Laos

Laos,officially theLao People's Democratic Republic(Lao PDRorLPDR),is alandlocked countryinSoutheast Asia. It is bordered byMyanmarandChinato the northwest,Vietnamto the east,Cambodiato the southeast, andThailandto the west and southwest.Itscapitaland most populous city isVientiane. The country is characterized by mountainous terrain, Buddhist temples including theUNESCO World Heritage siteofLuang Prabang, and French colonial architecture.
The country traces its historic and cultural identity toLan Xang, a kingdom which existed from the 13th to 18th centuries.Through its location, the kingdom is a hub for overland trade.In 1707, Lan Xang split into three kingdoms:Luang Prabang,Vientiane, andChampasak. In 1893, these kingdoms were unified under French protection as part ofFrench Indochina. Laos was under Japanese administration duringWorld War II, gaining independence in 1945 before returning to French administration until achieving autonomy in 1949. The country regained full independence in 1953 as theKingdom of Laos, with a constitutional monarchy underSisavang Vong. Acivil warfrom 1959 to 1975 saw the communistPathet Lao, supported byNorth Vietnamand theSoviet Union, oppose theRoyal Lao Armed Forces, backed by theUnited States. The war ended with the establishment of the Lao People's Democratic Republic in 1975, a one-party socialist state aligned with the Soviet Union until its dissolution in 1991. Since then, Laos has transitioned toward market-oriented reforms, marking a new phase of development.
Laos's development strategy emphasizes regional connectivity through infrastructure development. The 2021 completion of theLaos-China Railway, connecting Vientiane to Kunming, has increased trade and tourism accessibility.The country participates in the Greater Mekong Subregion economic cooperation program, focusing on cross-border infrastructure and energy projects.The World Bank has recognized Laos as one of Southeast Asia and Pacific's fastest growing economies, with annual GDP growth averaging 7.4% since 2009, driven by expanding tourism, energy exports, and foreign investment. While classified as aleast developed countryby the United Nations, Laos is a member ofASEAN, theAsia-Pacific Trade Agreement,East Asia Summit,La Francophonie, and theWorld Trade Organization.
The wordLaoswas coined by theFrench, who united the three Lao kingdoms inFrench Indochinain 1893. The name of the country is spelled the same as the plural of the most common ethnic group, theLao people.In English, the "s" in the name of the country is pronounced, and not silent.
A human skull was recovered in 2009 from theTam Pa Ling Cavein theAnnamite Mountainsin northern Laos; the skull is at least 46,000 years old, making it the oldest modern human fossil found to date in Southeast Asia.Stone artifacts includingHoabinhiantypes have been found at sites dating to thePleistocenein northern Laos.Archaeological evidence suggests an agriculturist society developed during the 4th millennium BC.Burial jars and other kinds of sepulchers suggest a society in which bronze objects appeared around 1500 BC, and iron tools were known from 700 BC. The proto-historic period is characterised by contact with Chinese and Indian civilisations. According to linguistic and other historical evidence,Tai-speakingtribes migrated southwestward to the territories of Laos and Thailand fromGuangxisometime between the 8th and 10th centuries.
Laos traces its history to the kingdom of Lan Xang ('million elephants'), which was founded in the 13th century by a Lao prince,Fa Ngum,whose father had his family exiled from theKhmer Empire. Fa Ngum, with 10,000Khmertroops, conquered some Lao principalities in theMekongriver basin, culminating in the capture ofVientiane. Ngum was descended from a line of Lao kings that traced back to Khoun Boulom.He madeTheravada Buddhismthe state religion. His ministers, unable to tolerate his ruthlessness, forced him into exile to what is later the Thai province ofNanin 1373,where he died. Fa Ngum's eldest son, Oun Heuan, ascended to the throne under the nameSamsenethaiand reigned for 43 years. Lan Xang became a trade centre during Samsenthai's reign, and after his death in 1421 it collapsed into warring factions for nearly a century.
In 1520,Photisarathcame to the throne and moved the capital fromLuang Prabangto Vientiane to avoid a Burmese invasion.Setthathirathbecame king in 1548, after his father was killed, and ordered the construction ofThat Luang. Settathirath disappeared in the mountains on his way back from a military expedition intoCambodia, and Lan Xang fell into more than 70 years of "instability", involving Burmese invasion and civil war.
In 1637, whenSourigna Vongsaascended the throne, Lan Xang further expanded its frontiers. When he died without an heir, the kingdom split into three principalities. Between 1763 and 1769, Burmese armies overran northern Laos and annexedLuang Prabang, whileChampasakeventually came under Siamesesuzerainty.
Chao Anouvongwas installed as a vassal king of Vientiane by the Siamese. He encouraged a renaissance of Lao fine arts and literature and improved relations with Luang Phrabang. Under Vietnamese pressure,he rebelled against the Siamese in 1826. The rebellion failed, and Vientiane was ransacked.Anouvong was taken toBangkokas a prisoner, where he died.
In a time period where the acquisition of humans was a priority over the ownership of land, the warfare of pre-modern Southeast Asia revolved around the seizing of people and resources from its enemies. A Siamese military campaign in Laos in 1876 was described by a British observer as having been "transformed intoslave-hunting raidson a large scale".
In the 19th century, Luang Prabang was ransacked by the ChineseBlack Flag Army.France rescued KingOun Khamand added Luang Phrabang to the protectorate ofFrench Indochina. TheKingdom of Champasakand the territory of Vientiane were added to the protectorate. KingSisavangvongof Luang Phrabang became ruler of a unified Laos, and Vientiane once again became the capital.
Laos producedtin, rubber, and coffee, and never accounted for more than 1% of French Indochina's exports. By 1940, around 600 French citizens lived in Laos.Under French rule, the Vietnamese were encouraged to migrate to Laos, which was seen by the French colonists as a rational solution to a labour shortage within the confines of an Indochina-wide colonial space.By 1943, the Vietnamese population stood at nearly 40,000, forming the majority in some cities of Laos and having the right to elect its own leaders.As a result, 53% of the population of Vientiane, 85% ofThakhek, and 62% ofPaksewere Vietnamese, with the exception ofLuang Prabangwhere the population was predominantly Lao.As late as 1945, the French drew up a plan to move a number of Vietnamese to three areas, i.e., the Vientiane Plain,Savannakhet region, and theBolaven Plateau, which was derailed by the Japanese invasion of Indochina.Otherwise, according toMartin Stuart-Fox, the Lao might well have lost control over their own country.
DuringWorld War II in Laos,Vichy France,Thailand,Imperial JapanandFree Franceoccupied Laos.On 9 March 1945, a nationalist group declared Laos once more independent, withLuang Prabangas its capital; on 7 April 1945, two battalions of Japanese troops occupied the city.The Japanese attempted to forceSisavang Vong(the king of Luang Phrabang) to declare Laotian independence, and on 8 April he instead declared an end to Laos's status as a French protectorate. The king then secretly sent PrinceKindavongto represent Laos to theAllied forcesandPrince Sisavangas representative to the Japanese.When Japan surrendered, some Lao nationalists (including PrincePhetsarath) declared Laotian independence, and by 1946, French troops had reoccupied the country and conferred autonomy on Laos.
During theFirst Indochina War, theIndochinese Communist Partyformed thePathet Laoindependence organisation. The Pathet Lao began a war against the French colonial forces with the aid of the Vietnamese independence organisation, theViet Minh. In 1950, the French were forced to give Laos semi-autonomy as an "associated state" within theFrench Union. France remained in de facto control until 22 October 1953, when Laos gained full independence as aconstitutional monarchy.
The First Indochina War took place across French Indochina and eventually led to French defeat and the signing of a peace accord for Laos at theGeneva Conference of 1954. In 1960, amidst a series of rebellions in theKingdom of Laos, fighting broke out between theRoyal Lao Army(RLA) and the communistNorth VietnameseandSoviet Union-backed Pathet Lao guerillas. A second Provisional Government of National Unity formed by PrinceSouvanna Phoumain 1962 was unsuccessful, and the situation turned intocivil warbetween the Royal Laotian government and the Pathet Lao. The Pathet Lao were backed militarily by thePeople's Army of Vietnam(PAVN) and theViet Cong.
Laos was a part of theVietnam Warsince parts of Laos wereinvaded and occupiedbyNorth Vietnamsince 1958 for use as a supply route for its war againstSouth Vietnam. In response, the United States initiated a bombing campaign against the PAVN positions, supported regular and irregular anti-communist forces in Laos, and supportedincursions into Laosby theArmy of the Republic of Vietnam.
Aerial bombardments against the PAVN/Pathet Laoforces were carried out by theUnited Statesto prevent the collapse of theKingdom of Laoscentral government, and to deny the use of theHo Chi Minh Trailto attack US forces inSouth Vietnam.Between 1964 and 1973, the US dropped 2 million tons of bombs on Laos, nearly equal to the 2.1 million tons of bombs the US dropped on Europe and Asia during all of World War II, making Laos the most heavily bombed country in history relative to the size of its population;The New York Timesnotes this was "nearly a ton for every person in Laos".
Some 80 million bombs failed to explode and remain scattered throughout the country.Unexploded ordnance(UXO), includingcluster munitionsand mines, kill or maim approximately 50 Laotians every year.Due to the impact of cluster bombs during this war, Laos was an advocate of theConvention on Cluster Munitionsto ban the weapons and was host to the First Meeting of States Parties to the convention in November 2010.
In 1975, thePathet Laooverthrew the royalist government, forcing KingSavang Vatthanato abdicate on 2 December 1975. He later died in are-education camp. Between 20,000 and 62,000 Laotians died during the civil war.
On 2 December 1975, after taking control of the country, the Pathet Lao government underKaysone Phomvihanerenamed the country as theLao People's Democratic Republicand signed agreements giving Vietnam the right to station armed forces and to appoint advisers to assist in overseeing the country. The ties between Laos andVietnamwere formalised via a treaty signed in 1977, which has since provided direction for Lao foreign policy, and provides the basis for Vietnamese involvement at levels of Lao political and economic life.Laos was requested in 1979 byVietnamto end relations with thePeople's Republic of China, leading to isolation in trade byChina, theUnited States, and other countries.In 1979, there were 50,000 PAVN troops stationed in Laos and as many as 6,000 civilian Vietnamese officials including 1,000 directly attached to the ministries inVientiane.
TheconflictbetweenHmongrebels and Laoscontinued in areasof Laos, including in Saysaboune Closed Military Zone, Xaisamboune Closed Military Zone near Vientiane Province andXiangkhouang Province. From 1975 to 1996, theUnited Statesresettled some250,000 Lao refugeesfrom Thailand, including 130,000 Hmong.
On 3 December 2021, the 422-kilometreBoten-Vientiane railway, a flagship of theBelt and Road Initiative(BRI), was opened.
Laos is the only landlocked country inSoutheast Asia, and it lies mostly between latitudes14°and23°N(an area is south of 14°), and longitudes100°and108°E. Its forested landscape consists mostly of mountains, the highest of which isPhou Biaat 2,818 metres (9,245 ft), with some plains and plateaus. The Mekong River forms a part of the western boundary with Thailand, where the mountains of theAnnamite Rangeform most of the eastern border with Vietnam and theLuang Prabang Rangethe northwestern border with theThai highlands. There are 2 plateaus, theXiangkhoangin the north and theBolaven Plateauat the southern end. Laos can be considered to consist of 3 geographical areas: north, central, and south.Laos had a 2019Forest Landscape Integrity Indexmean score of 5.59/10, ranking it 98th globally out of 172 countries.
In 1993, the Laos government set aside 21% of the nation's land area forhabitat conservationpreservation.The country is 1 of 4 in the opium poppy growing region known as the "Golden Triangle".According to the October 2007 UNODC fact bookOpium Poppy Cultivation in South East Asia, the poppy cultivation area was 15 square kilometres (5.8 sq mi), down from 18 square kilometres (6.9 sq mi) in 2006.
The climate is mostly tropical savanna and influenced by themonsoonpattern.There is a rainy season from May to October, followed by a dry season from November to April. Local tradition holds that there are three seasons: rainy, cool and hot. Further, the latter two months of the climatologically defined dry season are hotter than the earlier four months.
Laos is divided into 17provinces(khoueng) and one prefecture (kampheng nakhon), which includes the capital city Vientiane (Nakhon Louang Viangchan).A province,Xaisomboun province, was established on 13 December 2013.Provinces are divided intodistricts(muang) and then villages (ban). An "urban" village is essentially a town.
The Lao PDR is one of the world'ssocialist statesopenly endorsingcommunism. The only legal political party is theLao People's Revolutionary Party(LPRP). With theone-party statestatus of Laos, theGeneral Secretary(party leader) holds ultimate power and authority over state and government and serves as the supreme leader.As of 22 March 2021, the head of state isPresidentThongloun Sisoulith. He has beenGeneral Secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, a position making him thede factoleader of Laos, since January 2021.
Laos's first French-written and monarchical constitution was promulgated on 11 May 1947, and declared Laos an independent state within theFrench Union. The revised constitution of 11 May 1957 omitted reference to the French Union, while educational, health and technical ties with the former colonial power persisted. The 1957 document was abrogated in December 1975, when a communist people's republic was proclaimed. A constitution was adopted in 1991 and enshrined a "leading role" for the LPRP.
The foreign relations of Laos after the takeover by thePathet Laoin December 1975 were characterised by a hostile posture toward the West, with the government of the Lao PDR aligning itself with theSoviet Bloc, maintaining ties with the Soviet Unionand depending on the Soviets for most of its foreign assistance.
Laos's emergence frominternational isolationhas been marked through expanded relations with other countries includingRussia,China,Thailand,Australia,Germany,Italy,JapanandSwitzerland.Trade relations with the United Stateswere normalised in November 2004 through Congress approved legislation.Laos was admitted into theAssociation of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) in July 1997 and acceded to theWorld Trade Organizationin 2016.In 2005, it attended the inauguralEast Asia Summit.
SomeHmonggroups fought asCIA-backed units on the royalist side in theLaotian Civil War. After the Pathet Lao took over the country in 1975, the conflict continued in isolated pockets. In 1977, a communist newspaper promised the party would hunt down the "American collaborators" and their families "to the last root".As many as 200,000 Hmong went into exile inThailand, with some ending up in theUS. Other Hmong fighters hid out in mountains in Xiangkhouang Province for years, with a remnant emerging from the jungle in 2003.
In 1989, theUnited Nations High Commissioner for Refugees(UNHCR), with the support of theUS government, instituted theComprehensive Plan of Action, a programme to stem the tide of Indochinese refugees from Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Under the plan, refugee status was evaluated through a screening process. Recognised asylum seekers were given resettlement opportunities, while the remaining refugees were to be repatriated under guarantee of safety. After talks with the UNHCR and the Thai government, Laos agreed to repatriate the 60,000 Lao refugees living in Thailand, including several thousand Hmong people. Some of the Lao refugees were willing to return voluntarily.Pressure to resettle the refugees grew as the Thai government worked to close its remaining refugee camps. While some Hmong people returned to Laos voluntarily, with development assistance from UNHCR, allegations of forced repatriation surfaced.Of those Hmong who did return to Laos, some escaped back to Thailand, describing discrimination and brutal treatment at the hands of Lao authorities.
In 1993, Vue Mai, a former Hmong soldier and leader of the largest Hmong refugee camp in Thailand, who had been recruited by the US Embassy inBangkokto return to Laos as proof of the repatriation programme's success, disappeared inVientiane. According to the US Committee for Refugees, he was arrested by Lao security forces and was never seen again.Following the Vue Mai incident, debate over the Hmong's planned repatriation to Laos intensified, including in the United States, where it drew opposition from American conservatives and some human rights advocates. In a 23 October 1995National Reviewarticle,Michael Johnslabelled the Hmong's repatriation aClinton administration"betrayal", describing the Hmong as a people "who have spilled their blood in defence of American geopolitical interests".
In their opposition of the repatriation plans, Democratic and Republican Members of Congress challenged the Clinton administration's position that the government of Laos was not systematically violating Hmong human rights. US RepresentativeSteve Gunderson, for instance, told a Hmong gathering: "I do not enjoy standing up and saying to my government that you are not telling the truth, but if that is necessary to defend truth and justice, I will do that."
While some accusations of forced repatriation were denied,thousands of Hmong people refused to return to Laos. In 1996 as the deadline for the closure of Thai refugee camps approached, and under mounting political pressure, the United States agreed to resettle Hmong refugees who passed a screening process.Around 5,000 Hmong people who were not resettled at the time of the camp closures sought asylum atWat Tham Krabok, a Buddhist monastery in central Thailand where more than 10,000 Hmong refugees had already been living. The Thai government attempted to repatriate these refugees, and the Wat Tham Krabok Hmong refused to leave and the Lao government refused to accept them, claiming they were involved in theillegal drug tradeand were of non-Lao origin.Following threats of forcible removal by the Thai government, the United States, in a victory for the Hmong, agreed to accept 15,000 of the refugees in 2003.Several thousand Hmong people, fearing forced repatriation to Laos if they were not accepted for resettlement in the United States, fled the camp to live elsewhere within Thailand where a sizeable Hmong population has been present since the 19th century.In 2004 and 2005, thousands of Hmong fled from the jungles of Laos to a temporary refugee camp in the Thai province ofPhetchabun.
Lending further support to earlier claims that the government of Laos was persecuting the Hmong, filmmaker Rebecca Sommer documented first-hand accounts in her documentary,Hunted Like Animals,and in a comprehensive report that includes summaries of refugee claims, which was submitted to the UN in May 2006.
TheEuropean Union,UNHCHR, and international groups have since spoken out about the forced repatriation.The Thai foreign ministry has said that it will halt deportation of Hmong refugees held in Detention Centres inNong Khai, while talks are underway to resettle them in Australia, Canada, the Netherlands and the United States.Plans to resettle additional Hmong refugees in the United States were stalled by provisions of PresidentGeorge W. Bush'sPatriot ActandReal ID Act, under which Hmong veterans of the Secret War, who fought on the side of the United States, are classified as terrorists because of their historical involvement in armed conflict.
InThe Economist'sDemocracy Index2016, Laos was classified as an "authoritarian regime", ranking lowest of the 9ASEANnations included in the study.Civil society advocates, human rights defenders, political and religious dissidents, and Hmong refugees have disappeared at the hands of Lao military and security forces.
Ostensibly, theConstitution of Laosthat was promulgated in 1991 and amended in 2003 contains safeguards for human rights. For example, Article 8 makes it clear that Laos is amultinational stateand is committed to equality between ethnic groups. The constitution contains provisions forgender equality,freedom of religion,freedom of speech, and freedom of press and assembly.On 25 September 2009, Laos ratified theInternational Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 9 years after signing the treaty. The stated policy objectives of the Lao government and international donors remain focused upon achieving sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction.
An organisation raised concerns in relation to freedom of expression, prison conditions, restrictions on freedom of religions, protection of refugees and asylum-seekers, and the death penalty.Laos has been cited as an origin country for human trafficking.A number of citizens, primarily women and girls from ethnic groups and foreigners, have been victims ofsex trafficking in Laos.
The Lao economy depends on investment and trade with its neighbours, Thailand, Vietnam, and, especially in the north, China.Pakxehas experienced growth based on cross-border trade with Thailand and Vietnam. In 2009, theObama administrationin the US declared Laos was no longer a Marxist–Leninist state and lifted bans on Laotian companies receiving financing from theUS Export-Import Bank.
In 2016, China was the biggest foreign investor in the Laotian economy, having invested US$5.395 billion since 1989, according to the Laos Ministry of Planning and Investment's 1989–2014 report. Thailand (invested US$4.489 billion) and Vietnam (invested US$3.108 billion) are the second and third largest investors respectively.
Subsistence agricultureaccounts for half of the GDP and provides 80% of employment. 4% of the country is arable land and 0.3% used as permanent crop land,the lowest percentage in theGreater Mekong Subregion.The irrigated areas account for 28% of the total area under cultivation which, in turn, represents 12% of all of the agricultural land in 2012.Rice dominates agriculture, with about 80% of the arable land area used for growing rice.Approximately 77% of Lao farm households are self-sufficient in rice.Laos may have the greatest number of rice varieties in the Greater Mekong Subregion. The Lao government has been working with theInternational Rice Research Instituteof thePhilippinesto collect seed samples of each of the thousands of rice varieties found in Laos.
Laos imports petroleum and gas.Metallurgyis an industry, and the government hopes to attract foreign investment to develop the deposits ofcoal,gold,bauxite,tin,copper, and other metals. Themining industry of Laoshas received attention with foreign direct investments. More than 540 mineral deposits of gold, copper,zinc,leadand other minerals have been identified, explored and mined.The country's water resources and mountainous terrain enable it to produce and export quantities of hydroelectric energy.Of the potential capacity of approximately 18,000 megawatts, around 8,000 megawatts have been committed for export to Thailand and Vietnam.As of 2021, Laos continues to rely on fossil fuels, coal in particular, in domestic electricity production.
In 2018, the countryranked 139thon theHuman Development Index(HDI), indicating medium development.According to theGlobal Hunger Index(2018), Laos ranks as the 36th hungriest nation in the world out of the list of the 52 nations with the worst hunger situation(s).In 2019, the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights conducted an official visit to Laos and found that the country's top-down approach to economic growth and poverty alleviation "is all too often counterproductive, leading to impoverishment and jeopardising the rights of the poor and marginalised."
A product,Beerlao, was exported in 2017 to more than 20 countries worldwide. It is produced by theLao Brewery Company.
The tourism sector has grown from 80,000 international visitors in 1990, to 1.876 million in 2010,when tourism had been expected to rise to US$1.5857 billion by 2020. In 2010, 1 in every 11 jobs was in the tourism sector. Export earnings from international visitors and tourism goods are expected to generate 16% of total exports or US$270.3 million in 2010, growing in nominal terms to US$484.2 million (12.5% of the total) in 2020.The European Council on Trade and Tourism awarded the country the "World Best Tourist Destination" designation for 2013 for architecture and history.
The Lao National Tourism Administration, related government agencies and the private sector are working together to realise the vision put forth in the country's National Ecotourism Strategy and Action Plan. This includes decreasing the environmental and cultural impact of tourism; increasing awareness in the importance of ethnic groups and biological diversity; providing a source of income to conserve, sustain and manage the Lao protected area network and cultural heritage sites; and emphasizing the need for tourism zoning and management plans for sites that will be developed asecotourismdestinations.
The mountainousgeography of Laoshad impeded Laos's ground transportation development throughout the 20th century. Its first railway line, a 3-km longmetre-gaugerailway that connectssouthern Vientianeto Thailand, opened in 2009. In December 2021, the 414-km longBoten–Vientiane railwaythat runs from the capitalVientianetoBotenat the northern border with China and was built as part of China'sBelt and Road Initiativewas opened.
There is external and internal telecommunication. 93% of households have a telephone, either fixed line or mobile.Electricity is available to 93% of the population.
According to the World Bank data conducted in 2014, Laos has met the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets on water and sanitation regarding the UNICEF/WHO Joint Monitoring Programme. As of 2018, there are approximately 1.9 million of Lao's population who could not access an improved water supply and 2.4 million people without access to improved sanitation.
Laos has made progress increasing access tosanitation.In 1990 8% of the rural population had access to improved sanitation.Access rose from 10% in 1995 to 38% in 2008. Between 1995 and 2008, approximately 1,232,900 more people had access to improved sanitation in rural areas.The authorities in Laos have developed an innovative regulatory framework for public–private partnership contracts signed with enterprises, in parallel with more conventional regulation of state-owned water enterprises.
The people of Laos are categorised by their distribution byelevation(lowlands, midlands and upper high lands), as this somewhat correlates with ethnic groupings. More than half of the nation's population is ethnic Lao—the principal lowland inhabitants.The Lao belong to theTailinguistic groupwho began migrating south from China in the first millennium CE.10% belong to other "lowland" groups, which together with the Lao people make up theLao Loum(lowland people).
In the central and southern mountains,Mon-Khmer-speaking groups, known asLao Theungor mid-slope Laotians, predominate. Other terms are Khmu, Khamu (Kammu) or Kha as the Lao Loum refer to them to indicate theirAustroasiaticlanguage affiliation. The latter is considered pejorative, meaning 'slave'. They were the indigenous inhabitants of northern Laos. SomeVietnamese,Laotian ChineseandThaiminorities remain, particularly in the towns, and some left after independence in the 1940s, some of whom relocated either to Vietnam, Hong Kong, or to France. Lao Theung constitute about 30% of the population.
Hill peopleand minority cultures of Laos such as theHmong,Yao (Mien)(Hmong-Mien),Dao,Shan, andTibeto-Burmanspeaking peoples have lived in isolated regions of Laos for years. Mountain/hill tribes of mixed ethno/cultural-linguistic heritage are found in northern Laos, which include theLuaandKhmu peoplewho are indigenous to Laos. Collectively, they are known asLao Soungor highland Laotians. Lao Soung account for about 10% of the population.
The official language isLao, a language of theTai-Kadailanguage family. More than half of the population speaks Lao natively. The remainder, particularly in rural areas, speak ethnic minority languages. TheLao alphabet, which evolved sometime between the 13th and 14th centuries, was derived from theKhmer script.Languages likeKhmu(Austroasiatic) andHmong(Hmong-Mien) are spoken by minorities, particularly in the midland and highland areas. A number ofLaotian sign languagesare used in areas with higher rates of congenital deafness.
Frenchis used in government and commerce, and Laos is a member of the French-speaking organisation ofLa Francophonie. The organisation estimated in 2010 that there were 173,800 French speakers in Laos.
English, the language of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), has become increasingly studied.
66% of Laotians wereTheravadaBuddhist, 1.5% Christian, 0.1% Muslim, 0.1% Jewish, and 32.3% were other or traditional (mostly practitioners ofSatsana Phi) in 2010.
Malelife expectancy at birthwas at 62.6 years and female life expectancy was at 66.7 years in 2017.Healthy life expectancy was 54 years in 2007.Government expenditure on health is about 4% of GDP,about US$18 (PPP) in 2006.
The adultliteracyrate for women in 2017 was 62.9%; for adult men, 78.1%.
In 2004, the net primary enrollment rate was 84%.Laos was ranked 111st in theGlobal Innovation Indexin 2024.
Sticky riceis a staple food. There are traditions and rituals associated with rice production in environments and among ethnic groups. For example, Khammu farmers in Luang Prabang plant the rice varietykhao kamin quantities near the farm house in memory of dead parents, or at the edge of the rice field to indicate that parents are still alive.
The first feature-length film made after the monarchy was abolished isGun Voice from the Plain of Jarsdirected by Somchith Pholsena in 1983 and its release was prevented by a censorship board.A commercial feature-length film wasSabaidee Luang Prabang, made in 2008.The 2017 documentary feature filmBlood Roadwas predominantly shot and produced in Laos with assistance from the Lao government. It was recognised with aNews and Documentary Emmy Awardin 2018.
Australian filmmaker Kim Mordount's first feature film was made in Laos and features a Laotian cast speaking their native language. EntitledThe Rocket, the film appeared at the 2013Melbourne International Film Festivaland won three awards at the Berlin International Film Festival.Examples of Lao feature films that have received international recognition include Lao New Wave Cinema'sAt the Horizon, directed by Anysay Keola, which was screened at the OzAsia Film Festival,and Lao Art Media'sChanthaly(Lao: ຈັນທະລີ), directed byMattie Do, which was screened at the 2013Fantastic Fest.In September 2017, Laos submittedDearest Sister(Lao: ນ້ອງຮັກ), Mattie Do's second feature film, to the90th Academy Awards(or the Oscars) for consideration forBest Foreign Language Film, marking the country's first submission for the Oscars.
As of 2018, Laos has three theatres dedicated to showing films.
There are some public holidays, festivities and ceremonies in Laos.
The Lao government controls media channels to prevent critique of its actions.Lao citizens who have criticised the government have been subjected to enforced disappearances, arrests and torture.
Polygamyis officially a crime in Laos. The constitution and Family Code bar the legal recognition of polygamous marriages, stipulating thatmonogamyis the principal form of marriage in the country.Polygamy is customary among some Hmong people.As of 2017, 3.5% of women and 2.1% of men between the ages of 15–49 were in a polygamous union.
The martial art ofmuay Lao, the national sport,is a form of kickboxing similar to Thailand'smuay Thai, BurmeseLethweiand CambodianPradal Serey.
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