Postage stamps and postal history of Laos Postage stamps and postal history of Laos This is a survey of the postage stamps and postal history of Laos. Laos is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and People's Republic of China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west. Laos traces its history to the Kingdom of Lan Xang or "Land of a Million Elephants", which existed from the 14th to the 18th century. After a period as a French protectorate, Laos gained independence in 1953. A long civil war ended officially when the Communist Pathet Lao
French language in Cambodia French language in Cambodia Cambodia is the smallest of the three Francophone communities in Southeast Asia, the others being found in Vietnam and Laos. Out of all Asian Francophone nations, Cambodia is where French has declined the most. In 2014, French was spoken by people as a foreign language, which is 3% of the country's population and by only 873 people as a mother tongue according to the country's 2008 census. The French language began its presence in Cambodia in the late 19th century after French explorers and merchants made their way from Vietnam into Cambodia. In 1863, Cambodia became