Provinz Attapeu 4.78

Attapeu is a province of Laos, located in the south-east of the country. To the north it is bounded by Sekong, to the west by Champassak province. To the east, the Annamite Mountain Range separates Attapeu from Vietnam. It borders Cambodia to the south. It has five districts (Samakkixay, Xaysetha, Sanamxay, Sanxay and Phouvong) covering an area of with a population of 139,628 as of 2015. Its capital city lies at Attapeu (Muang Samakkixay).It was known as the "land of the Heroism". There are two biodiversity areas: Dong Ampham Forest (200,000 ha) and Xepaine Forest. A large part of the province is under the Dong Ampham National Biodiversity Conservation Area.HistoryThe province was part of the Lane Xang Kingdom during the reign of King Saysethathirath. Earlier to this it was a habitat of wild buffaloes known as “Idkabue” (meaning: "buffalo dropping"), which the French colonial regime became "Attapeu". During the revolutionary war against the French regime the province was the headquarters of the National Libertaion Front. By the end of the war, much of the area was destroyed, remnants of which could be seen even now in some stretches of the Ho Chi Minh Road.