The Lao alphabet and many words were derived from Pali and Sanskrit, languages of ancient India. The Hmong have their own written language, but only a few are literate. The principal religion of Laos is Theravada Buddhism, which was brought from India and is shared by Thailand, Cambodia and Burma. A different sect of Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism, is practiced mainly by the Vietnamese and Chinese. Buddhism has long been a strong force of Lao culture.
Most mountain peoples follow animist beliefs.
History Laos was founded as Lanxang, the kingdom of a million elephants, in 1353. In 1975, the communists overthrew the government and formed the Lao People's Democratic Republic. People who could not live under communist rule fled the country. By 1982, an estimated 300,000 people had fled. Most lived in refugee camps in Thailand for up to eight years before settling in other countries.