Lao is the official language of Laos, and its script and linguistic features are deeply tied to the culture and history of the region.
Lao
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Classification
Tai-Kadai > Tai
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Speakers
4.4 million
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Script
Lao
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Text direction
Left-to-right
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Official language
Lao People’s Democratic Republic
Lao
Like Thai, Lao is a member of the Ta-Kadai language group.
There are around 4.4 million native speakers of Lao around the world, with only 3 million speakers within the country of Laos. Only about half of Laos’ population speaks Lao.
Lao is a tonal language, where a change to the pronunciation of a word changes the meaning of the word, similar to Chinese. The language is written using the Lao alphabet which bears a resemblance to the Thai alphabet.
Lao is mutually intelligible with Thai; it’s also written without spaces between the words so word count differences between Lao and English can be huge.
At Geo Language Services, we provide Lao translations that are linguistically sound and culturally sensitive, facilitating meaningful communication with Lao speakers.
Services offered for this language
Translation / Transcreation / Subtitling / Localization / Adaptation / Copywriting / Authoring / Proofreading / Revision / Editing / Translation quality assurance / Terminology / Linguistic validation / Glossary creation / Dubbing / Voice-overs / Transcription / Typesetting / Simultaneous interpreting / Consecutive interpreting / Conference interpreting / Telephone interpreting / Public service interpreting / Interpreting equipment hire / Foreign language consulting
Interesting fact
The majority of Lao words are only one syllable, though longer words exist and are used in academia and government.
How can we help you?
Let us know about your needs, and we’ll guide you through every step of the way.