The country's highest peak, Phou Bia (2,820 metres (9,250 ft)), rises at the south side of the plateau.

[5] While the origin of the Plain of Jars' people is unknown, the recorded history of Xiangkhouang is interlinked with the Tai Phuan.

As an ancient civilization, its prehistory is linked to the enigmatic megalithic stone jars of the Plain of Jars (with prehistoric material dating back to 2,000 BCE, while the Iron Age period of 500 BCE and the more recent 500–80 CE period dominating archaeological finds) representing burial grounds.

They established a prosperous overland trade in metals and forest products with India and China; the Xieng Khouang Plateau was the center of trade for a large area of upland Southeast Asia, extending as far as Da Nang in Vietnam, Samrong Sen in Cambodia, the Khorat Plateau in northeast Thailand, and the North Cachar Hills of northeastern India.

[6] In subsequent years, Haw invaders and fleeing ex-Taiping Rebellion revolutionaries from China repeatedly looted both Xiangkhouang province and neighboring Luang Prabang.

[6] Xiangkhouang province covers an area of 15,880 square kilometres (6,130 sq mi) and has a largely mountainous topography.

[15] The area has a high level of biodiversity, and a number of endangered species including tiger, leopard, clouded leopard, Asian golden cat, marbled cat, civet, gaur, Sambar deer, white-cheeked gibbon, sun bear, black bear, Asian elephant, dhole, hornbill and three species of otter.

[15] The province is composed of eight districts which cover a total land area of 15,880 square kilometres (6,130 sq mi).

There are also minorities of Laotian Chinese and Vietnamese, as well as some international workers from South Korea, Japan, Europe and North America.

Tai Dam are well known producers of fine quality silk and cotton textiles and some women export to overseae markets.

Older Tai Dam women still wear the traditional blue indigo cotton shirt, skirt, and black turban woven with colored patterns.

Tai Dam settled in upland valleys near streams and irrigable and accessible plains scattered among Lao and Phuan villages.

[18] Part of the Mon-Khmer branch of the Austro-Asiatic linguistic family, the Khmu are one of the largest ethnic groups in Laos.

Each village has a communal house where men gather for political discussions, or work together on basket making and other crafts.

Having a strong desire for independence, they rebelled against Chinese attempts to control and settle them and fled in successive waves southwards.

Today, remittances from the diaspora are a major economic factor in the province, fueling significant construction activity.

They live on rice, corn and vegetable production, swine and poultry husbandry, gathering, hunting, embroidery, and basket work.

Hmong New Year celebrations in December, starting from the 15th day of the ascending moon, are accompanied by numerous activities including top-spinning competitions, dances, songs, and bull fights.

The young men and women toss the makkono, a small fabric ball, as part of a courting ritual which can go on for hours.

During the festivities, Hmong women wear their traditional dresses, adorned with intricate embroidery and silver jewelry.

At the Wat Phia Wat Temple, destroyed during the conflicts of the First Indochina War (1946–1954) and the Second Vietnam War (1955–1975), the ruins of a stone wall with brick archways, relics of French colonial rule of over this part of Laos and from the whole country, a large statue of Buddha, broken pillars and short sections of walls remain to this day and are still clearly visible as well as accessible.

Once buried in the thick tropical forest, the That Foun stupa, dating back some 450 years, can be seen near the road outside Phonsavan.

[19] In an ethnic village of the Phuan, to the south of Phonsavan, Ban Napi mounds of war scrap can be seen buried in tableware.

[19] A secret tunnel was constructed below the hills of the Phu Kheng Jar Quarry Site during the Second Indochina War.

[19] Unexploded ordnance can be found in large quantities in this Laotian province, and these are all in the process of being cleared and removed under the aegis of the United Kingdom-based Mines Advisory Group (MAG).