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LAO TRADITIONAL FESTIVAL

LAO TRADITIONAL FESTIVAL

By: Sengdao    25/01/2017
In Laos there is a traditional festival (boun) or major holiday almost every month. Lao people are fun and easy-going and will commonly invite you to participate in many of the colorful celebrations held throughout the year. Please feel free to join the fun!

• Easy-going ບໍ່ເຂັ້ມງວດ throughout ຕະຫຼອດ 

• Participate ເຂົ້າຮ່ວມ feel free ຕາມສະບາຍ

• colorful celebrations ງານສະເຫຼີມສະຫຼອງທີ່ມີຊີວິດຊີວາ commonly ຢ່າງທຳມະດາ 

JANUARY

Boun Khoun Khao - Or the Harvest Festival is celebrated in the countryside after the rice has been harvested. This ceremony is held to give thanks to the spirit of the land and to ensure the next harvest will be plentiful. 

• Harvest ເກັບກ່ຽວ plentiful ອຸດົມສົມບູນ

• Ensure ຮັບປະກັນ ຫຼື ເຮັດໃຫ້ໜັ້ນໃຈ

FEBRUARY 

Kud Chin & Kud Viet - Chinese and Vietnamese New Years are celebrated with parties, fireworks and merit making at Chinese and Vietnamese temples around the country. 

Boun Maka Bousa - This festival is held on the full moon to commemorate the speech given by the Lord Buddha to 1,250 enlightened monks that gathered spontaneously, without prior notice. In the evening, the faithful visit local temples and circumambulate the vat three times with candles in a ceremony known as vien tian. 

Boun Khao Chi - A special offering of sticky rice is coated with eggs then roasted and offered to monks. This ceremony is associated with Maka Bousa. 

• Firework ດອກໄມ້ໄຟ Spontaneously ເຊິ່ງເກີດຂື້ນເອງ

• Commemorate ເພື່ອລະນຶກຖືງ Prior notice ທີ່ມີການແຈ້ງການກ່ອນ

• Lord ພະຜູ້ເປັນເຈົ້າ Faithful ຜູ້ທີ່ມີສັດທາແຮງກ້າ

• Enlightened ໃຫ້ຄວາມກະຈ່າງ Circumambulate ຍ່າງອອ້ມ

• Gathered ລວມຕົວກັນ Associate ລວມເຂົ້າກັນ

MARCH 

Lao Women's Day - This is a public holiday to commemorate women's contribution to Lao society. There are many parties at homes and offices. 

Boun Pha Vet - A temple-based Buddhist festival lasting for three days and three nights that is centered on the telling of the jatka, the story of Prince Vestsantara (the Buddha's second to last life). 

• Contribution ການບໍລິຈາກ Centered ມຸ້ງໃຫ້ຄວາມສົນໃຈກ່ຽວກັບ

• Lasting ຍືດຍາວ The Buddha’s second to last life

APRIL

Boun Pi Mai - Or Lao New Year is celebrated for three days in mid-April. The Pi Mai festival is based on the importance of water in people's daily lives, and you certainly will get wet during this fun-filled occasion. During Pi Mai, people splash water on one another to cleanse them of misfortune and bring luck in the coming year. In the country's many temples, Buddha images are cleansed with sacred water, and many Lao people make special offerings at the temples during this time of year. Luang Prabang has the most elaborate Pi Mai festival, but other provinces and towns also celebrate Pi Mai with parades, beauty contests and performances.

• Fun-filled ເຕັມໄປດ້ວຍຄວາມມ່ວນຊື່ນ Misfortune ໂຊກຮ້າຍ ຫຼື ເຄາະຮ້າຍ

• Occasion ໂອກາດ ຫຼື ຈັ່ງຫວະ Sacred water ນ້ຳສຳລັບບູຊາ

• Splash ສາດ Elaborate ລະອຽດຊັບຊ້ອນ

MAY

Boun Visakha Bousa - This festival celebrates the birth, enlightenment and death of the Lord Buddha. It is held on the 15th day of the sixth lunar month. Beautiful candlelit processions take place in the evening.

Boun Bang Fai - Or the Rocket Festival is a rain-making and fertility festival held just before the rainy season. Huge hand-made rockets are fired into the air to tempt the gods to make rain for the upcoming rice-growing season. This is a wild and happy ceremony that has music, dance, provocative performances and street processions.

• Fertility ຄວາມອຸດົມສົມບູນ Upcoming ຊື່ງກຳລັງຈະເກີດຂື້ນ 

• Huge hand-made rocket ບັ້ງໄຟໝື່ນ Wild ຊື່ງເກີດເອງຕາມທຳມະຊາດ

• Tempt ລໍ້ລວງ Provocative performance ການສະແດງກວນໂທສະ

JULY

Boun Khao Pansa - This festival, held on the full moon, marks the beginning of Buddhist lent, a three month period where monks are required to stay within their temple to meditate and focus on dharma studies. Lao men are traditionally ordained as monks during this time. 

• Period ໄລຍະເວລາ

• Required ຕ້ອງການ

AUGUST

Boun Khao Padap Din - Special offerings are made to the deceased on the new moon of the 9th lunar month. 

• Deceased ຜູ້ຕາຍ Lunar month 

SEPTEMBER

Boun Khao Salak - Offerings including daily necessities such as books, pens, sugar and coffee are made to specific monks based on a lottery system. Laypeople also give beautiful wax flower candles to the monks to gain merit. 

• Necessity ຂອງຈຳເປັນ Gain ໄດ້ຮັບ

• Base on ເປັນຫຼັກ

OCTOBER

Boun Ork Pansa - Held on the full moon which marks the end of the rainy season, monks who were ordained for the three-month lent period leave the vat and rejoins their families. During the evening of Van Ork Pansa, in a charming ceremony, all around the country small banana-leaf boats called heua fai are launched on rivers with offerings of incense, candles and small amounts of money to bring luck and prosperity.

Boun Souang Heua - The festive traditional boat racing festival takes place around the country following Ork Pansa. In Luang Prabang, the boat races are celebrated one month earlier. 

• Launched ປ່ອຍ

• Incense ທູບຫອມ

• Amount ຈຳນວນ

NOVEMBER

Boun That Luang - The biggest boun of them all, Boun That Luang attracts what often appears to be the country's entire population to the sacred That Luang in Vientiane for a week around the full moon in November. Hundreds of monks receive floral offerings from merit-makers on the first day of the festival, followed by parades, fireworks and music. 

• Attract ດືງດູດຄວາມສົນໃຈ

• Entire ທັງໝົດທັງມວນ

• Floral ທີ່ມີລວດລາຍດອກໄມ້

DECEMBER 

Lao National Day – December 2 is Lao National Day, which celebrates the establishment of the Lao People's Democratic Republic in 1975. There are parades and fairs in all major cities and towns. 

In December - February many ethnic minorities such as the Hmong, Black Tai, Yao, Khamu, Katu, Talieng and Ta Oy hold new year's ceremonies and annual rituals specific to their ethnic group. 

• Establishment ການສະຖາປານາ

• Annual rituals ພິທີກຳປະຈຳປີ

• Ethnic minority ເຜົ່າຊົນກຸ່ມນ້ອຍ

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