123 Cambodia Facts That Will Teach You About The Modern Khmer Republic

The location of Cambodia is the eastern part of South Asia.

Originated from the French language, the old name of Cambodia was Cambodge. Buddhism is the official religion of Cambodia.

Cambodia is marked as the only country in the world that has a building in its national flag. The capital city of Phnom Penh is also the largest city of Cambodia. Though Cambodia is a partly free country, it is a socialist and republic state.

Cambodia is a unitary state that has been divided into 25 provinces. Cambodia has a monarch as well as a prime minister. Norodom Sihamoni is the monarch of Cambodia, while Hun Sen is the prime minister of the country.

The country witnessed severe genocide during the reign of the Khmer Rouge government. Estimations suggest that more than two million people lost their lives during the span of four years from 1975-1979.

Cambodia is a beautiful country and can prove to be a delight for any traveler. The different types of landforms like mountains, forests, rivers, seashores can excite any traveler to visit the place.

Cambodia is well known for Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument that can be found on the planet. Constructed in the 12th century, this was initially a Hindu temple dedicated to a Hindu God. However, historical records show that it was converted to a Buddhist temple, by the tail-end of the century.

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Fun Facts About Cambodia

Every country and place is different from one another in a wide range of aspects and here, it is also the same for the country of Cambodia. So let us dive into some of the cool and fun facts about Cambodia.

Cambodia has a cool tradition where every Cambodian government is known by a new and different name. The present government is known as The Kingdom of Cambodia and is a type of Constitutional monarchy that has been managing the reins of the country since 1993.

While almost the majority of the population of the world takes great pride in celebrating one's own birthday, the same tradition is not followed among the older Cambodia's population.

There is no staunch rule or policy which abstains the public from celebrating their birthdays, however, owing to thousands of refugees that fled the country during the reign of Khmer Rouge, arbitrary birthdates were assigned to them in other countries. Thus, the elderly population of Cambodia does not know their exact birthdates and thus does not celebrate.

However, Cambodians, in general, celebrate the New Year as well as other National holidays of the country.

Cambodia has a lake and a river that flows in opposite directions during different seasons of the same river. The Tonlé Sap is the only river in the entire world that flows in two different directions.

The Tonlé Sap meets the Mekong River in Vietnam and ultimately reaches the Mekong delta. This normal directional flow of the river to the sea is common and occurs during the months of May and November.

However, things take a different turn during the season of monsoon.

Due to excessive rain, the river often overflows and thus the direction of the water becomes opposite and the river essentially flows back to the Tonlé Sap lake. This unique event happens nowhere on Earth except for this country in Southeast Asia.

The Tonlé Sap lake is also the largest freshwater lake that can be found in the entire of Southeast Asia. This lake water is excellent for use in irrigation of rice cultivation and for fishing purposes in almost half of the country.

Angkor Wat is a very common name that appears in the mouth of every tourist who wishes to visit South Asia. However, people often seem to forget the fact that the Angkor Wat that was built during the Khmer Empire is the largest religious monument that can be found on the entire planet.

Every country on this planet has its own designated national flag which is unique and different from one another. The Cambodian flag is very unique. It is recognized as the only flag in the world that has a building on it.

Rather than fancy cars, buses, or cabs, tuk-tuks are the main means of transport in Cambodia, especially in the capital city Phnom Penh. The tuk-tuk is a modified autorickshaw.

It consists of a bike engine which the driver drives while a separate carriage carries the passengers. This transportation method is quite easy and economic. When you visit Phnom Penh be sure to check out this cool means of transport.

Historical Facts About Cambodia

The history of every place on Earth is unique and different from one another which makes every place different from one another. The history of Cambodia is quite unique so let us take a walk in the past and check out some of the cool historical facts about Cambodia.

The land of Cambodia was once inhabited by early humans. Remains have shown that humans from the Pleistocene age lived in present-day Cambodia.

Thus, we can conclude that this place has its roots deep in the past. The later part of the history of this country is divided into the pre-Angkorian era and the Angkorian era.

More than 10 centuries passed in this era that finally brought us to the Post-Angkor period. The middle of the 19th Century witnessed Cambodia going under French colonization, and till today roots of French descendants can be seen. During the peak of the Vietnam war, a cold war ensued between the two neighboring countries.

Post the Cambodian Civil War in 1970, the communist party of Cambodia that was named the Khmer Rouge, took a hold of the country in 1975. Presently the country is a constitutional monarchy since 1993.

During the reign of the Khmer Rouge, it is estimated that more than one-fifth of the entire population, two million people, were killed. Because of this genocide that happened from 1975-1979, the majority of the population of Cambodia is currently under the age of 30 years.

Cambodia is the only country in South Asia that has the smallest Francophone community. Cambodia was under French colonization for almost 90 years till it gained freedom in 1953.

Till the reign of the Khmer Rouge, French was the language in which education was conducted. And thus if you visit Cambodia you are bound to find numerous relations to France.

Cambodia's iconic Angkor Wat that was constructed in the 12th century during the Khmer Empire was initially a Hindu temple that was dedicated to Lord Vishnu. It was later converted to a Buddhist temple at the end of the 12th century.

As an important shrine and visiting place for both Buddhists and travelers all across the globe, the Angkor Wat annually receives around 2.6 million visitors.

Facts About Cambodia's Culture

Culture and traditions define a place and the people that reside in that place. The customs and traditions of each place are different from one another and thus it makes each place unique and worth wandering. Let us check out some interesting facts about the culture of Cambodia.

It is understood that there are over 19 indigenous languages that are spoken in Cambodia, however, Khmer is the official language of Cambodia. From many ethnic groups, the Khmer language comes from native inhabitants of Cambodia.

The staple diet of Cambodia consists of rice and thus the Cambodian food bears a very close resemblance to food items that can be found in Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam.

A wide number of customs and traditions are followed by Cambodians. These include listening to the chirps of geckos.

Cambodia has giant geckos and the people often count gecko chirps as more than seven chirps usually bring good luck to the person. Cambodians also believe that counting the chirps of a giant gecko usually informs the person if they are lucky enough to marry someone.

95% of the entire population of Cambodia belongs to the religion of Buddhism. Apart from a couple of ethnic minorities, Buddhism is staunchly followed by the Cambodian people. Buddism is also the official religion of Cambodia.

The greatest festival of Cambodia is the New Year which is widely celebrated during the month of April. In the Khmer language, this festival is known as Choul Chnam Thmey.

Facts About Cambodia's Economy

The economy is a very important element as far as a country is concerned. The economy overlooks the growth, development, and fall of a country. Let us take a look at the economy of Cambodia.

Cambodia is one of the poorest countries in the world as its per capita income is as low as $260 USD. The nation of Cambodia follows an open market and has seen a rise in its economy off late.

The per capita income has grown to a slight extent. However, it still remains a poor country in comparison to its neighbors. As of the year 2018, the GDP of Cambodia was $24.57 billion USD.

The main industry of this country relies heavily on textiles and tourism. For the people, the main source of income resides in the rural areas is agriculture.

Cambodia is visited by millions of tourists every year and thus the Cambodian economy benefits from it. As a result, tourism is the second-highest source of revenue that the country gets.

A normal Cambodian funeral takes place for around three to seven days and thus this ritual of the funeral is extremely costly.

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