Cà Mau province

During the feudal era, the land of Cà Mau remained largely wild and uninhabited.^[6] According to Gia Định Thành Thông Chí by Trịnh Hoài Đức, under the reign of Emperor Gia Long, settlers had only begun to sparsely cultivate areas along rivers such as Ông Đốc, Gành Hào, and Bảy Háp.^[7] By the time of Emperor Tự Đức, the region was still primarily covered with mangrove forests, with few inhabitants due to the scarcity of fresh water and the acidic nature of the soil. In the late 17th century, General Mạc Cửu, along with a group of Chinese immigrants, settled in Hà Tiên and later submitted the territory to the Nguyễn Lords.^[7] His son, Mạc Thiên Tứ, established the Long Xuyên administrative unit.^[8] In 1808 (the 7th year of Gia Long's reign), this unit was renamed Long Xuyên District, under Hà Tiên Prefecture.^[9] By 1825 (the 6th year of Minh Mạng’s reign), the imperial court appointed a district governor to administer the area.^[7]

During the French colonial period, on June 15, 1867, the French established the Cà Mau administrative division (hạt) based on the former Long Xuyên District.^[10] However, on August 1, 1877, this division was dissolved and merged into the Rạch Giá division.^[10] On February 18, 1882, the French created Bạc Liêu Province by combining the Cà Mau area (previously part of Rạch Giá) with the Bạc Liêu area (formerly part of Sóc Trăng).^[11] In 1903, the Cà Mau administrative agency was established, consisting of three cantons: Quảng Long, Quảng Xuyên, and Long Thủy.^[11]

On May 16, 1911, Cà Mau was elevated to the status of a district under Bạc Liêu Province.^[7] By October 5, 1917, the district included two cantons: Quảng Xuyên and Quảng Long, along with villages from the Long Thủy canton. On April 6, 1923, part of Long Thủy canton was separated to establish a new canton called Long Thới, which took effect on January 1, 1924. On September 24, 1938, Quảng Xuyên canton was split off to form a new district.^[11] On September 14, 1942, the Tân An administrative base was established. On April 5, 1944, Thới Bình District was created, and subsequently on October 6, 1944, it was renamed North Cà Mau District, while Quảng Xuyên District was renamed South Cà Mau District. Later, these two districts were merged back into a single Cà Mau District under Bạc Liêu Province.^[11]

Under the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), on March 9, 1956, the government established Cà Mau Province based on Cà Mau District and four communes from Giá Rai District.^[11][12] On October 22, 1956, according to Decree No. 143/VN, Cà Mau Province was renamed An Xuyên Province, with its capital at Quản Long. At the same time, An Xuyên Commune was renamed Tân Xuyên, which became the location of the provincial capital, Quản Long. At that point, An Xuyên Province consisted of six districts: Quản Long, Thới Bình, Sông Ông Đốc, Cái Nước, Đầm Dơi, and Năm Căn.^[12] However, the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam, and later the Provisional Revolutionary Government, continued to use the name Cà Mau.^[12]

After April 30, 1975, Cà Mau Province was maintained with six districts: Thới Bình, Trần Văn Thời, Cái Nước, Ngọc Hiển, Châu Thành, Duyên Hải, and Cà Mau town.^[12] On September 20, 1975, the Politburo issued Resolution 245-NQ/TW regarding the merger of provinces. According to this resolution, Cà Mau, Bạc Liêu, and two districts—Vĩnh Thuận and An Biên (excluding two communes)—from Rạch Giá were to be merged.^[7] However, on December 20, 1975, Resolution 19/NQ revised the merger plan, and on January 1, 1976, Cà Mau Province and Bạc Liêu Province were officially merged under the initial name of Cà Mau - Bạc Liêu Province.^[13]

On March 10, 1976, the province of Cà Mau - Bạc Liêu was renamed Minh Hải Province.^[14][15] The provincial capital was Minh Hải town (formerly Bạc Liêu). In 1984, the provincial capital was moved to Cà Mau town, and the name Minh Hải town was reverted back to Bạc Liêu town.^[11]

On November 6, 1996, the National Assembly passed a resolution to divide Minh Hải Province into two separate provinces: Cà Mau and Bạc Liêu, effective from January 1, 1997.^[15][16] On April 14, 1999, Cà Mau town was upgraded to Cà Mau City.^[17] On November 17, 2003, Năm Căn District was re-established from Ngọc Hiển District, and Phú Tân District was re-established from Cái Nước District. Since then, Cà Mau Province has consisted of one city and eight districts. On August 6, 2010, Cà Mau City was officially recognized as a grade-II urban center under the province.^[18]

Being surrounded by water on three sides, fishing is an important industry in Cà Mau province. An extensive network of canals also supports a strong agricultural sector, as well as providing a popular means of transport. The U Minh biosphere reserve and Mũi Cà Mau, the southernmost point of Vietnam, serve also as important tourist destinations. The Mũi Cà Mau National Park is located at Mũi Cà Mau.

Cà Mau is subdivided into nine district-level sub-divisions:^[19]

8 districts:

1 provincial city:

• Cà Mau (capital)

They are further subdivided into nine commune-level towns (or townlets), 82 communes, and 10 wards.

In November 1997, the Cà Mau Peninsula was struck by Typhoon Linda (Openg). Thousands of people were killed, and an estimated 200,000 homes were destroyed, along with much of the Cà Mau fishing fleet.^[20]