CambodiaAn Introduction

Cambodia is in South-East Asia

It shares borders with:• Thailand• Laos• Vietnam

To the south is the Gulf of Thailand

It lies within the Tropics, north of the Equator

S E Asia

Its capital city is Phnom Penh, the most populous city in the country

Siem Reap is a popular tourist centre in the north. It is situated close to the ancient temples of Angkor Wat

The geography is dominated by the Mekong River and the Tonle Sap lake

Cambodia has an area of 181,035 square kilometres. By comparison Victoria has an area of 237,629 square kilometres.

Geography

The Cambodian flag was adopted in 1993

It features the Angkor Wat temples

It had been previously used from 1948 to 1970

Flag

Cambodia’s climate is monsoonal – tropical rains are heavy from May to October

In July temperatures will range from the mid 20s to the mid 30s. Humidity will be high. Rainfall will be regular

Climate

Much of Cambodia was once covered by tropical rainforest

The country has one of the highest deforestation rates in the world, due largely to illegal logging

Since 1970, Cambodia's primary rainforest cover fell dramatically from over 70 percent in 1970 to just 3.1 percent in 2007 Less than 3,220 square kilometres of primary forest remain

Environment

Cambodia is home to a diverse array of wildlife.

• 212 mammal species• 536 bird species• 240 reptile species• 850 freshwater fish species • 435 marine fish species

Many of the country's species are critically endangered because of • habitat destruction• illegal poaching• bush meat • farming & fishing concessions

Work is now being done to help conserve and protect Cambodia 's wildlife

Wildlife

More than 90% of Cambodia’s population is of Khmer origin and speaks the Khmer language, the country's official language

The remainder include Chinese, Vietnamese, Cham, Khmer Loeu and Indians

Civil war has had a marked effect on the Cambodian population.

The median age is 20.6 years, with more than 50% of the population younger than 25

The People

The Khmer Empire flourished in the region now occupied by modern-day Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam from about 800 AD to 1431 AD

Its centre of power was Angkor

The Khmer people established cultural and trade relation with the inhabitants of Java and Sumatra to the south

The KhmerEmpire

At Angkor, a series of capitals was constructed during the empire's height of power

Angkor Wat, the most famous and best-preserved religious temple at the site, is a reminder of the great wealth and power of the Khmer Empire

No written records have survived other than stone inscriptions

Our current knowledge of the Khmer civilisation is largely due to the work done by archaeologists reading stone inscriptions on the ancient ruins

Angkor

Angkor is a complex of many stone temples

This radar image from the space shuttle reveals a massive city complex which once was home to over one million people

A network of canals and reservoirs supported the large population

Radar and satellite imagery has recently revealed what has been hidden beneath jungle for centuries

Angkor

In 1431 Thai invaders sacked the Khmer city. The population abandoned Angkor and moved south to Phnom Penh

Today Angkor Wat attracts over one million tourists each year and provides cambodia with much needed revenue

Some of the Khmer rulers worshipped Hindu gods in the Angkor temples, while others converted to Buddhism

Angkor

For the three centuries that followed the decline of the Khmer Empire, Cambodia was ruled by a succession of Thai and Viet kings with brief periods of independence between

This was due to losses in ongoing wars with its neighbours

Foreign Rule

In 1863 King Norodom sought the protection of France

In 1867 the French signed an agreement giving control of Battambang and Siem Reap to Thailand. These provinces were returned to Cambodia in 1906

The French ruled Cambodia, as part of Indochina, from 1863 to 1953

From 1941 to 1945, the Japanese occupied Cambodia

French Rule

French Indochina was formed from Annam, Tonkin, Cochinchina (who together form modern Vietnam), Laos and the Kingdom of Cambodia

The French formally left the local rulers in power, but in fact gathered all powers in their hands

The local rulers acting only as figureheads

Today French colonial influence is still visible in Phnom Penh

FrenchIndochina