Khmer people

 ( Khmer People ) 

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A more popular legend, reenacted to this day in the traditional Khmer wedding ceremony and taught in elementary school, holds that Cambodia was created when a merchant named Kaundinya I (commonly referred to as Preah Thong) married Princess Queen Soma, a Nāga ( Neang Neak) princess. Kaundinya sailed to Southeast Asia following an arrow he saw in a dream. Upon arrival he found an island called Kok Thlok and, after conquering Soma's Naga army, he fell in love with her. As a dowry, the father of princess Soma drank the waters around the island, which was revealed to be the top of a mountain, and the land below that was uncovered became Cambodia. Kaundinya and Soma and their descendants became known as the Khmers and are said to have been the rulers of Funan, Chenla and the Khmer Empire. This myth further explains why the oldest Khmer wats, or temples, were always built on mountaintops, and why today mountains themselves are still revered as holy places.

The Khmers developed the Khmer alphabet, which in turn gave birth to the later Thai alphabet and . The Khmers are considered by Archaeology and Ethnology to be indigenous to the contiguous regions of Isan, southern Laos, Cambodia and South Vietnam. That is to say the Cambodians have historically been a lowland people who lived close to one of the tributaries of the Mekong River. The reason they migrated into Southeast Asia is not well understood, but scholars believe that Austroasiatic speakers were pushed south by invading Tibeto-Burman speakers from the north as evident by Austroasiatic vocabulary in Chinese, because of agricultural purposes as evident by their migration routes along major rivers, or a combination of these and other factors.

The Khmer are considered a part of the Greater India, owing to them adopting Indian culture, traditions and religious identities. The first powerful trading kingdom in Southeast Asia, the Kingdom of Funan, was established in southeastern Cambodia and the Mekong Delta in the first century, although extensive archaeological work in Angkor Borei District near the modern Vietnamese border has unearthed brickworks, canals, cemeteries and graves dating to the fifth century BCE.

During the Funan period (1st–6th centuries CE) the Khmer also acquired Buddhism, the concept of the Shaivism imperial cult of the devaraja and the great temple as a symbolic world mountain. The rival Khmer Chenla Kingdom emerged in the fifth century and later conquered the Kingdom of Funan. Chenla was an upland state whose economy was reliant on agriculture whereas Funan was a lowland state with an economy dependent on maritime trade.

These two states, even after conquest by Chenla in the sixth century, were constantly at war with each other and smaller principalities. During the Chenla period (5th–8th centuries), Khmers left the world's earliest known zero in one of their temple inscriptions. Only when Jayavarman II declared an independent and united Cambodia in 802 was there relative peace between the two lands, upper and lowland Cambodia.

Jayavarman II (802–830) revived Khmer power and built the foundation for the Khmer Empire, founding three capitals—Indrapura, Hariharalaya, and Mahendraparvata—the archeological remains of which reveal much about his times. After winning a long civil war, Suryavarman I (reigned 1002–1050) turned his forces eastward and subjugated the Mon kingdom of Dvaravati. Consequently, he ruled over the greater part of present-day Thailand and Laos, as well as the northern half of the Malay Peninsula. This period, during which Angkor Wat was constructed, is considered the apex of Khmer civilization.

The rise of the Tai peoples kingdoms of Sukhothai (1238) and Ayutthaya (1350) resulted in almost ceaseless wars with the Khmers and led to the destruction of Angkor in 1431. They are said to have carried off 90,000 prisoners, many of whom were likely dancers and musicians.Thailand 1969:151, Blanchard 1958:27 The period following 1432, with the Khmer people bereft of their treasures, documents, and human culture bearers, was one of precipitous decline.

During the second half of the twentieth century, the political situation in Cambodia became chaotic. King Norodom Sihanouk (later, Prince, then again King), proclaimed Cambodia's independence in 1949 (granted in full in 1953) and ruled the country until March 18, 1970, when he was overthrown by General Lon Nol, who established the Khmer Republic. On April 17, 1975, Khmer Rouge, who under the leadership of Pol Pot combined Khmer nationalism and extreme Communism, came to power and virtually destroyed the Cambodian people, their health, morality, education, physical environment, and culture in the Cambodian genocide.

On January 7, 1979, Vietnamese forces ousted the Khmer Rouge. After more than ten years of painfully slow rebuilding, with only meager outside help, the United Nations intervened resulting in the Paris Peace Accord on October 23, 1992, and created conditions for general elections in May 1993, leading to the formation of the current government and the restoration of Prince Sihanouk to power as King in 1993.

Pol Pot died on April 15, 1998, reportedly from heart failure. Sources speculate his death may have been a result of poisoning or even suicide. His death marked the formal end of the Khmer Rouge regime as a significant political and military force. However, a residual Khmer Rouge movement remained in Cambodia for almost two more decades, largely operating from remote jungle regions near the Thai border. Immediately, the post-Pol Pot years marked intense efforts to rebuild the country. Cambodia had suffered enormous loss of life, widespread trauma and a shattered infrastructure. The Cambodian government, now under the leadership of the Cambodian People's Party (CPP) and the monarchist Norodom Sihanouk, faced significant challenges.

The majority of the Cambodians live in rural villages either as rice farmers or fishermen. Their life revolves around the Wat (temple) and the various Buddhist ceremonies throughout the year. However, if Cambodians become ill, they will frequently see a kru khmae (shaman/healer), whom they believe can diagnose which of the many spirits has caused the illness and recommend a course of action to propitiate the offended spirit, thereby curing the illness.[3] The kru khmae is also learned in herb lore and is often sought to prepare various "medicines" and potions or for a Yantra tattoo, all believed to endow one with special prowess and ward off evil spirits or general bad luck. Khmer beliefs also rely heavily on Jyotisha, a remnant of Hinduism. A fortune teller, called hao-ra (astrologists) or kru teay in Khmer, is often consulted before major events, like choosing a spouse, beginning an important journey or business venture, setting the date for a wedding and determining the proper location for building new structures. Throughout the year, the Cambodian celebrate many holidays, most of a religious or spiritual nature, some of which are also observed as public holidays. The two most important are Chol Chhnam (Cambodian New Year) and Pchum Ben ("Ancestor Day"). The Cambodian Buddhist calendar is divided into 12 months with the traditional new year beginning on the first day of khae chaet, which coincides with the first new moon of April in the western calendar. The modern celebration has been standardized to coincide with April 13. Dance occupies a central place for the Khmer people, one of its earliest records dates back to the 7th century, where performances were used as a funeral rite for kings.Brandon 1967, p. 20 In the 20th century, the use of dancers is also attested in funerary processions, such as that for King Sisowath Monivong. During the Angkor period, dance was ritually performed at temples.Fletcher 2001 The temple dancers came to be considered as apsaras, who served as entertainers and messengers to divinities.Becker 1998, p. 330 Ancient stone inscriptions describe thousands of apsara dancers assigned to temples and performing divine rites as well as for the public. The Khmer classical dance was placed in 2003 on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Cambodian culture has influenced Thai and Lao cultures and vice versa. Many Khmer loanwords are found in Thai language and Lao language, while many Lao and Thai loanwords are found in Khmer. The Thai script and Lao alphabet alphabets are also derived from the Khmer script.

The Khmer people are genetically closely related to other Southeast Asian populations. They show strong genetic relation to other Austroasiatic people in Southeast Asia and East Asia and have a minor genetic influence from Indian people. Cambodians trace about 16% of their ancestry to a Eurasian population that is equally related to both Europeans and East Asians, while the remaining 84% of their ancestry is related to other Southeast Asians, particularly to a source similar to the Dai people. Another study suggests that Cambodians trace about 19% of their ancestry to a similar Eurasian population related to modern-day Central Asians, South Asians, and East Asians, while the remaining 81% of their ancestry is related specifically to modern-day Dai and Han people. Both Khmers from Cambodia and Thailand have a mixture of Mlabri people-related and South Asian ancestry but also received Atayal people-related ancestry from neighboring groups like Chams, especially for Khmers from Cambodia. South Asian ancestry in present Khmers ranges from 12% to 15%, which is much lower than in protohistoric individuals from the Vat Komnou site for instance, who have about 37–44% South Asian ancestry. Nonetheless, present Khmers and Kinh Vietnamese share high genetic drift with these protohistoric individuals. However, this is more likely due to Kinh and Khmers significantly contributing to the East Asian component of these individuals.

The genetic testing website 23andMe groups Khmer people under the "Indonesian, Khmer, Thai & Myanmar" reference population. This reference population contains people who have had recent ancestors from Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and Thailand. 23andMe Reference Populations & Regions . (n.d.). 23andMe. Retrieved June 14, 2020.