Cambodian Arts

Art and culture

Throughout Cambodia's history, religious principles guided and inspired its arts. A unique Khmer style emerged from the combination of indigenous animistic beliefs and the originally Indian religions of Hinduism and Buddhism. These two religions, along with the Sanskrit language and other elements of Indian civilization, arrived in mainland Southeast Asia during the first few centuries ad. Seafaring merchants following the coast from India to China brought them to the port cities along the Gulf of Thailand, which were then controlled by the state of Funan in Cambodia. At varying times, Cambodian culture also absorbed Javanese, Chinese, and Thai influences.

​​History Between the 9th and 15th centuries, a prosperous and powerful empire flourished in northwestern Cambodia. The Khmer kingdom of Angkor, named for its capital city, dominated much of what is now Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand. The kingdom drew its religious and political inspiration from India. The literary language of the court was Sanskrit; the spoken language was Khmer. Massive temples from ​​​this​​​ ​​period, including Angkor Wat and the Bayon at Angkor Thum, ​​testify to the power of Angkor and the grandeur of its architecture and decorative art. The unparalleled achievements in art, architecture, music, and dance during this period served as models for later cultural development in Cambodia. Angkor faded into obscurity after the capital moved south to Phnom Penh in the 15th century, probably due in part to frequent invasions by the neighboring Thais. The jungle rapidly grew over the monuments. In the centuries that followed, frequent wars reduced the territory, wealth, and power of Cambodian monarchs. However, an independent state with its capital near Phnom Penh survived until the 19th century. The most important work of Cambodian literature, the Reamker (a Khmer-language version of the Indian myth of the Ramayana), was composed during this time. France, which began administering Cambodia in 1863, rediscovered the temples at Angkor and worked to preserve them beginning in the early 20th century. Cambodia's traditional culture and the monuments of Angkor were endangered between 1970 and 1990 due to civil war. The Communist Khmer Rouge regime, which opposed and mistrusted religion and education, banned all of Cambodia's traditional arts and its written language. Since 1991, when Cambodia's warring factions signed a peace accord, international organizations have helped the Cambodian government restore the sites at Angkor and revive Cambodia's traditional crafts.

Cambodia Majior Attraction

Siem Reap	Phnom Penh
Battambang	Sihanoukville
Kep	Kampot
Kampong Thom	Ratanakiri
Kratie	Kampong Cham
Sofitel Angkor Phokeethra Golf & Spa Resort	Amansara Resort
Angkor Palace Resort & Spa	Angkor Miracle Resort & Spa
Angkor Village Resort	Golden Banana Boutique Hotel & Resort

Cambodia Major Attractions

Cambodian Dances

Apsara Dance

Apsara Dance is one of two major forms of Khmer dance and incorporates parts of the other, much older, traditional or popular dance, which has its roots in animism and primitive magic, with Hindu forms introduced during the time of Indian influence beginning in the 1st century; the dance in turn drew its inspiration from the mythological court of the gods and from its celestial dancers, the Apsaras. The dance took on its own unique form adding movements and meaning, during the reigns of Jayavarman IIJayavarman VII as well as in the Angkor era. By the 13th century, the dance received a Khmer identity rather than Indian, unlike any other dance form in the world. It melded soft movement with loud, traditional Khmer music during its performance. In that era, Apsara dance was performed solely for the benefit of the upper class, and particularly for the king. and

Estimates suggest that there were 3,000 apsara dancers in the 12th Century court of King Jayavarman VII. Between the 12th and the 15th centuries, Apsara dance flourished, until the Thais sacked Angkor in the 15th century; the invaders, not immune to the allure of the dance tradition, are reputed to have taken a troupe of aspara dancers back home with them. While this was a setback to the tradition of Khmer Classical Dance, the Apsara tradition was nonetheless set in stone, as represented in the bas-reliefs of the Angkorian temples in Cambodia.

For centuries the dance was seemingly never performed again in public, yet it seems to have been maintained as an unbroken tradition in the courts of the Angkorian monarchs. Dance nonetheless remained culturally important in the Angkor era such as Siem Reap, Surin Province (now in Thailand) but with different styles due to uncertain knowledge for the original dance which Surin people performs apsara dance in a little fast movement and sustain with Thai-Laos musical.

Cambodia Greeting

For friends of the same age  Both palms are placed together facing each other at the chest level	For persons senior in rank and age  Palms are placed together facing each other at the mouth level
For parents, grandparents and teachers  Palms are placed together facing each other at the nose level	For the king and monks  Palms are placed together at the level of the eyebrows
For praying to God and other sacred deities  Palms are placed at the forehead facing each other

 

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