{{Short description|Former province of Vietnam}} {{Infobox settlement | official_name = Bến Tre province | other_name = Kiến Hòa province<br>Trúc Giang province | type = Province | image_seal = Biểu trưng tỉnh Bến Tre.svg | image_skyline = CaiMonVillage.jpg | image_caption = Bến Tre countryside around Cái Mơn | nickname = "Coconutland"<br><small>(Xứ Dừa)</small>{{force singular}} | image_map = Ben Tre in Vietnam before 1 July 2025.svg | map_caption = Location of Bến Tre within Vietnam | coordinates = {{coord|10|10|N|106|30|E|region:VN_type:adm1st|display=inline,title}} | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = {{flag|Vietnam}} | subdivision_type1 = Region | subdivision_name1 = Mekong Delta | seat_type = Provincial capital | seat = Bến Tre | governing_body = Bến Tre provincial Party Committee | leader_party = Communist Party of Vietnam | leader_title = People's Council Chair | leader_name = Hồ Thị Hoàng Yến | leader_title1 = People's Committee Chair | leader_name1 = Trần Ngọc Tam | area_footnotes = <ref name="area_2022">{{Cite act|date=18 October 2023|type=Decision|index=3048/QĐ-BTNMT|legislature=Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (Vietnam)|title=Biểu số 4.6: Hiện trạng sử dụng đất vùng Đồng Bằng Sông Cửu Long năm 2022|trans-title=Table 4.6: Current land use status in the Mekong Delta in 2022|language=vi|url=https://monre.gov.vn/VanBan/Lists/VanBanChiDao/Attachments/3012/b4.6_Signed.pdf}} – the data in the report are in hectares, rounded to integers</ref> | area_total_km2 = 2,379.70 | elevation_footnotes = | elevation_m = | population_footnotes = | population_total = 1,653,493 | population_as_of = 2025 | population_density_km2 = auto | population_demonym = People of Bến Tre | demographics_type1 = Demographics | demographics1_title1 = Ethnicities | demographics1_info1 = Vietnamese, Khmer, Hoa, Chăm | demographics_type2 = GDP<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bentre.gov.vn/Pages/TinTucSuKien.aspx?ID=23386&InitialTabId=Ribbon.Read|title=Tình hình kinh tế, xã hội Bến Tre năm 2018|website=Cổng thông tin điện tử tỉnh Bến Tre|access-date=10 May 2020}}</ref> | demographics2_title1 = Total | demographics2_info1 = VND 41.851 trillion<br/>US$ 1.818 billion | blank1_name = HDI (2020) | blank1_info = {{increase}} 0.683<ref>{{Cite web |title=Human Development Index by province(*) by Cities, provincies and Year |url=https://www.gso.gov.vn/en/px-web/?pxid=E1438&theme=Health%2C%20Culture%2C%20Sport%20and%20Living%20standard |access-date=September 28, 2024 |website=General Statistics Office of Vietnam}}</ref><br />(49th) | timezone = ICT | utc_offset = +7 | timezone_DST = | area_code_type = Area codes | area_code = 75 (until 16 July 2017)<br/>275 (from 17 June 2017) | iso_code = VN-50 | website = {{URL|http://www.bentre.gov.vn}} | postal_code_type = Postal code | postal_code = 86xxx }}
'''Bến Tre''' was a former province of Vietnam. It was one of the country's southern provinces, and was situated in the Mekong Delta. It is also famous for its coconuts and the Coconut Religion nationwide. Disconnected from the mainland, the province lies mainly on 2 river islands. It has land borders only with Vĩnh Long Province, which occupies the western tip of the southern river island.
On June 12, 2025, Bến Tre was incorporated into Vĩnh Long province.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2025-06-12 |title=Quốc hội thông qua Nghị quyết về việc sắp xếp đơn vị hành chính cấp tỉnh, từ ngày 12/6, cả nước còn 34 tỉnh, thành phố |url=https://quochoi.vn/tintuc/Pages/tin-hoat-dong-cua-quoc-hoi.aspx?ItemID=94522 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250612070723/https://quochoi.vn/tintuc/Pages/tin-hoat-dong-cua-quoc-hoi.aspx?ItemID=94522 |archive-date=2025-06-12 |access-date=2025-06-12 |website=National Assembly of Vietnam |language=vi}}</ref>
==Etymology== The origin of the province’s name is still unclear as it was first inhabited by the Khmer people, though some speculated it may have been called ''Kompong Russei''. Its original name was then later altered by incoming waves of immigration and settlement by ethnic Vietnamese into ''Bến Tre.''<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kiernan |first=Ben |title=Việt Nam: A history from earliest times to the present |date=2017 |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=10 |language=English}}</ref> In Vietnamese, "Bến Tre" literally means "bamboo port", which is quite inaccurate considering it is regionally famous for its coconuts.
==History== Since 1757, the land of Bến Tre belonged to Tân An canton, Định Viễn district, under Long Hồ administrative unit.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Sách Tài liệu dạy-học chương trình lịch sử địa phương Trung học cơ sở tỉnh Bến tre, Lê Ngọc Bữu(chủ biên), Nhà xuất bản Giáo dục Việt Nam}}</ref> During the reign of Emperor Minh Mạng, the area was part of Hoằng Trị prefecture (comprising Tân Ninh, Bảo An, and Bảo Hậu districts), under Vĩnh Long province. In 1832, An Hóa islet (now part of Bến Tre province) was included in Kiến Hòa district.
In 1867, the French established Bến Tre as a district (hạt). After several administrative changes, it officially became Bến Tre province in 1900. By 1912, the province was divided into four districts: Ba Tri, Sóc Sải, Mỏ Cày, and Thạnh Phú; Sóc Sải was later renamed Châu Thành in 1927. In 1956, the province was renamed Kiến Hòa and expanded to include nine districts.<ref>{{Cite web |title=17/1/1960-Đồng khởi Bến Tre: 62 năm đội quân tóc dài Việt Nam bách chiến bách thắng |url=https://doisongvaphattrien.vn/1711960-dong-khoi-ben-tre-62-nam-doi-quan-toc-dai-viet-nam-bach-chien-bach-thang-a43177.html |access-date=2025-03-23 |website=Đời sống và Phát triển Online |language=en}}</ref>
The revolutionary government continued to refer to it as Bến Tre province. After 1975, there were plans to merge it with other provinces, but it remained a separate province. In 1976, the name was officially changed back to Bến Tre, consisting of one town and seven districts.
In 2009, Mỏ Cày was divided into two districts: Mỏ Cày Bắc (North) and Mỏ Cày Nam (South); Bến Tre town was also upgraded to a city.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=2025-01-10 |title=Nghị định 08/NĐ-CP điều chỉnh địa giới phường để thành lập xã thuộc huyện Mỏ Cày, Chợ Lách, thị xã Bến Tre Mỏ Cày Bắc thuộc tỉnh Bến Tre mới nhất |url=https://thuvienphapluat.vn/van-ban/Bo-may-hanh-chinh/Nghi-dinh-08-ND-CP-dieu-chinh-dia-gioi-phuong-de-thanh-lap-xa-thuoc-huyen-Mo-Cay-Cho-Lach-thi-xa-Ben-Tre-Mo-Cay-Bac-thuoc-tinh-Ben-Tre-85067.aspx |access-date=2025-03-23 |website=THƯ VIỆN PHÁP LUẬT}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=2020-09-29 |title=Nghị quyết 34/NQ-CP thành lập thành phố Bến Tre thuộc tỉnh Bến Tre |url=https://thuvienphapluat.vn/van-ban/bo-may-hanh-chinh/Nghi-quyet-34-NQ-CP-thanh-lap-thanh-pho-Ben-Tre-thuoc-tinh-Ben-Tre-92876.aspx |access-date=2025-03-23 |website=THƯ VIỆN PHÁP LUẬT}}</ref> Today, Bến Tre province has nine district-level administrative units, with Bến Tre city classified as a grade-II urban area since 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Quyết định số 174/QĐ-TTg của Thủ tướng Chính phủ: Về việc công nhận thành phố Bến Tre là đô thị loại II trực thuộc tỉnh Bến Tre |url=https://vanban.chinhphu.vn/default.aspx?pageid=27160&docid=196193 |access-date=2025-03-23 |website=vanban.chinhphu.vn |language=vi}}</ref>
On 12 June 2025, as part of major nationwide reforms, Bến Tre province was dissolved and merged with Vĩnh Long province.<ref name=":1" />
==Administration== Bến Tre is subdivided into 9 district-level subdivisions. The eight districts are Ba Tri, Bình Đại, Châu Thành,Chợ Lách, Giồng Trôm, Mỏ Cày Bắc, Mỏ Cày Nam, and Thạnh Phú. There is also one provincial city of Bến Tre (capital). They are further subdivided into 7 commune-level towns (or townlets), 147 communes, and 10 wards. To view the list of subdivisions, see List of communes in Bến Tre province.
==Geography== Geographically, Bến Tre is wedged between the two main branches of the Tiền Giang River, which is itself one of the two main distributary of the Mekong. The province's northern boundary is formed by the Tiền Giang's main course, while the province's southern boundary is formed by the Tiền Giang's largest branch (which breaks away from the Tiền Giang just upriver from Bến Tre province). Between the Tiền Giang and its main branch are two smaller branches, passing through the middle of Bến Tre. As a result, this province may be considered having 2 main river islands and has land borders only with Vĩnh Long Province on its western tip.
The entire province is criss-crossed with a network of smaller rivers and canals. The extensive irrigation that this provides makes Bến Tre a major producer of rice, but also means that the area is prone to flooding. The Climate Change Research Institute at Cần Thơ University, in studying the possible consequences of climate change, has predicted that 51% of Bến Tre province can be expected to be flooded if sea levels rise by 1 meter.<ref name="vnnnet-sealevel">[http://english.vietnamnet.vn/tech/2009/03/836977 "Mekong Delta: more flood and drought"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100505180724/http://english.vietnamnet.vn/tech/2009/03/836977 |date=May 5, 2010 }}. VietnamNet Bridge. 19 March 2009.</ref> Bến Tre province is, on average, only {{Convert|1.25|m|sp=us}} above sea level.
==Transportation== Construction on the Rạch Miễu Bridge, which links Bến Tre to neighboring Tiền Giang province to its north, was started in 2002. The bridge was finished and opened for traffic on 19 January 2009. Before that time, Bến Tre was only accessible to automobiles via ferry.
==Notable people== * Nguyễn Phương Khánh (born 1995), beauty pageant *Mai Thiên Vân (born 1982), singer and Bến Tre native; now lives in the U.S.
==Gallery== {{wide image|Thanh pho Ben Tre.jpg|1600px|align-cap=center|Panorama of Bến Tre city on the Bến Tre river|dir=rtl}}
<gallery class="center"> File:ChuyenBenTre20nam.jpg|{{center|Trung học Phổ thông Chuyên Bến Tre}} File:P1020697x.jpg|{{center|Công viên Trúc Giang}} File:Kênh Chợ Lách.jpg|{{center|Kênh Chợ Lách}} File:Một kh��ch sạn ở cồn Phụng.jpg|{{center|Cồn Phụng Hotel}} File:Đình Tân Thạch.jpg|{{center|Tân Thạch Communal House}} File:Nhà bia Trương Vĩnh Ký.jpg|{{center|Memorial stele<br />Trương Vĩnh Ký}} File:Nơi hành đạo của ông Đạo Dừa.jpg|{{center|Reserves of Đạo Dừa<br />at Con Phung}} File:Nhà thờ dòng Ki Tô Vua.jpg|{{center|Congregation Church<br />Christ the King}} File:Nhatho Lama.jpg|{{center|Church of Our Lady<br />Roman}} File: Tàu du lịch cặp bến cồn Phụng.jpg|Tourist boats dock at Con Phung wharf on Tiền River File: Vườn bến tre.jpg|The coconut garden is green thanks to alluvium File: Coconuttree.JPG|Coconut is a large-scale and popular crop grown in bến Tre </gallery>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category|Ben Tre}} * [http://english.bentre.gov.vn Bến Tre website] (in English) * [http://www.bentre.gov.vn Bến Tre website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141103025118/http://www.bentre.gov.vn/ |date=2014-11-03 }} (in Vietnamese) * [https://web.archive.org/web/20110513011550/http://www.vietnamtourism.org.vn/guide/list-of-cities-in-vietnam/ben-tre-province.html Bến Tre province profile] * [http://thanhphobentre.bentre.gov.vn Website Thành phố Bến Tre - Ben Tre City]
{{Geographic location |Centre = Bến Tre province |North = Tiền Giang province |Northeast = Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu province |East = ''East Sea'' |Southeast = ''East Sea'' |South = Trà Vinh province |Southwest = Trà Vinh province |West = Vĩnh Long province |Northwest = Tiền Giang province }} {{Subdivisions of Vietnam}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ben Tre Province}} Category:History of Vĩnh Long province Category:Former provinces of Vietnam