XAIGNABOURI, MUANG

also spelled Xaignabouli, or Sayaboury, town, northwestern Laos. Located about 18 miles (29 km) west of the Mekong River, at the base of high hills, Xaignabouri has a sawmill and trades in such forest products as rattan, bamboo, stick lac, and benzoin; vast teak resources are also exploited for export. The uplands of the area in which Xaignabouri is situated are sparsely occupied by Miao (Meo, or Hmong) and Khmu peoples, who are forest gatherers and practitioners of shifting cultivation. In the lowlands (particularly around Xaignabouri itself) the valley Lao people live by double-cropping rice and cotton. The town is linked to Louangphrabang and Vientiane by air, road, and the nearby Mekong River. Pop. (1973 prelim.) town, 13,775.