Fast Facts

Full country name: Lao People's Democratic Republic
Area: 236,000 sq km
Population: 4.75 million (growth rate 2.9%)
Capital city: Vientiane (pop 300,000)
People: 50% Lao Loum (lowland Lao), 30% Lao Theung (lower-mountain dwellers of mostly proto-Malay or Mon-Khmer descent), 10-20% Lao Sung (Hmong or Mien high-altitude hill tribes) and 10-20% tribal Thais
Language: Lao and Lao dialects (closely related to Thai), French
Religion: 85% Buddhist, 15% animist and spirit cults
Government: Socialist republic
Head of state: Nouhak Phoumsavanh
Prime Minister: General Khamtai Siphandone

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