The culture of Cambodia has strong cultural roots in India, as have Thailand and Laos and unlike the Vietnamese, who have ethnic Chinese roots and a very different culture. 

Ethnically, the Khmer are related to the Khmer-Mon who may have roots in Australia, while the Thai and the Lao are tribes that invaded from China, but were ruled by the same family of rulers as Cambodia, who imprinted the same culture as in Cambodia.

Let the mysteries that are hidden in old temple ruins give you an idea of how magnificent this kingdom once was.

The majority of its 13 million strong population, around 95%, is ethnic Khmer, speaks the Khmer language and uses the Khmer script. 

There is also an important minority of ethnic Chinese, most of them living in the cities and engaged in commerce. They usually master the Khmer language as well as Chinese. There are plenty of Chinese schools in most provincial capitals.

In the northeast of the country, there is a considerable population of hill tribe people who are ethnically not Khmer. They are collectively called the 'Khmer Loeu' meaning high Khmer. Most of these ethnic minorities are spread over the territories of Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand and Laos.

The major Khmer Loeu groups in Cambodia are the Kuy, Phnong, Brao, Charai, and Rade. Each has its own language, but consider Khmer culture as superior to  theirs.

Another minority are the Cham, who settled in the region by the end of the 2^nd century in the area of Hue in Vietnam and founded the kingdom of Champa. In the 15^th and 16^th centuries, the Cham converted to Islam. Repelled by the Vietnamese Yuon (coming from Yunan in China), they now make up an important Cambodian minority. You will notice their mosques particularly around the big rivers since their religion sees no objection against the catching (and killing) of fish.

Cambodia is now a constitutional monarchy based on the principles of liberal  democracy and pluralism. People vote in high numbers, more than 90% of its population expresses its opinion about who governs them in general elections.

You may hear a lot of criticism against the government, but not all criticism is fair. After all, the current government consist of people who liberated Cambodia from the Khmer Rouge regime, be it with help of Vietnam. But when the Chinese, the Thai and the US continued to provide support to the Khmer Rouge, each for their own reasons those people were the real freedom fighters. For many of them, communism only second, an ideology, imposed because while America bombed the Cambodian countryside, the Khmer-Rouges were the only who offered resistance against this aggression. Read this story to understand what had happened.

Cambodia is catching up at high pace, but its destruction had been thorough and it still has a long way to go.

The country covers an area of 181,095 km². It is situated between the 10^th and 15^th parallels north latitude and the 102^nd and 108^th parallels east latitude.

Cambodia's official religion is Theravada Buddhism and the national motto is: "Nation, Religion, King". Cambodians put this motto at the top of their official documents.

Since the abdication of H.M. Norodom Sihanouk on 29 October 2004 the present king is H.M. Norodom Sihamoni. The  King  reigns but does not govern, and is the symbol of the  unity and continuity of the nation.

The legislative branch is bicameral, consisting of the National Assembly and the Senate.

The currency is the Riel and its value hovers in 2004 around 4000 to the Dollar and has been stable since before the beginning of this century. US Dollars are widely accepted. 

The main agricultural products are rice, rubber, corn, vegetables, cashews and tapioca. 

The main industries: tourism, garments, rice milling, fishing, wood and wood products, rubber, cement, gem mining and textiles. 

Export commodities: clothing, timber, rubber, rice, fish, tobacco and footwear.

Cambodia holds besides Angkor many other testimonies of its rich cultural legacy. Though known and celebrated by local Cambodians, mass tourism has not yet reached these sites. Some of those sites, such as Koh Ker, are on the brink of becoming popular. If you want to see this forgotten ancient Khmer capital in serenity, don't wait much longer.

Cambodia Discussion Forum


Cambodian and expatriate Khmers (and some barang) exchange ideas in this English-language forum.