Laos is a country in South East Asia and its geographic coordinates lies between the latitude 18o 00' North and 105o 00' East respectively. Laos was earlier known as Muang Lao. This country is surrounded by land on all sides, and this land has rich reserves of gold, copper, iron, bauxite, silver, and timber, yet it remains one of the least developed nations. About eighty percent of the people work on the land growing crops such as coffee, peanuts, soybeans, sugarcane, tobacco, mung beans, sweet potatoes and vegetables and just enough food for themselves. The capital city of Laos is Vientiane. The Kha, were the country's first inhabitants, and speak different languages. They use slash-burn farming methods to grow crops, and opium poppies for the drugs trade. More than half of the people here are Theravada Buddhists. Theravada means "way of the Elders" and to reduce suffering in the world.