The Xiang Khouang Plateau or Xiang Khwang Plateau, also known in
French as Plateau d
Tran-Ninh'' is a
plateau
In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...
in the north of
Laos. The landscape is characterized by green mountains, rugged karst formations and verdant valleys with plenty of
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...
s, caves and waterfalls.
Geography
The
Luang Prabang Range, and the
Annamite Range
The Annamite Range or the Annamese Mountains (french: Chaîne annamitique; lo, ພູ ຫລວງ ''Phou Luang''; vi, Dãy (núi) Trường Sơn) is a major mountain range of eastern Indochina, extending approximately through Laos, Viet ...
separate the plateau from
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
and
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
respectively. The ranges of the plateau are
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...
and
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
mountains between 2000 and 2800 meters high (about 6561 and 9842 feet high). These have been heavily
deforested. The highest mountain of
Laos,
Phou Bia, is located to the south of the Xiangkhoang. Altitudes within the plateau area may reach 1000 m. Several tributaries of the
Mekong
The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth longest river and the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annual ...
drain in the plateau, such as the
Nam Ngum,
Ngiap and the
Khan River.
The major town in the area is the capital of
Phonsavan. The plateau gives its name to present-day
Xiangkhouang Province
Xiangkhouang ( Lao: ຊຽງຂວາງ, meaning 'Horizontal City') is a province of Laos on the Xiangkhoang Plateau, in the nation's northeast. The province has the distinction of being the most heavily bombed place on Earth.
The province ...
in which Phonsavan is located.
History
The plateau is the location of the
Plain of Jars
The Plain of Jars ( Lao: ທົ່ງໄຫຫິນ ''Thong Hai Hin'', ) is a megalithic archaeological landscape in Laos. It consists of thousands of stone jars scattered around the upland valleys and the lower foothills of the central plain of ...
, which is a collective name for several sites with funerary archeological remains nominated for UNESCO World Heritage status.
Welcome to Xieng Khouang!
References
External links
Physical map of Laos
Plateaus of Laos
Natural regions
{{Laos-geo-stub