Xaignabouli Province
Encyclopedia
Sainyabuli is a province of Laos
, located in the northwest of the country.
river. It is bordered by Oudomxai Province
to the north, Louangphabang and Vientiane Province to the east, and (from the south clockwise) the Thai
provinces Loei
, Phitsanulok
, Uttaradit
, Nan
and Phayao
. The province is quite mountainous and devoid of vehicle roads expect for one north-south route extending from the provincial capital to the Thai border opposite Thailand's Loie Province. The province is rich in timber
and lignite
, and is considered the rice basket of norther Laos, since most other northern provinces are too mountainous to grow enough rice. Other important crops include maize, oranges, cotton, peanuts and sesame.
to the French Indochina
colony. In 1941 it was annexed by Thailand again under the name Lan Chang Province, but returned to the pre-war status in 1946. The area is allegedly a heartland for military involvement in illegal timber trade.
, provincial and district authorities.
villages, the warfare during the Quiet War that affected other Hmong villages largely did not affect Sainyabuli. Most Hmong villages in Sainyabuli did not see any fighting.
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, located in the northwest of the country.
Geography
The province is located in the northwest of the country, and covers all the area west of the MekongMekong
The Mekong is a river that runs through China, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. It is the world's 10th-longest river and the 7th-longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annually....
river. It is bordered by Oudomxai Province
Oudomxai Province
Oudomxay or Oudômxai is a province of Laos, located in the northwest of the country. The province capital is Muang Xai.-History:The province was created in 1976, when it was split off from Luang Prabang...
to the north, Louangphabang and Vientiane Province to the east, and (from the south clockwise) the Thai
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
provinces Loei
Loei Province
Loei is one of the most sparsely populated provinces of Thailand, located in the North-East. Neighboring provinces are Nong Khai, Udon Thani, Nongbua Lamphu, Khon Kaen, Phetchabun, Phitsanulok...
, Phitsanulok
Phitsanulok Province
Phitsanulok is a provinces of Thailand, located in the north. Neighboring provinces are Loei, Phetchabun, Phichit, Kamphaeng Phet, Sukhothai, Uttaradit. In the north-east it also has a short border with Xaignabouli of Laos....
, Uttaradit
Uttaradit Province
Uttaradit is one of the northern provinces of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Phitsanulok, Sukhothai, Phrae and Nan...
, Nan
Nan Province
Nan is one of the northern provinces of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Uttaradit, Phrae and Phayao. To the north and east it borders Sainyabuli of Laos.-Geography:...
and Phayao
Phayao Province
Phayao is one of the northern provinces of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Nan, Phrae, Lampang and Chiang Rai. In the north-east it borders Xaignabouli of Laos.- Geography :...
. The province is quite mountainous and devoid of vehicle roads expect for one north-south route extending from the provincial capital to the Thai border opposite Thailand's Loie Province. The province is rich in timber
Timber
Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...
and lignite
Lignite
Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, or Rosebud coal by Northern Pacific Railroad,is a soft brown fuel with characteristics that put it somewhere between coal and peat...
, and is considered the rice basket of norther Laos, since most other northern provinces are too mountainous to grow enough rice. Other important crops include maize, oranges, cotton, peanuts and sesame.
History
In 1904 the area of the province was ceded from SiamThailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
to the French Indochina
French Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
colony. In 1941 it was annexed by Thailand again under the name Lan Chang Province, but returned to the pre-war status in 1946. The area is allegedly a heartland for military involvement in illegal timber trade.
Asian elephants in Sainyabuli
The Sainyabuli province is home to Laos’ majority of domesticated Asian elephants. Approximately 75% of the nation’s 560 domesticated elephants work in Sainyabuli. Their main work duties are within the logging industry, which causes a loss in both wild and domestic elephant habitat. The Sainyabuli province is also home to the annual Elephant Festival, organised in partnership by the Lao PDR National Tourism Authority, ElefantasiaElefantasia
ElefantAsia is a non-profit organisation dedicated towards the protection of the Asian elephant, Elephas maximus. This organisation operates in Laos PDR where today there are only 1500 Asian elephants remaining, 560 of these domesticated and working with their mahouts.Created by Sebastien...
, provincial and district authorities.
Geography
Sainyabuli is the only Laotian province that is west of the Mekong River. Because the Mekong isolated Sainuyabuli from other Laotian provinces with HmongHmong people
The Hmong , are an Asian ethnic group from the mountainous regions of China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. Hmong are also one of the sub-groups of the Miao ethnicity in southern China...
villages, the warfare during the Quiet War that affected other Hmong villages largely did not affect Sainyabuli. Most Hmong villages in Sainyabuli did not see any fighting.
Administrative divisions
The province is made up of the following districts:- Boten (8-09)
- Hongsa (8-03)
- Kenthao (8-08)
- Khop (8-02)
- Ngeun (8-04)
- Paklai (8-07)
- Phiang (8-06)
- Thongmixai (8-10)
- Sainyabuli (8-01)
- Xianghon (8-05)
Other locations
- Houaysouy was a HmongHmong peopleThe Hmong , are an Asian ethnic group from the mountainous regions of China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. Hmong are also one of the sub-groups of the Miao ethnicity in southern China...
village in Sainyabuli. It had no fighting during the Quiet War, and Vang PaoVang PaoVang Pao was a Lieutenant General in the Royal Lao Army. He was an ethnic Hmong and a leader of the Hmong American community in the United States.-Early life:...
did not recruit any of its men. After the war, Anne Fadiman, author of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall DownThe Spirit Catches You and You Fall DownThe Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures is a 1997 book by Anne Fadiman that chronicles the struggles of a Hmong refugee family from Sainyabuli Province, Laos, the Lees, and their interactions with the health care system in...
, said that the village was "tossed into the political melee along with the rest of the country." The occupying Vietnamese soldiers regarded the residents of the village as traitors because they were Hmong. Because of this, the Vietnamese soldiers persecuted the Hmong. In 1979 around 400 members of the Lee, Vang, Xiong, and Yang clans attempted to escape from the village.- The family of Lia Lee, the subject of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, originated from Houaysouy.