Lao language

Lao
Lao
ພາສາລາວ ([pʰaːsaː laːw])
Native to	Laos, Thailand
Native speakers	5,225,552 (2006), roughly 20 million if Isan speakers are included.
Language family	Kradai Tai Southwestern East Central Lao-Phutai Lao; ; ; ; ;
Official status
Official language in	Laos
Language codes
ISO 639-1	lo
ISO 639-2	lao
ISO 639-3	lao

Lao or Laotian is a language and is the official language of Laos.^[1] It is also spoken in the northeast part of Thailand.^[2] Lao, like the other languages of Laos, is written in an abugida writing system. The languages has variations, but the Vientiane dialect is considered the standard written form of Lao.^[3]

Lao and Thai are both Tai languages and are very similar to each other. In fact, speakers of northern Thai dialects and Lao claim that they can largely understand each other, making the dialects mutually intelligible.

↑ "Lao Language". Laos-Guide-999.com. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
↑ "Facts about Lao". Thailao.net/. Archived from the original on 26 March 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
↑ E K Brown; Sarah Ogilvie, Concise Encyclopedia of Languages of the World (Amsterdam, Netherlands; Boston, MA: Elsevier, 2009), p. 639

[LG999-1] "Lao Language". Laos-Guide-999.com. Retrieved 21 April 2016.

[2] "Facts about Lao". Thailao.net/. Archived from the original on 26 March 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.

[3] E K Brown; Sarah Ogilvie, Concise Encyclopedia of Languages of the World (Amsterdam, Netherlands; Boston, MA: Elsevier, 2009), p. 639

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