Khánh Đồng Khánh (, vi-hantu, 同慶, lit. "collective celebration"; 19 February 1864 – 28 January 1889), born Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Kỷ (阮福膺祺) or Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Đường (阮福膺禟), also known as Chánh Mông (正蒙), was the ...

have the market rebuilt. In 1899, as part of Huế city's urban planning, Emperor

Thành Thái Thành Thái (, vi-hantu, 成泰; 14 March 1879 – 20 March 1954) born Nguyễn Phúc Bửu Lân (阮福寶嶙), was the son of Vietnamese Emperor Dục Đức and Empress Dowager Từ Minh. He reigned as emperor for 18 years, from 1889 t ...

ordered the reconstruction of the market at its current location, then situated on Truong Tien Road. The new market had 48 roofed stalls. A well was also built inside the market for water supply. The site of the old market outside of the Eastern Gate was later occupied by a Franco-Vietnamese school, which Nguyễn Tất Thành used to attend. In 1967, Đông Ba Market was demolished and rebuilt. However, the incomplete construction site was targeted in the

Tet Offensive The Tet Offensive was a major escalation and one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War. The Viet Cong (VC) and North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) launched a surprise attack on 30 January 1968 against the forces of ...

. Temporary renovations have been done afterward to keep the market operating. A major renovation of the market did not take place until 1987.

Commerce

Đông Ba Market is a popular local market and is, therefore, usually crowded. It sells a variety of goods, from fresh produce and fish to clothing, toys, shoes, and handicrafts. The market is busiest in the early morning, even though it is open all day.

References

Retail markets in Vietnam Buildings and structures in Huế {{DEFAULTSORT:Đông Ba Market