Bolikhamsai ບໍລິຄໍາໄຊ |
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Province | |
Map of Bolikhamsai Province |
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Location of Bolikhamsai Province in Laos |
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Coordinates: 18°23′00″N 103°39′00″E / 18.383333°N 103.65°ECoordinates: 18°23′00″N 103°39′00″E / 18.383333°N 103.65°E | |
Country | Laos |
Capital | Paksan |
Area | |
• Total | 14,863 km2 (5,739 sq mi) |
Population (2015 census) | |
• Total | 273,691 |
• Density | 18/km2 (48/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+07 |
ISO 3166 code | LA-BL |
Bolikhamsai (also Borikhamxay, Lao ບໍລິຄໍາໄຊ) is a province of Laos, located in the middle of the country. Pakxanh, Thaphabath, Pakkading, Borikhan, Viengthong and Khamkheu are its districts and Paksan is its capital city. The province is also home to Nam Theun 2 Dam, the country's largest hydroelectric project.
Bolikhamsai Province, one of the provinces of Laos, covers an area of 14,863 square kilometres (5,739 sq mi). Bolikhansai Province borders Xiangkhouang Province to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Khammouan Province to the south, and Thailand to the west. The province includes the Annamite Range, stretching east to Vietnam, while to the west are the Mekong River and Thailand. At 3,700 square kilometres (1,400 sq mi), the Nakai–Nam Theun National Biodiversity Conservation Area in Bolikhamsai and Khammouane Provinces is the third largest protected area in Laos.
The province faced many invasions from the Siamese throughout its history. The foundation of Paksan dates from the late nineteenth century. In 1836, the Siamese assumed suzerainty over Laos. After 1865, the invasions of "Hos", Chinese gangs from southern China, affected the provinces of Xieng Khouang and Bolikhamsai (Borikhane). In 1876, the King of Siam, Rama V, ordered the creation of the Muong Borikhane with the last survivors of the Ho invasion of 1874. The Muong of Borikhane was placed under the authority of Kha Luang Nong Khai.
In the 1890s, Christian missionaries of the Missions étrangères de Paris arrived on the Mekong River, a few miles from the mouth of the Nam Sane. They built a church at Paksan. By 1911, the Muong Borikhane had about 61 villages housing a population of about 4000 inhabitants. Paksane had grown to several thousand in 1937. On 14 April 1958, the soldiers of Muong Kao Post (Borikham district) under the command of sergeant May arrested Thao Am of Ban Boky.