Laos

Where the name comes from

Laos is named after the Lao people; French usage added the final “s”, and the origin of Lao is uncertain.

First people

Austroasiatic-speaking peoples lived here first, and Tai-speaking Lao communities founded the kingdom of Lan Xang in 1353, uniting communities along the Mekong.^1,2,3

Known for

Laos is known for the Plain of Jars, fields of huge ancient stone jars, and for Luang Prabang, its royal city of Buddhist temples.⁴

Outside rule

In 1893, France forced Siam to give up lands east of the Mekong, the core of colonial Laos, dividing a wider Lao world.²

The modern country

Japanese occupation in 1945 and renewed French rule in 1946 came before full independence in 1953.¹