Illustrated Gazetteer of the Maritime Kingdoms, Volume 4

To the south, it borders Siam Siam (Xiān luó): modern-day Thailand and reaches the South China Sea. To the north, it touches China, specifically bordering Guangxi to the northeast. To the west, it connects with Laos Laos (Lǎo wō): a landlocked kingdom in Southeast Asia.

The Kingdom of Siam The text here likely refers to the western reaches of the Annamite territory bordering Siam extends eastward to the coastal corners of Tonkin Tonkin (Dōng jīng): the northern region of Vietnam and the South China Sea. The latitude original: 北極; literally "The North Pole," used historically to denote latitude based on the elevation of the pole star of the region ranges from 9 degrees to 23 degrees North. Measured from the Prime Meridian Prime Meridian (Yīng guó zhōng xiàn): literally "The British Central Line," referring to the Greenwich meridian, it lies between 103 and 108 degrees East.

To the northeast, the territory is separated by the Fuliang River original: 富良江; the Red River. To the west, it meets the Laolai River original: 潦瀨江. Its total area area (guǎng mào yuán fāng): literally "breadth and length, round and square" is 294,000 square li a li is a traditional Chinese unit of distance, roughly 500 meters.

The coastal plains of Tonkin are like vast meadows, similar in appearance to the lands of Champa Champa (Zhàn chéng): an ancient kingdom in central and southern Vietnam absorbed by Annam. The interior of the country is mountainous. The Guihua River route referring to the Yen Bai region connects to the southwest border. The Xuanhua River route connects to the Shima road. The Da River Da River (Tuó jiāng): also known as the Black River route connects to the Jinchi border original: 金齒; "Gold Teeth," a historical name for the borderlands of Yunnan.

The Liangzhou route connects the left and right borders. The nation is divided into twenty-two provinces. Six of these comprise the former territories of Champa; the remainder constitutes the lands of Annam and Tonkin. The rivers that originate from Yunnan and Guangxi all flow southward, with the sole exception of the rivers in Tonkin, which flow eastward. The coastline possesses a great many harbors, providing anchorage for ships everywhere. The capital of the kingdom is called Hué original: 順; referring to Shunhua, the imperial capital of the Nguyen Dynasty.