Tonkin (, historically ), also spelled
Tongkin,
Tonquin or
Tongking, is the northernmost part of
Vietnam, south of
China's
Yunnan and
Guangxi Provinces, east of northern
Laos, and west of the
Gulf of Tonkin. "Tonkin" is a corruption of (東京), the name of
Hanoi during the
Lê Dynasty. Locally, Tonkin is known as
Bắc Kỳ, meaning "Northern Region". Located on the fertile
delta of the
Red River, Tonkin is rich in
rice production.