Laos is located in Southeastern Asia,
northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam.
Lowest Point: Mekong River
70
m
Highest Point: Phou Bia 2,817
m
Capital: Vientiane (Vientiane
Lodging)
Religion: Buddhist 60%, animist
and other 40%
Languages Spoken: Lao (official),
French,
English, and various ethnic languages
See also: Languages
spoken in Asia, Languages of the
world
Introduction - Brief History
Laos was under the control of Siam
(Thailand) from the late 18th century until the late 19th century when
it became part of French Indochina. The Franco-Siamese Treaty of 1907 defined
the current Lao border with Thailand. In 1975, the Communist Pathet Lao
took control of the government, ending a six-century-old monarchy. Initial
closer ties to Vietnam and socialization were replaced with a gradual return
to private enterprise, a liberalization of foreign investment laws, and
the admission into ASEAN in 1997. |
Laos
