Lao of Laos
The Lao live simply, in raised wooden houses, with a diet that lacks quantity, variety and some needed vitamins. A poor road system deters communication and transportation, but allows these people to stay as they have been.
While the Lao see no reason to be a work driven people, when it comes to spiritual things, hard work is the only way to make merit for their sins and keep the spirits happy.
Ethnicity
The lowland Lao, or ethnic Lao, are descended from the Thai people, who migrated south from China in the 13th century. The Lao in Thailand are closely related to the lowland Lao (the Lao Loum) in Laos.
Language
Lao is closely related to Thai. Numerous dialects, mostly mutually comprehensible, are spoken by different sub-groups across northeast Thailand and Laos. Illiteracy, at 43%, is a problem throughout the country. Education is poor and considered a low priority.
Population
The Lao are the single largest ethnic group in Laos. There are about 2.5 million Lao — about half the entire population of Laos. These are the people who gave Laos its name.
Location
The Lao live in the lowland areas of the Mekong River and its tributaries. The river is the lifeline of the nation’s rice crop. As the self-professed superior race in Laos, the Lao have claimed the river valley, which is the most fertile land in the country. Today northeast Thailand is home to an estimated 16 million Lao, who also live primarily along the banks of the Mekong river which makes up most of the border of Laos with Thailand.
Culture
The Lao have been influenced by the Khmer culture. In the 14th century, the Lao embraced Theravada Buddhism. Village life today still centres around the Buddhist temples. Their houses are made of wood and built on stilts with thatched roofs, although tin is popular these days. The extended family is usually spread throughout several houses in one compound. The easy-going and non-confrontational trademark of the ethnic Lao stems from a very basic, "it doesn’t matter" mentality. There is a caste system of authority that starts with monks, then teachers and then one’s parents. When the communists took over, they simply forced the monks to teach communist thought.
Livelihood
Most Lao are rice paddy farmers (85%) living at subsistence level. They believe that once the family has enough rice, there is no need for more. Fishing and animal husbandry are important supplementary activities. Some trade and sell handicrafts of silk, wood and silver in the cities, but trade is limited, primarily because roads are poor or non-existent. Exports are minimal and include wood, coffee, tobacco, tea, tin and gypsum.
Political
An ethnic Lao, Fa Ngoun, established his rule over the area now known as Laos in 1351. He later made Buddhism the official religion, but the hill tribes remained animists. After a long history of wars, the French took control from 1880 until the communist party became the official government in 1975. The communists destroyed all links with religion: places of worship, literature and training institutions.
Religion
The Lao have a Theravada Buddhist worldview, but communism has destroyed their loyalty to Buddhism. (Laotian Buddhism is deeply influenced by superstition and belief in the spirit world.) Since 1978 some temples and monasteries have been re-opened. Before 1975 most Lao men spent some time as monks. Families would often send one son to the monastery to gain religious teaching and make merit for the family. Since communism, few become monks.
Openness to Christianity
Only 0.2% of the Lao call themselves Christian. Their easy-goingness makes such ideas as unchanging truths and personal convictions difficult to grasp. As most of the few ethnic Lao converts came to Christ as social outcasts, many Lao feel that Christianity is only for undesirable people. All known Protestant and Catholic churches in the northern provinces of Saybuly, Luang Prabang and Xieng Khuang have been forced to cease operations and close as part of a government campaign to coerce Christians into renouncing their faith. Many Christians now worship in secret.
Missions
In 1880 the Presbyterians entered Laos and were joined by the Swiss Brethren in 1902. These two groups then challenged the Christian Missionary Alliance with the work. Missionaries were forced out in 1975, and church leaders also fled. Only 10 Christian leaders remained in the country. Christian professionals from 11 organizations have been providing aid and relief since the late 1980s. Restrictions on public evangelism, building of churches and links with foreign organizations remain. FEBC broadcasts 16 hours weekly in Lao, Hmong, Khmu and Lahu. Pray for a reopened door for Bible translators, pioneer church planters and Bible teachers. Pray also for wisdom for expatriates in relating to the Lao church leaders, both in the distribution of aid and in ministry.