Key Facts about Laos

About Laos:

• It is located in the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia.
• It is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia.
• Official Name: Lao People's Democratic Republic
• History:
  • Colonization by the French from the late 19th to the mid-20th century infused Laos with a European cultural element, which intensified throughout the country’s embroilment in World War II and the Indochina wars, as well as a civil war of its own in the second half of the 20th century.
  • Guided by Marxist-Leninist ideology, Laos emerged from the turmoil in 1975 as a communist country.
• Bordering Countries: It is bounded to the north by China, to the northeast and east by Vietnam, to the south by Cambodia, to the west by Thailand, and to the northwest by Myanmar(Burma).
• Overall, the country extends about 650 miles (1,050 km) from northwest to southeast.
• Total Area: 236,800 sq km
• Highest point: Phu Bia 2,817 m
• Drainage:
  • Major rivers—the Tha, Beng, Ou, Ngum, Kading, Bangfai, Banghiang, and Kong—are tributaries of the Mekong River, Southeast Asia's most significant river.
  • The Mekong flows generally southeast and south along and through western Laos and forms its boundary with Myanmar and most of the border with Thailand. 
• Climate: It has the typical tropical monsoon(wet-dry) climate of the region.
• Vegetation: It has tropical rainforests of broad-leaved evergreens in the north and monsoon forests of mixed evergreens and deciduous trees in the south.
• Major Mountain Ranges: Annamite Range, Luang Prabang Range
• Languages: Lao (official), French, English, various ethnic languages
• Capita: Vientiane
• Religion: The predominant religion of Laos is Theravada Buddhism.
• Money: Kip
• Form of Government:
  • It is one of the world's few openly communist states.
  • It is a one-party state, and the general secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party holds ultimate power and authority over the state and government.