Savannakhet province

Savannakhet is the largest province, covering an area of {{convert|21774|km2}}.{{Cite web|url=http://www.laotourism.org/laotourism.htm|title=Home|work=Regions|access-date=7 January 2013|publisher=Official website of Laos Tourism|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130111175743/http://www.laotourism.org/laotourism.htm|archive-date=11 January 2013|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=http://www.laotourism.org/savannakhet.htm|title=Savannakhet Province|publisher=Lao Tourism Organization|access-date=3 December 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131026015347/http://laotourism.org/savannakhet.htm|archive-date=26 October 2013|url-status=dead}}{{cite book|last=Usa|first=Usa Ibp|title=Laos Mineral & Mining Sector Investment and Business Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Regulations |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-EY6QvyHDesC&pg=PA21|date=3 December 2009|publisher= Int'l Business Publications |isbn=978-1-4387-2827-8|page=25}} The province borders Khammouan province to the north, Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên–Huế provinces of Vietnam to the east, Salavan province to the south, and Nakhon Phanom and Mukdahan provinces of Thailand to the west. Settlements in the province include Savannakhet, Muong Song Khone, Ban Nhiang, Seno, Dong-Hen, Muang Phalan, Ban Sanoun, Muang Phin, Ban Dong, Ban Nammi, Ban Nao Tai.{{cite web|url=http://unosat-maps.web.cern.ch/unosat-maps/LA/UNOSAT_Laos_Base_Map_v1.0_highres.jpeg |title=Base Map:Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR|publisher=UNOSAT|access-date=4 December 2012}}

The Second Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge over the Mekong connects Mukdahan province in Thailand with Savannakhet in Laos. The bridge is {{Convert|1600|m}} long and {{Convert|12|m}} wide, with 2 traffic lanes.{{Cite web|url=http://english.people.com.cn/200612/20/eng20061220_334347.html|title=2nd Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge officially opens|publisher=People's Daily|date=20 December 2006|access-date=5 December 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121002232321/http://english.people.com.cn/200612/20/eng20061220_334347.html|archive-date=2 October 2012|url-status=dead}}

Areas under protection in the province include Xe Bang Nouan National Biodiversity Conservation Area to the south, Dong Phou Vieng National Protected Area to the southeast, and Phou Xang He National Protected Area to the north. Phou Xang He has rocky mountain ranges, and is known for local Puthai culture. The Dong Phou Vieng is known for its forest with vegetation, a sacred lake and That Ing Hang Stupa; there are Eld's deer, silver langurs and hornbills.{{Cite web|url=http://ecotourismlaos.com/savannakhet.htm|title=Savannakhet Province, Central Laos|access-date=5 December 2012|publisher=Official web site of Eco Tourism Development Project, Lao, DPR|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120829063757/http://www.ecotourismlaos.com/savannakhet.htm|archive-date=29 August 2012|url-status=dead}}

The province is made up of the following 15 districts:

Prehistoric human occupation is evidenced by the first stone tools in the province, dating back between 100,000 and 12,000 years. The first bronze tools date to 2000 BCE. The region was then the center of the Sikhottabong Kingdom. The Pha That Sikhottabong stupa is on the grounds of a 19th-century monastery in Thakhek.{{cite web|url=http://www.lonelyplanet.com/laos/sights/other/pha-that-sikhottabong|title=Pha That Sikhottabong|publisher=Lonely Planet/BBC Worldwide|access-date=12 December 2012}} Sikhottabong was a kingdom in Indo-China. Its capital was in the north-west of the province, in what later is the village of Meuang Kabong, on the eastern shores of the Banghiang River, about {{convert|10|km}} east of the Mekong. Other centers of the kingdom were in Viang Chan, Khammuan, Nong Khai, and Udon.{{cite book|last=Rasdavong|first=Khamyad|title=The History of Buddhism in Laos|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v-wQAQAAIAAJ|access-date=11 December 2012|year=2006|publisher=Lao Front for National Construction, Central Committee|pages=25, 27, 29}} Khmer Empire ruins dating to 553 and 700 CE have been found at Heuan Hin.{{cite book|last1=Bush|first1=Austin|last2=Elliot|first2=Mark|last3=Ray|first3=Nick|title=Laos 7|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lvF-VGFU5CwC&pg=PA261|access-date=11 December 2012|date=1 December 2010|publisher=Lonely Planet|isbn=978-1-74179-153-2|pages=261–}}

In the 20th century, Savannakhet province was 1 of the seats of the struggle for independence. Prime Minister Kaysone Phomvihane originated in the province.{{cite book|author=Rough Guides|title=The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia On A Budget|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=blOJhyGSjtwC&pg=PA436|access-date=11 December 2012|date=15 November 2010|publisher=Penguin|isbn=978-1-4053-8686-9|pages=436–}} The town was bombed and then occupied by Thai armed forces during the Franco-Thai War. During the Vietnam War, the eastern part of the province was crossed by the Ho Chi Minh trail. It was bombed by U.S. forces and loyalists. Some areas are still under the threat of unexploded ordnance. In 2007, the Second Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge was opened across the Mekong from Savannakhet to Mukdahan, Thailand. In April 2008, a chance discovery was made at Meuang Kabong consisting of {{convert|8.5|kg}} of gold and {{convert|18.7|kg}} of silver objects, and pillars and traces of brick walls. Missionaries came here, evidenced by a Catholic church in Savannakhet.{{cite book|last1=Cranmer|first1=Jeff|last2=Martin|first2=Steven|last3=Coxon|first3=Kirby|title=Laos|url=https://archive.org/details/laos0000cran|url-access=registration|access-date=11 December 2012|date=1 November 2002|publisher=Rough Guides|isbn=978-1-85828-905-2|pages=[https://archive.org/details/laos0000cran/page/268 268]–}}

The population is 969,697 as of the 2015 census,{{cite web|url=https://lao.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub-pdf/PHC-ENG-FNAL-WEB_0.pdf|title=Results of Population and Housing Census 2015 |publisher=Lao Statistics Bureau |access-date=1 May 2020}} spread over 15 districts. The ethnic minority groups residing in the province include Lao Loum, Phu Tai, Tai Dam, Katang, Mongkong, Vali, Lavi, Souei, Kapo, Kaleung and Ta Oi. In the 2000 census, 3 ethnic groups were listed: Lao Loum (Lowland Lao), Phu Tai, and Bru,{{sfn|Pholsena|2006|p=167}} the ones recognized by the provincial government. The Bru are a people with dialects and cultures.{{sfn|Wessendorf|2010|p=360}}

Sepon Mine, about {{convert|400|km}} southeast of Vientiane, is the largest mine in Laos, with reserves of copper and gold.{{sfn|US Geological Survey|2010|p=14}} In the 1980s, Laotians panned for gold here using pieces of shrapnel and aircraft wreckage. Exploration occurred in 1990 by Australian mining company CRA, which was subsequently awarded a contract. It is later operated, and 90% owned by MMG Limited.{{sfn|Wessendorf|2010|p=362}}{{cite web|url=http://mmg.com/en/Our-Operations/Mining-operations/Sepon.aspx|title=MMG Sepon operation|publisher=MMG Limited|access-date=24 August 2013}} Sepon became a foreign mining interest when it opened in 2002.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/05/business/mining-gold-in-laos-where-bombs-once-rained.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm|title=Mining Gold in Laos Where Bombs Once Rained|last=Arnold|first=Wayne|date=March 5, 2002|work=The New York Times|access-date=6 December 2012}} Other mining companies operating in the province (2008) include: Wanrong Cement III, Lane Xang Minerals LTD (Vilabuly District), Lane Xang Minerals Ltd (Vilabuly District), Lao State Gypsum Mining Co Ltd (Champhone District), and Savan Gypsum Mining Co. (Champhone District).{{sfn|US Geological Survey|2010|p=14}}

Along with Bolikhamsai and Khammouane provinces, it is 1 of tobacco producing areas of Laos.{{cite book|title=Lao People's Democratic Republic: Second Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (EPub)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mkinpg545sC&pg=PT54|access-date=6 December 2012|date=21 October 2008|publisher=International Monetary Fund|isbn=978-1-4527-9182-1|page=54}}

Apart from the provincial capital, Savannakhet, which is a trading centre opposite to Mukhdahan town in Thailand, other places of interest in the town area are the Roman Catholic Church, a Vietnamese temple and school. Most of the buildings in the town are in the French architectural style of their colonial rule. In the Ban Nonglamchan Village in Champhone District, there is a library which contains a collection of manuscripts written in the Kham-Pali and Lao languages on palm leaves which are stated to be 200 years old. In Ban Tangvay Village of Xonbuly District, fossilized dinosaur bones found in 1930 are exhibited in the Dinosaur Exhibition Hall in Savannakhet. The Ho Chi Minh trail and remnants of American tanks and warplanes are on display in Phin District on Route 9, near the Lao Bao border check post.

;Fossil sites

There are 5 fossil sites in the province. A Cretaceous fossil site is Tang Vay, {{convert|120|km}} northeast of Savannakhet, which dates to 110 million years ago. The site was discovered by the geologist Josué Hoffet in 1936 and was explored by a team led by Philippe Taquet from the {{lang|fr|Muséum national d'histoire naturelle|italic=no}} of Paris in the 1990s. He discovered tree fossils (Araucarioxylon hoffetti), turtles, and a sauropod, Tangvayosaurus hoffetti.{{cite journal|last1=Allain|first1=Ronan|last2=Taquet|first2=Philippe|last3=Battail|first3=Bernard|last4=Dejax|first4=Jean|last5=Richir|first5=Philippe|last6=Véran|first6=Monette|last7=Limon-Duparcmeur|first7=Franck|last8=Vacant|first8=Renaud|last9=Mateus|first9=Octavio|last10=Sayarath|first10=Phouvong|last11=Khenthavong|first11=Bounxou|last12=Phouyavong|first12=Sitha|title=Un nouveau genre de dinosaure sauropode de la formation des Grès supérieurs (Aptien-Albien) du Laos|journal=Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences, Série IIA|date=October 1999|volume=329|issue=8|pages=609–616|doi=10.1016/S1251-8050(00)87218-3|bibcode=1999CRASE.329..609A|trans-title=A new genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Grès supérieurs formation (Aptian-Albian) of Laos}}

;Museums

Fossils are exhibited in a dinosaur museum in Savannakhet.{{cite book|last=Ray|first=Nick|title=Lonely Planet Vietnam Cambodia Laos & the Greater Mekong|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0smGIn5WJhEC&pg=PA327|access-date=11 December 2012|date=11 September 2009|publisher=Lonely Planet|isbn=978-1-74179-174-7|pages=327–}}

;Religious sites

The Wat Inghang temple, about 2000 years old, is located in the Ban Thad village. It was built to commemorate a visit of Lord Buddha when he was the guest of King Sumitatham of the Sikhottabong Kingdom. King Saysethathirath had the temple remodeled during 1548. It is approached by Route 9 between Savannakhet and Seno. An annual festival is held here on the first full moon of the lunar calendar.

The Wat Xayaphoum temple was built in 1542 in Xayaphoum village on the bank of the Mekong River during the period when Ban Thahir or Nakham temple was built. As the Buddhist centre and largest monastery in Laos, its arts and architecture are dated to the earliest Savannakhet period. The temple has a garden with trees surrounding it. There is a workshop near the entrance from the river side where golden Buddha statues are made.{{cite book|author=China Williams|title=Southeast Asia 15|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781741792331|url-access=registration|access-date=8 December 2012|date=3 March 2010|publisher=Lonely Planet|isbn=978-1-74179-233-1|pages=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781741792331/page/403 403]–}} Pimai Lao festival is held in the province and boat racing is an event.

Heuan Hin ("stone house") is a shrine in Ban Dongdokmay. It was built during the Khmer regime in honour of their Sikhottabong Kingdom. The stone house is located {{convert|15|km}} from Xayphouthong District, or {{convert|66|km}} from Khanthabuly.

The That Phon Stupa was built during the period of 557 to 700. The festival held here during the first full moon of the lunar calendar marks tribute to Phra Sghiva and some Hindu gods.

St Teresa's Catholic Church is situated in Savannakhet's main square. Built in 1930, it consists of masonry walls and an octagonal spire.

{{reflist}}

{{Contains special characters|Lao}}

• {{cite book|last=Pholsena|first=Vatthana|title=Post-war Laos: The Politics of Culture, History, And Identity|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yd4JsAhzUOQC&pg=PA167|year=2006|publisher=Cornell University Press|isbn=978-0-8014-7320-3|pages=167–}}
• {{cite book|author=United States Geological Survey |title=Minerals Yearbook: Area Reports: International 2008: Asia and the Pacific|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DGuvgMVYS0wC&pg=SA14|date=25 October 2010|publisher=Government Printing Office|isbn=978-1-4113-2964-5|pages=14– |ref={{sfnref|US Geological Survey|2010}} }}
• {{cite book|last=Wessendorf|first=Kathrin|title=The Indigenous World 2009|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sKjaI_bHlpUC&pg=PA360|date=1 February 2010|publisher=IWGIA|isbn=978-87-91563-57-7|pages=360–}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Districts of South Laos}}

{{Geographic location

|Centre = Savannakhet province

|North = Khammouan province

|Northeast = Quảng Bình province, {{flag|Vietnam}}

|East = Quảng Trị province, {{flag|Vietnam}}

|Southeast =

|South = Salavan province

|Southwest = Amnat Charoen province, {{flag|Thailand}}
Ubon Ratchathani province, {{flag|Thailand}}

|West = Mukdahan province, {{flag|Thailand}}

|Northwest = Nakhon Phanom province, {{flag|Thailand}}

}}

{{Laos provinces}}

Category:Populated places on the Mekong River

Category:Provinces of Laos