The following is a list of ethnic groups in Laos.
Specialists are largely in agreement as to the ethnolinguistic classification of the ethnic groups of Laos. [1] For the purposes of the 1995 census, the government of Laos recognized 149 ethnic groups within 47 main ethnicities. [1] whereas the Lao Front for National Construction (LFNC) recently revised the list to include 49 ethnicities consisting of over 160 ethnic groups. [1]
The term ethnic minorities is used by some to classify the non-Lao ethnic groups, while the term indigenous peoples is not used by Lao authorities. [1] These 160 ethnic groups speak a total of 82 distinct living languages. [2]
Below are some ethnic groups of Laos who speak unclassified languages, listed roughly from north to south. [9] District codes are also given (see districts of Laos ).
Ethnolinguistic group | Population | Possible linguistic affiliation | Locations |
---|---|---|---|
Poumong | 1,000 | Tibeto-Burman (Phunyot) [10] | Ban Phoumon. Boun-Tai (2-07) and Khoa (2-03) districts, southern Phongsaly Province |
Pouhoy | 200 (1995; 35 families) [6] | Oy, Katuic? | Kang Village, Namo District (4-03), northern Oudomxai Province |
Taket | < 1,000 [6] | Austro-Asiatic? [6] | Nambak District (6-05), Luang Prabang Province |
Tamoy | 500 (< 15 villages) | Palaungic, Khmuic? | Viangphoukha District (3-04), Luang Namtha Province |
Nguan | 30,000 | Lametic, Palaungic? | Nale (3-05), Viangphoukha (3-04), and Luang Namtha (3-01) districts of Luang Namtha Province, near the Khuen, Lamet, and Khmu Rok peoples; also in Houayxay District (5-01), Bokeo Province |
Salao | 800 | Ethnic Lao [6] | Pakxong District (16-04), Champasak Province |
Laos is a country in Southeast Asia. The country's population was estimated at 7.43 million in 2021, dispersed unevenly across the country. Most people live in valleys of the Mekong River and its tributaries. Vientiane Prefecture, which includes Vientiane, the capital and largest city of the country, had 820,924 residents as of the 2015 census. The country's population density is 26.7/km2.
The Khmu are an ethnic group of Southeast Asia. The majority (88%) live in northern Laos where they constitute the largest minority ethnic group, comprising eleven percent of the total population. Alternative historical English spellings include Kmhmu, Kemu, and Kơbru, among others.
The Khmuic languages are a branch of the Austroasiatic languages spoken mostly in northern Laos, as well as in neighboring northern Vietnam and southern Yunnan, China. Khmu is the only widely spoken language in the group.
Phu Thai is a Southwestern Tai language spoken in Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. Although it appears different from the Isan and the Lao languages, it is spoken in areas where these languages are predominant and has been influenced by them. Comparisons of Phu Thai with other Tai languages such as Tay Khang have not yet been done systematically enough to yield convincing results.
Another aspect of Phu Thai is its contact with the Katuic languages, a branch of the Austroasiatic languages. Whether in the Phu Thai areas of Central Laos or in more recent locations of Northeastern Thailand, one can find, along with Phu Thai, a few Katuic dialects known locally as Bru, So or Katang. James R. Chamberlain (2012) focusing on anthropological issues describes “the Phou Thay – Brou relationship” as a “symbiosis” and states that “the Phou Thay – Brou relationship has never evolved into a feudal system”.
The Lua people are a minority ethnic group native to Laos, although there is now a sizable community living in Thailand. Lua' is their preferred autonym (self-designation), while their Lao neighbours tend to call them Thin, T'in or Htin. Another term for this group is Lawa. There are two subgroups: the Mal and the Phai or Pray.
Thailand is a country of some 70 ethnic groups, including at least 24 groups of ethnolinguistically Tai peoples, mainly the Central, Southern, Northeastern, and Northern Thais; 22 groups of Austroasiatic peoples, with substantial populations of Northern Khmer and Kuy; 11 groups speaking Sino-Tibetan languages, with the largest in population being the Karen; 3 groups of Austronesian peoples, i.e., the Malay, the majority ethnic group in the southernmost three provinces, together with the Moken and Urak Lawoi ; and both groups of Hmong-Mien. Other ethnic groups include longstanding immigrant communities such as the Chinese, Indians and Thai Portuguese.
The Phuan people, ພວນ Phouan, pronounced[pʰúan]), also known as Tai Phuan, Thai Puan or Lao Phuan, are a Theravada Buddhist Tai people spread out in small pockets over most of Thailand's Isan region with other groups scattered throughout central Thailand and Laos. There are also approximately 5000 Phuan in the Mongkol Borei District of Banteay Meanchey Province in Cambodia, as well in Battambang Province. According to the Ethnologue Report, the Phuan number 204,704 and that is split fairly evenly between populations in Laos and Thailand.
Phuan or Northeastern Lao is a Tai language spoken in Laos, Thailand and Cambodia.
The Yoy people are an ethnic group in Southeast Asia.
The Kongsat people are an ethnic group in Laos.
Khorat Thai, Korat Thai, Thai Korat or Thai Khorat refers to an ethnic group named for their main settlement area in Nakhon Ratchasima Province, unofficially called "Korat". Korat Thai people call themselves Thai Boeng, Thai Doeng, or Thai Khorat. Other tribes in northern Thailand also refer to them by those names.
Bit is an Austroasiatic language spoken by around 2,000 people in Phongsaly Province, northern Laos and in Mengla County, Yunnan, China.
Tai peoples are the populations who speak the Tai languages. There are a total of about 93 million people of Tai ancestry worldwide, with the largest ethnic groups being Dai, Thai, Isan, Tai Yai (Shan), Lao, Tai Ahom, Tai Kassay and some Northern Thai peoples.
Tai Loi, also known as Mong Lue, refers to various Palaungic languages spoken mainly in Burma, with a few hundred in Laos and some also in China. Hall (2017) reports that Tai Loi is a cover term meaning 'mountain Tai' in Shan, and refers to various Angkuic, Waic, and Western Palaungic languages rather than a single language or branch. The Shan exonym Tai Loi can refer to:
Paza is a Loloish language of northern Laos. Paza speakers consist of 2,100 people distributed in 8 villages of Ban Phusang Mai, Muang Samphan, Phongsaly, and 1 village in Oudomxay. It is documented as "Phusang" in Kato (2008), which has a brief word list of the language collected from Phusangkao village, Samphan District.
Xiangkhouang is a province of Laos on the Xiangkhoang Plateau, in the nation's northeast. The province has the distinction of being the most heavily-bombed place on Earth.
Phongsaly province, also spelled Phôngsali, is a province of Laos in the extreme north of the country. The capital of the province is the city of Phôngsali. Phongsaly is between Yunnan (China), and Điện Biên province in Vietnam. Its culture has thus been historically heavily influenced by China.
The Yang people, also known as the Nhang or Nyang, are a Tai-speaking ethnic group residing in Phongsaly Province, northwestern Laos. According to Chazee (1998), their population was 5,843 people as of 2015. The Yang are heavily influenced by Tai Lue culture, although the Yang of Namo Nua village, Oudomxay province are more heavily influenced by Tai Dam people culture.
Vietic peoples refers to a group of ethnic groups of Southeast Asia.
The Bo are an ethnic group of Laos. The Bo population primarily spread throughout Bolikhamxai and Khammouane provinces, Central Laos.