Saigon

American

[sahy-gon] / saɪˈgɒn /

noun

former name of Ho Chi Minh City: capital of former South Vietnam 1954–76.

Saigon British

/ saɪˈɡɒn /

noun

the former name (until 1976) of Ho Chi Minh City

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Saigon Cultural

City in southern Vietnam; capital of South Vietnam from 1954 to 1975.

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American and South Vietnamese forces were headquartered in Saigon during the Vietnam War.

A commercial, industrial, and transportation hub of Southeast Asia, Saigon enjoyed rapid growth and cultural prestige as the capital of French Indochina.

Renamed Ho Chi Minh City by the victorious Vietnamese communists in 1976.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

While it will be Evans' first taste of Broadway, he is a well established performer in London's West End, where he has appeared in musicals including Rent and Miss Saigon.

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2026

After Saigon fell, they made Texas their new home.

From Salon • Dec. 31, 2025

Thomas Fowler is a middle-aged British reporter living in 1950s Saigon with a young Vietnamese woman, Phuong.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 26, 2025

She noted that Little Saigon would be grouped with Norwalk in Los Angeles County if the ballot measure passes.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 17, 2025

I only wish that someday Phnom Penh will be as happy and rich as Saigon.

From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023