Asian Elephant
Laos is nicknamed 'Land of a Million Elephants,' and these gentle giants have been central to Lao culture, logging, and ceremony for over a thousand years.
Flag of Laos
Field Report
Laos is a small, forested country tucked into the heart of Southeast Asia, bordered by rivers, mountains, and five neighboring nations. About 7 million people live there, many in small villages along the Mekong River, and the country has a rich and ancient culture going back thousands of years. Most people in Laos have never had a real chance to hear about Jesus, which makes it one of the most important places in the world to pray for.
From the Field Notebook
Asian Elephant
Laos is nicknamed 'Land of a Million Elephants,' and these gentle giants have been central to Lao culture, logging, and ceremony for over a thousand years.
Mekong Giant Catfish
One of the largest freshwater fish on earth, this enormous catfish lives in the Mekong River that runs along Laos's border and can grow longer than a grown man is tall.
Clouded Leopard
This rare, tree-climbing wild cat hides in the dense mountain forests of Laos, and its cloud-shaped spots make it one of the most striking predators in Southeast Asia.
Sticky Rice (Khao Niao)
Lao people eat sticky rice at nearly every meal, rolling it into small balls with their fingers and using it to scoop up other dishes — it is so central to Lao identity that people sometimes call themselves 'children of sticky rice.'
Laap
Laap is a minced meat salad mixed with lime juice, fish sauce, toasted rice powder, and fresh herbs, and it is considered the national dish of Laos.
Or Lam
This thick, smoky stew from the ancient city of Luang Prabang is packed with vegetables, wood ear mushrooms, and lemongrass, and it has a deep, earthy flavor unlike anything found in Western cooking.
Laos is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia, meaning it has no coastline — it is completely surrounded by five other countries: China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Myanmar.
The Plain of Jars in central Laos is covered with thousands of ancient stone jars, some as tall as a person, and archaeologists still are not entirely sure who made them or why.
More bombs were dropped on Laos during the Vietnam War era than on any other country in history relative to its size, and people still find unexploded bombs in their fields today.
The Mekong River, which forms much of Laos's western border, is so important to daily life that many villages are built right on its banks and families use it for fishing, bathing, and travel.
Laos has more than 49 different ethnic groups, each with its own language, clothing, and traditions, which means the country is far more diverse on the inside than it looks on a map.
Daily Life
69
Years life expectancy
76%
Can read and write
91%
Kids go to school
Missions Field Report
Laos is home to 184 distinct people groups — 142 of them haven’t yet heard about Jesus.
About half of Laos's people follow Buddhism (59.8%). Evangelical Christians make up about 2.5% of the population.
What People Believe
Unreached People Groups
These are communities of people who haven’t had the chance to hear about Jesus yet. They need missionaries — and they need kids like you to pray for them.
Phu Thai
241,000 people
Lao Phuan
159,000 people
Thai
155,000 people
Tai Lue
140,000 people
Tai Kao
112,000 people
Prayer Journal
Tick each one as you pray. God hears every word.