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Geography of Laos
Laos is a landlocked country in mainland Southeast Asia. It covers approximately 236,800 square kilometers and is surrounded by Myanmar, Cambodia, China, Thailand, and Vietnam.
About 70% of its geographic area is made up of mountain ranges, highlands, plateaus, and rivers cut through.
Most of the western border of Laos is demarcated by the Mekong river, which is an artery for transportation. The Dong Falls at the southern end of the country prevent access to the sea, and cargo boats travel along the entire length of the Mekong in Laos during most of the year. Smaller power boats and pirogues provide an important means of transportation on many of the tributaries of the Mekong.
Prior to the twentieth century, kingdoms and principalities encompassed areas on both sides of the Mekong, and Thai control in the nineteenth century extended to the left bank. While the Mekong was established as a border by French colonial forces, travel from 1 side to the other has been more limited since the establishment of the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR, or Laos) in 1975.
The eastern border with Vietnam extends for 2,130 kilometres, mostly along the crest of the Annamite Chain, and serves as a physical barrier between the Chinese-influenced culture of Vietnam and the Indianized states of Laos and Thailand. These mountains are populated by tribal minorities who traditionally have not acknowledged the border with Vietnam any more than lowland Lao have been constrained by the 1,754-kilometre Mekong River border with Thailand. Thus, ethnic minority populations are found on both the Laotian and Vietnamese sides of the frontier. Because of their "relative isolation", contact between these groups and lowland Lao has been mostly confined to trading.
Laos shares a 541 kilometres—southern border with Cambodia, and Khmer ruins at Wat Pho and other southern locations attest to the history of contact between the Lao and the Khmer. In the north, the country is bounded by a 423-kilometre border with China and shares the 235-kilometre-long Mekong River border with Myanmar.
The topography of Laos is "largely mountainous", with the Annamite Range in the northeast and east and the Luang Prabang Range in the northwest, among other ranges typically characterized by "steep terrain". Elevations are typically above 500 metres with river valleys. This landscape extends across most of the north of the country, except for the plain of Vientiane and the Plain of Jars in the Xiangkhoang Plateau.
The southern "panhandle" of the country contains areas in Savannakhét and Champasak provinces that are more suited for paddy rice cultivation and livestock raising. Most of Khammouan Province and the eastern part of all the southern provinces are "mountainous". Together, the alluvial plains and terraces of the Mekong and its tributaries cover about 20% of the land area.
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Geography of Laos
Laos is a landlocked country in mainland Southeast Asia. It covers approximately 236,800 square kilometers and is surrounded by Myanmar, Cambodia, China, Thailand, and Vietnam.
About 70% of its geographic area is made up of mountain ranges, highlands, plateaus, and rivers cut through.
Most of the western border of Laos is demarcated by the Mekong river, which is an artery for transportation. The Dong Falls at the southern end of the country prevent access to the sea, and cargo boats travel along the entire length of the Mekong in Laos during most of the year. Smaller power boats and pirogues provide an important means of transportation on many of the tributaries of the Mekong.
Prior to the twentieth century, kingdoms and principalities encompassed areas on both sides of the Mekong, and Thai control in the nineteenth century extended to the left bank. While the Mekong was established as a border by French colonial forces, travel from 1 side to the other has been more limited since the establishment of the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR, or Laos) in 1975.
The eastern border with Vietnam extends for 2,130 kilometres, mostly along the crest of the Annamite Chain, and serves as a physical barrier between the Chinese-influenced culture of Vietnam and the Indianized states of Laos and Thailand. These mountains are populated by tribal minorities who traditionally have not acknowledged the border with Vietnam any more than lowland Lao have been constrained by the 1,754-kilometre Mekong River border with Thailand. Thus, ethnic minority populations are found on both the Laotian and Vietnamese sides of the frontier. Because of their "relative isolation", contact between these groups and lowland Lao has been mostly confined to trading.
Laos shares a 541 kilometres—southern border with Cambodia, and Khmer ruins at Wat Pho and other southern locations attest to the history of contact between the Lao and the Khmer. In the north, the country is bounded by a 423-kilometre border with China and shares the 235-kilometre-long Mekong River border with Myanmar.
The topography of Laos is "largely mountainous", with the Annamite Range in the northeast and east and the Luang Prabang Range in the northwest, among other ranges typically characterized by "steep terrain". Elevations are typically above 500 metres with river valleys. This landscape extends across most of the north of the country, except for the plain of Vientiane and the Plain of Jars in the Xiangkhoang Plateau.
The southern "panhandle" of the country contains areas in Savannakhét and Champasak provinces that are more suited for paddy rice cultivation and livestock raising. Most of Khammouan Province and the eastern part of all the southern provinces are "mountainous". Together, the alluvial plains and terraces of the Mekong and its tributaries cover about 20% of the land area.