Rinan (; ), also rendered as Jih-nan, was the southernmost commandery of the Chinese

Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

. It was located in the central area of modern-day

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

between Quảng Bình and Bình Định provinces. It was administered by a local

mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

under direction from the capital of

Jiaozhi Jiaozhi (standard Chinese, pinyin: ''Jiāozhǐ''), or , was a historical region ruled by various Chinese dynasties, corresponding to present-day northern Vietnam. The kingdom of Nanyue (204–111 BC) set up the Jiaozhi Commandery (; , ch� ...

at Leilou or Longbian (after 200) near modern

Hanoi Hanoi ( ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Vietnam, second-most populous city of Vietnam. The name "Hanoi" translates to "inside the river" (Hanoi is bordered by the Red River (Asia), Red and Black River (Asia), Black Riv ...

. It was part of the territories briefly occupied by Trưng Trắc's rebellion forces in AD 39. The concept of "Rinan" (lit "South of the Sun", referring to the Southern Hemisphere) was originally astronomical: above the

Tropic of Cancer The Tropic of Cancer, also known as the Northern Tropic, is the Earth's northernmost circle of latitude where the Sun can be seen directly overhead. This occurs on the June solstice, when the Northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun ...

, the Chinese always faced south during religious ceremonies concerning the sun. In his ''

Records of the Grand Historian The ''Shiji'', also known as ''Records of the Grand Historian'' or ''The Grand Scribe's Records'', is a Chinese historical text that is the first of the Twenty-Four Histories of imperial China. It was written during the late 2nd and early 1st ce ...

'',

Sima Qian Sima Qian () was a Chinese historian during the early Han dynasty. He is considered the father of Chinese historiography for the ''Shiji'' (sometimes translated into English as ''Records of the Grand Historian''), a general history of China cov ...

claimed the

Qin dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ) was the first Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China. It is named for its progenitor state of Qin, a fief of the confederal Zhou dynasty (256 BC). Beginning in 230 BC, the Qin under King Ying Zheng enga ...

had expanded so far as ''Rinan'', where the houses faced north instead of south.Trương Thái Du.

.GoogleBook
archived copy
/ref> The Han dynasty, Han claimed this conceptual region as early as 111 BC upon their conquest of

Nanyue Nanyue ( zh, c=南越 or 南粵, p=Nányuè, cy=, j=Naam4 Jyut6, l=Southern Yue, , ), was an ancient kingdom founded in 204 BC by the Chinese general Zhao Tuo, whose family (known in Vietnamese as the Triệu dynasty) continued to rule until ...

but did not administer an actual district under the name until 48 BC. Under the

Western Han The Han dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) and a warring int ...

, it was recorded as having 14,000 households or about 69,000 people. Several embassies from

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

('' Da Qin'') during the 1st and 2nd centuries – including one from

Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus ( ; ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoicism, Stoic philosopher. He was a member of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty, the last of the rulers later known as the Five Good Emperors ...

in AD 166are recorded as having come via Rinan, presumably by sea via

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

.Hill, John E. ''Through the Jade Gate to Rome: A Study of the Silk Routes during the Later Han Dynasty, 1st to 2nd Centuries CE'', pp. 27 ff. BookSurge (Charleston), 2009. . In AD 264, during the division of Jiaozhou by the Emperor Jing of Wu, Rinan was placed under the new Jiaozhou.Vu Dinh Dinh.
Cochinchina: Reassessment of the Origin and Use of a Westernized Place Name
. ''The Writers Post'', vol. 9, Jan & Jul 2007.

Counties

* Zhuwu * Bijing * Xijuan * Lurong (Lô Dung) * Xianglin (

Tượng Lâm Tượng Lâm (Vietnamese chữ Hán pronunciation of Chinese: 象林 Xianglin) was an area in what is today the central Vietnam modern-day Thừa Thiên Huế province which rebelled against the Han dynasty’s rule during the second Chinese domi ...

)

References

Ancient Vietnam Han dynasty Jin dynasty (266–420) Former commanderies of China in Vietnam {{vietnam-stub

Counties

See also

References