Cambodia History

Cambodia is country riches of culture, historical and natural diversity, and is starting to take its rightful places as one of the leading tourism destinations in Asia. The Angkor Wat temple complex and the more than a thousand ancient ruins that do the countryside can take visitors back to the ancient times of the great Khmer. This charming land of gentle people has opened its doors to offer visitors a unique experience, fascinating traditional dances, centuries of history and some of the world's most splendid ancient temples. The architectural marvels of Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom, are proudly preserved as world heritage sites. Besides Phnom Penh, the capital city and hub of politics and business, another major tourist destination is Siem Reap Province, which is rich in culture and history with well over a hundred ancient temples. And the Royal Cambodian Government, through its natural and coastal resources, is now actively promoting eco-tourism spots as alternative destinations for relaxation and adventure. Indeed, Cambodia's coastal area has great potential as a major tourist destination with its pristine beaches, underwater treasures and wide range of aquatic activities. Cambodia's eco-tourism sites offer visitors exquisite landscapes, waterfalls, wildlife, tribal villages and rare species of bird, flora and fauna that have fascinated explorers, naturalists and bird watchers for centuries. Moreover, the range and quality of transportation, accommodation and infrastructure in the country is expanding to meet the ever-growing numbers of visitors coming to Cambodia. Cambodia is waiting to warmly welcome all foreign visitors to visit our world heritage sites, particularly Angkor Wat, and to experience the true warmth of Khmer hospitality.

No one knows for certain how long people have lived in what is now Cambodia, as studies of its pre-history are undeveloped. A carbon-l4dating from a cave in northwestern Cambodia suggests that people using stone tools lived in the cave as early as 4000 bc, and rice has been grown on Cambodian soil since well before the 1st century ad. The first Cambodians likely arrived long before either of these dates. They probably migrated from the north, although nothing is known about their language or their way of life. By the beginning of the 1st century ad, Chinese traders began to report the existence of island and coastal kingdoms in Cambodia. These kingdoms already owed much Indian culture, which provided alphabets, art forms, architectural styles, religions (Hinduism and Buddhism), and stratified class system. Local beliefs that stressed the importance of ancestral diarized state in South east Asia. It is from this period that evolved Cambodia's language, part of the Mon-Khmer family, which contains elements of Sanskrit, its ancient religion of Hinduism and Buddhism. Historians have noted, for example, that Cambodians can be distinguished from their neighbors by their clothing - checkered scarves known as Kramas are worn instead of straw hats. Funan gave way to the Angkor Empire with the rise to power of King Jayavarman II in 802. The following 600 years saw powerful Khmer kings dominate much of present day Southeast Asia, from the borders of Myanmar east to the South China Sea and north to Laos. It was during this period that Khmer kings built the most extensive concentration of religious temples in the world -the Angkor temple complex. The most successful of Angkor's kings, Jayavarman II, Indravarman I, Suryavarman II and Jayavarman VII, also devised a masterpiece of ancient engineering: a sophisticated irrigation system that includes barays (gigantic man-made lakes) and canals that ensured as many as three rice crops a year. Part of this system is still in use today. Spirits coexisted with the Indian religions and remain powerful today. Cambodia's modem-day culture has its roots in the 1st to 6th centuries in a state referred to as Funan, known as the oldest.