City history
From its Khmer origins as Prey Nokor to colonial Saigon and modern Ho Chi Minh City, southern Vietnam's primary metropolis evolved through distinct name changes and standard-time realignments.
Chapter one
Indigenous name
"Forest City or Forest Kingdom"
Originally a Khmer fishing and trading settlement in the Mekong Delta region prior to Vietnamese administrative control established in the late seventeenth century.
Forest City or Forest Kingdom
The original Khmer trade port and settlement in the Mekong Delta region prior to Vietnamese administration.
Peace and Stability
Official administrative name established by the Nguyễn Dynasty in 1698 when incorporating southern territory into Vietnam.
Disputed; widely translated as cotton tree forest or derived from regional terms
Informal regional name formally adopted by French colonial authorities in 1862 and used as the capital of South Vietnam until 1975.
City named in honor of revolutionary leader Hồ Chí Minh
Officially renamed on July 2, 1976, following national reunification; the name Saigon remains in wide informal use.
Chapter two
French Indochina standardized time across Cochinchina and surrounding protectorates based on 106°37'30"E longitude east of Greenwich, setting local standard time 7 hours 6 minutes 30 seconds ahead of GMT.
Following Metropolitan France's adoption of Greenwich Mean Time, French Indochina adjusted its official civil time standard to exactly UTC+7:00 on May 1, 1911.
Vichy French authorities integrated Indochina into UTC+8:00 on December 31, 1942, advancing local clocks by sixty minutes.
During World War II, following the Japanese takeover of Indochina, Saigon adopted Tokyo Standard Time at UTC+9:00 on March 14, 1945.
The Republic of Vietnam, centered in Saigon, shifted southern standard time forward by one hour to UTC+8:00 on December 31, 1959.
Following reunification, Saigon adjusted its official time back one hour from UTC+8 to UTC+7 on June 13, 1975, unifying timekeeping across Vietnam.
Chapter three
General Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh established formal Vietnamese administrative divisions in the southern region, laying the administrative foundation for modern Ho Chi Minh City.
Designed by French architect Alfred Foulhoux, the grand Saigon Central Post Office was completed with a prominent facade clock that became a major public time reference.
Bến Thành Market opened at its current District 1 location featuring an iconic four-faced clock tower that became an enduring symbol of the city.
On July 2, 1976, the National Assembly officially unified the country and renamed Saigon along with Gia Định province as Ho Chi Minh City.