The word ''Laos'' was coined by the French, who united the three Lao kingdoms in French Indochina in 1893 and named the country as the plural of the dominant and most common ethnic group, the Lao people. In English, the 's' is pronounced, and not silent. In the Lao language, the country's name is ''Muang Lao'' () or ''Pathet Lao'' (), both of which literally mean 'Lao Country'.