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:
  • All the 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: Laos 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.

Q1: What is Theravada Buddhism?

Theravada, meaning "Teaching of the Elders", is the most conservative and orthodox form of Buddhism. It emphasises attaining liberation from suffering through individual effort and meditation based on Buddha's earliest teachings in the Pali Canon. It believes in the historicity of a single Buddha, Gautama Shakyamuni.

Source: 47 Indians rescued from ‘cyber scam centres’ in Laos; embassy warns against ‘fake job offers’