[Nguoitimduong]

The first postage stamp officially circulated in Cochinchina (now South Vietnam) in 1863 by the French colonialists which were used in all French colonies (the difference was the post marks of each colony). The first type of commercial stamps appeared in Vietnam in the period between 1886 and 1887, overprinted with abbreviation C.CH, (which stand for Cochinchine - the former name of South Vietnam).

In 1888, this kind of stamps circulated in central Vietnam which was overprinted with the letter A (abbreviation of ANNAM) in northern Vietnam it was over-printed with the letter T (abbreviation of TONKIN).

In 1889, the Indochinese stamps officially came into being and were used in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

From 1941 to 1945, almost all of Indochinese stamps were designed by Vietnamese painters and printed in Vietnam as well.

From 1945 to 1975, Vietnam had undergone an extraordinary historical stage. There existed several political regimes in the country and they all issued their own postage stamps. Historically, there were two major ideologies of stamps, namely:

A - Postage stamps issued by Revolutionary Administrations

They included stamps issued by Revolutionary Administrations in different periods.

I. Postage stamps issued by the Democratic Republic of Vietnam:

1. The over-printed Indochinese stamps: 1945 - 1946 (provisional stamps).

2. The stamps issued by the Democratic Republic of Vietnam: From 2 September 1946 to 24 June 1976, circulated in North Vietnam.

II. Postage stamps issued by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: since 24 June 1976, circulated all over the country.

III. Postage stamps issued by the National Front for Liberation of South Vietnam (from 20 December 1963 to 1969); and Postage stamps issued by Provisional Revolutionary Government of Republic of South Vietnam (from 22 April 1970 to 24 June 1976), circulated in the liberated zones of South Vietnam.

B - Postage stamps issued by other regimes:

I. Vietnam National stamps (Bao Dai stamps): from 1951 to 1955, circulated in temporarily occupied areas.

II. Stamps of the Republic of Vietnam (former Saigon puppet regime): from 1956 to 1975, circulated in the areas under the control of the former Saigon puppet regime.

With the victory on 30 April 1975, South Vietnam was completely liberated and Vietnam reunified, the stamps issued by Saigon puppet regime terminated its circulation.

After half a century of existence and development, Vietnamese Postage Stamps have been growing in every aspect. Vietnam's stamps have reflected the country of Vietnam: land and people, historical landmarks, development and all social activities.
(vietnamstamp.com.vn)