Laos: landmarks, animals & facts for kids

1 landmark · 1 animal

Laos on My Earth Toy, the free 3D toy globe for kids: 1 landmark, 1 animal. Here you can see its flag, capital and size, then fly to every place on the globe.

Flag of Laos

A red stripe at the top and bottom and a wide dark blue stripe in the middle, with a large white disc in the centre.

Read about this flag →

Laos at a glance

Capital: Vientiane
Continent: Asia
Area: 237,955 km²
Population: 7.8 million

Laos is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, surrounded by China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar. Its capital, Vientiane, lies on the banks of the Mekong River. Laos is a land of forested mountains and river valleys, known for its Buddhist temples, saffron-robed monks, the old royal town of Luang Prabang and its love of sticky rice.

On My Earth Toy you can visit Pha That Luang in Vientiane, a great golden stupa that is the national symbol of Laos. In the mountain forests, look for the saola, one of the rarest large mammals in the world, which scientists only discovered in 1992.

Geography and nature

Most of Laos is mountainous and covered with forest. The highest peak, Phu Bia, is 2,817 metres tall. The Mekong River flows the length of the country and forms much of its border with Thailand. In the far south, the river spreads out among thousands of islands, an area called Si Phan Don, and thunders over Khone Phapheng Falls. The weather is tropical, with a rainy season from about May to November and a dry season the rest of the year.

People, languages and culture

Lao is the official language, and Laos is home to dozens of ethnic groups with their own languages and customs. Most Lao people are Theravada Buddhists, and at dawn in Luang Prabang, lines of monks walk the streets to receive offerings of rice. Sticky rice, rolled into little balls with the fingers, is eaten at almost every meal. The khaen, a mouth organ made of bamboo pipes, is a national instrument, and colourful boat races are held when the rainy season ends.

History in a nutshell

In 1353, King Fa Ngum founded the kingdom of Lan Xang, whose name means land of a million elephants. It later split into three smaller kingdoms that fell under the influence of Siam (Thailand). In 1893 France made Laos a protectorate, and it gained full independence in 1953. A long civil war followed, and in 1975 the Lao People's Democratic Republic was established. During the war years the country was heavily bombed, and work to clear unexploded bombs still continues.

Fun facts

The old name Lan Xang means land of a million elephants.
The Plain of Jars has thousands of huge stone jars more than 2,000 years old, and scientists are still studying why they were made.
The saola is so shy and rare that scientists have hardly ever seen one alive in the wild.
Khone Phapheng is often called the largest waterfall in Southeast Asia by the amount of water flowing over it.