Savannakhet (, ; ), officially named Kaysone Phomvihane (); since 2005 and previously known as ''Khanthaboury'' (; ), is a city in western

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 ...

. It is the capital of Savannakhet Province. With a population of 125,760 (2018), it is the second-largest city in Laos, after

Vientiane Vientiane (, ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of Laos. Situated on the banks of the Mekong, Mekong River at the Thailand, Thai border, it comprises the five urban districts of Vientiane Prefecture and had a population of 840,000 ...

. The annual per capita income of Kaysone Phomvihane City is US$2,041 (2018). Savannakhet has a large 15th-century

Buddhist 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 ...

temple, Wat Sainyaphum, a Chinese temple, the Catholic Co-Cathedral of St. Therese and a mosque. The Second Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge over the

Mekong The Mekong or Mekong River ( , ) is a transboundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth-longest river and the third-longest in Asia with an estimated length of and a drainage area of , discharging of wat ...

connects to Mukdahan Province in Thailand.

Name change

The settlement of Savannakhet was formerly called '' Khanthaboury''. Then it became ''Savannakhet''. Its name was changed to ''Kaysone Phomvihane'' in 2005, while retaining its status as the provincial capital of Savannakhet Province. The city is the birthplace of

Kaysone Phomvihane Kaysone Phomvihane (''Kraisorn Brahmavihara;'' , ; 13 December 1920 – 21 November 1992) was the first General Secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, leader of the Communist Lao People's Revolutionary Party from 1955 until his de ...

, the first leader of Laos from 1975 to 1992 after the dissolution of the

Kingdom of Laos The Kingdom of Laos was the form of government in Laos from 1947 to 1975. Located in Southeast Asia at the heart of the Indochinese Peninsula, it was bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, North Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the sou ...

. In 2018, its status was upgraded to that of a "city". In order to attain city status, a district or municipality must be financially self-sufficient and have a population of at least 60,000 people.

Transport

The Second Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge over the

connects to Thailand's Mukdahan Province. The two-lane, , bridge opened in 2007. The city is served by Savannakhet Airport.

Climate

Savannakhet features a

tropical savanna climate Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry "winter") and ''As'' (for a dry "summer"). The driest month has less than ...

(''Aw'') according to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

. Savannakhet VatXaiyaphoum2 tango7174.jpg, Wat Sainyaphum Savannakhet ChineseTemple2 tango7174.jpg, Chinese Buddhist Temple Savannakhet ChùaDiêuGiác1 tango7174.jpg, Vietnamese Buddhist Temple Diệu Giác Savannakhet StTeresa1 tango7174.jpg, St. Teresa's Catholic Church

References

External links

* {{Districts of South Laos Populated places in Savannakhet Province Populated places on the Mekong River Laos–Thailand border crossings