The Best of Cambodia & Laos

188
LAOS IN DEPTH
9
A PATCHWORK OF ETHNICITY
The large population of Lao people living
in France and the USA means that
there are also singers playing hybrid forms
of Lao and western music, be that genres
as international as rap or heavy metal. This
is a relatively new phenomenon in Laos
itself since until as recently as 2003, “modern”
music was virtually against the law
since the seriously unhip ruling politburo
thought it was a capitulation to decadent
Western values.
There is a vibrant live music scene in
Vientiane. Bars such as The Wind West
(p. 239) feature very skilled musicians
playing both Western covers, Lao pop, and
traditional music.
The people of Laos are ethnically diverse,
though a truly authoritative survey of all
ethnic groups has never been conducted.
Before the wars in the ’60s and ’70s, more
than 60 different groups were commonly
identified. The 1985 census listed 47
groups. Some of these were made up of
only a few hundred people. A lot of this
huge variation in estimated numbers was a
result of disagreement about what actually
represents a separate ethnic group. The
1985 census also defined three general ethnic
group classifications defined by origin
and language. Defining ethnicity in Laos
still remains an inexact science.
The lowland Lao, or Lao Loum, make
up the majority of the population, 66% in
total. In turn they are made up of a number
of different sub groups. All Lao Loum
speak languages of the Tai-Kadai family;
Lao, Lue, Tai Dam (Black Tai), and Tai
Deng (Red Tai). They stay in the river valleys
and engage in wet rice cultivation.
The distinction between Thai and Laos is
a political one rather than an ethnic one.
The vast majority of people who could be
classified as Lao actually live in the northeastern
provinces of Thailand.
DANCE
Although Laos shares traditions of classical
dance with both Thailand and Cambodia,
it is not an art form that has been particularly
nurtured over the last 40 years. This
is largely as a result of relentless conflict
and a population generally prioritizing
survival rather than the arts. Unlike in
Cambodia where dance was very nearly
dramatically and murderously wiped out,
the Lao government has been largely indifferent
to the slow decline of some traditional
arts. That doesn’t mean that all
dance is dead. The lamvong, the national
folk dance in which participants dance in
concentric circles, remains very popular.
5 A PATCHWORK OF ETHNICITY
The Lao Theung, or midland Lao,
account for about 24% of the population
of Laos; they were originally displaced to
higher ground by the migrations of the
Lao Loum. The cultural and linguistic
variation among the numerous Lao
Theung groups is more pronounced than
those of the Lao Loum or Lao Sung, or
upland Lao. Groups range from the Khmu
and Lamet in the north, to the Katang and
Makong in the center of the country, to
the Loven and Lawae farther south.
The Lao Sung, often called hill tribes,
make up about 10% of the population.
These groups are Miao-Yao or Tibeto-
Burmese speaking peoples who migrated
relatively recently from Southern China.
In Laos most highland groups live on the
upper slopes of mountains in the north
farming rice on steeply stepped terraces.
Some of these groups have been resettled
in lowland areas since the 1970s. The
Hmong are the most numerous of these
hill tribe groups, with villages spread
across all the Northern provinces. Mien
(Yao), Akha, Lahu, and other related
groups are fewer in number and tend to be
located in more restricted areas.