The Katang (Kataang) (; ) are an

ethnic group An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...

predominantly living in

Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...

. A few live elsewhere in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

. In 2015 there were 144,255 living in Laos, making them one of the largest subgroups of the

Lao Theung The Lao Theung or Lao Thoeng (Lao: ລາວເທິງ ) is one of the traditional divisions of ethnic groups living in Laos (the others being the Lao Loum and the Lao Soung). It literally indicates the "midland Lao", and comprises a variety o ...

and one of the largest ''true'' ethnic groups in the country. Most live in the southern provinces of

Savannakhet Savannakhet (, ; ), officially named Kaysone Phomvihane (); since 2005 and previously known as ''Khanthaboury'' (; ), is a city in western Laos. It is the capital of Savannakhet Province. With a population of 125,760 (2018), it is the second-l ...

, Saravan, and Champasak.

Culture

They are one of the few

people that do not live in houses on stilts or in trees, but rather in long wooden houses. Whenever a Katang man marries a woman, he will add a room to the house for his new family. One of these wooden longhouses is 328 feet long and tourists can still see it just north of

Saravan City Salavan (, ) is the capital of Salavan Province in southern Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam ...

. Another old Katang tradition for both men and women is to pierce their ears and put a bamboo tube in the hole to stretch out their lobes. This tradition has all but died out. The Katang engage in

crop rotation Crop rotation is the practice of growing a series of different types of crops in the same area across a sequence of growing seasons. This practice reduces the reliance of crops on one set of nutrients, pest and weed pressure, along with the pro ...

as their common agricultural practice. Many Katang also engage in irrigation and

slash-and-burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a form of shifting cultivation that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a Field (agriculture), field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody p ...

agriculture. Most Katang follow old ethnic beliefs and many people who do this also follow

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

. Some Buddhist festivals are commonly celebrated by the Katang. Traditional Katang animism includes a belief in many forest spirits and many taboos meant to avoid disturbing them have developed over the centuries. One of the most revered spirits includes the house spirit which is said to inhabit every house.

References

{{Ethnic groups in Laos Ethnic groups in Laos