Lao Ga

The Lao Ga ( also Lao Gao, Thai ลาว กา ) are an ethnic group of the Lao who settled in the Thai province of Uthai Thani.

Dissemination

The Lao Ga settle mainly in the village of Ban Tabluang ( บ้าน ทัพ หลวง ), Amphoe Ban Rai, in the province of Uthai Thaini in the Chao Phraya basin in the lower north of Thailand. The Lao Ga speak a dialect of Lao, numbering about 1,900 heads.

History

The Lao Ga are descendants of slaves and forced laborers who had been abducted or relocated from Laos and Northeast to Central Thailand after the Siamese Lan Xang had conquered. This makes them historically related to the Lao Wieng. Unlike many Lao groups, which have been clarified in the Thai population, the Lao Ga have been able to preserve their identity to this day. They have tried in the past to marry only among themselves. Only since the end of the 20th century, there are few marriages with other Lao groups, Thai and ethnic Chinese.

Culture

The Lao Ga practice, like the majority in Thailand, the Theravada Buddhism. Their culture is very similar to that of the Lao.

The traditional occupations of the Lao -Ga women are spinning, weaving and dyeing. They are considered versed producers of towels, tablecloths and pillows. The men are mostly engaged in agriculture. They grow especially rice, maize, tobacco and sugar cane. They also catch grasshoppers, rice field rats and red ant eggs, which they estimate as delicacies.