The majority (88%) live in northern Laos where they constitute one of the largest minority ethnic groups, comprising eleven percent of the total population.
Alternative historical English spellings include Kmhmu, Kemu and Khammu, among others.
The Khmu can also be found in southwest China (in Xishuangbanna in Yunnan province), and in recent centuries have migrated to areas of Burma, Thailand and Vietnam (where they are an officially recognized ethnic group).
In the People's Republic of China, however, they are not given official recognition as a separate "national" group, but are rather classified as a subgroup of Bulang.
