On May 24, 1886, the French provisional protection government in Tonkin decided to divide Hưng Hóa province into many parts.

By February 27, 1892, Sơn-la Province was separated into two small military zones, Phong-thổ (Muaeng-lae) and Vạn-bú (Muaeng-va).

On October 10, 1895, Vạn-bú Province (Vạn Bú tỉnh) was officially established, with the headquarters located at an address called Tạ-bú (Muaeng-tae).

Mr Bạc Cầm Quý (Monsieur Gouverneur Bac-câm-Qui in French administrative documents) was a Taykhao man.

From 1955 to 1975, Sơn-la belonged to the South of the Northwest Autonomous Region (khu tự trị Tây Bắc).

Sơn-la is recorded as the place with the highest number of ethnic groups in Vietnam's provinces, so it possesses a surprising diversity of cultural identity, especially ancient writing.

The province is home to diverse ethnic communities, including the Tai, Hmong, and Muong people.