Riverside Boutique Resort: celebrating the ethnic and natural diversity of Laos Riverside Boutique Resort is proud to be the first luxury hotel that systematically promotes and celebrates the exceptional diversity of Laos throughout its design, decor and services. Laos has indeed a particularly rich variety of cultures, lifestyles and ecosystems. The country’s 16 provinces stretch 1,162 kilometers from the North to the South, and its 7 million inhabitants come from 49 officially recognized ethnic groups and four main language families. The 49 different ethnic groups found in Laos have very different customs, religions and lifestyles. For example, the Tai Lao traditionally live in wood houses on stilts along riverbanks, practicing a blend of Buddhism and spirit worship, and farming paddy rice fields. By contrast, the Hmong traditionally live in wood houses on the ground with thatched roofs, practicing spirit and ancestor worship, and planting dry upland rice. One of the best ways to appreciate Laos’ diversity is to observe local products, handicrafts and arts, including those on display at the Riverside Boutique Resort. Prominent artists and artisans have contributed their talent to help create a unique and authentic atmosphere that allows guests to fully experience what makes Laos such a special country. The rooms, for instance, feature original decors inspired by eight ethnic groups: the Akha, Hmong, Katu, Lanten, Lao Lum, Tai Daeng, Tai Lue and Yao.
Ethnic and language classifications in Laos
Riverside Boutique Resort’s ethnic notes have been prepared in partnership with the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre, a museum and cultural organization in Luang Prabang dedicated to the understanding and appreciation of the ethnic diversity of Laos. To know more about the Centre and what it offers, go to www.taeclaos.org
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A simple and widely used classification divides the population of Laos into three categories, based on where people traditionally live: Lao Loum (lowland Lao), Lao Theung (Lao of the mountain slopes), and Lao Soung (highland Lao). However, it is more appropriate to refer to a language classification: Austroasiatic: 24% of the population. Includes Khmu, Katu, Ta Oy and other groups. Hmong-Yao: 8.5% of the population. Includes Hmong, Yao Mien and Yao Mun (Lanten). Sino-Tibetan: 2.8% of the population. Includes Akha, Lahu, Phounoy and other groups. Tai-Kadai - 65% of the population. Includes Tai Lao, Tai Dam, Tai Deng, and other groups.