Nam Định is a province in the southern part of the Red River Delta region of northern Vietnam. It borders Ninh Bình province to the southwest, Hà Nam province to the northwest, Thái Bình province to the northeast, and the Gulf of Tonkin to the southeast. As of 2018, it is the 52nd largest province by area and the 12th most populous province of Vietnam.

Phở or Pho is a Vietnamese soup dish consisting of broth, rice noodles, herbs, and meat, sometimes chicken. Phở is a popular food in Vietnam where it is served in households, street-stalls, and restaurants country-wide. Residents of the city of Nam Định were the first to create Vietnamese traditional phở. It is considered Vietnam's national dish.