A country of southeast Asia. Originally part of the Khmer Empire, the region became a powerful Lao kingdom (14th-15th century) and was later incorporated into French Indochina in 1893. Laos gained its independence in 1953, but a Communist uprising soon drew the country into a civil war, and a Communist state was established in 1975. Vientiane is the capital and the largest city. Population: 6,520,000.
Lao (lou)
n.
pl.Lao or Laos (louz)
A member of a Buddhist people inhabiting the area of the Mekong River in Laos and Thailand.
The Tai language of the Lao.
adj.
Of or relating to the Lao or their language or culture.
[Lao Láo, perhaps from láo, person (unattested sense), third person common-gender pronoun.]
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