ប្រភេទសំលៀកបំពាក់ខ្មែរ Cambodian clothing

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the mural of khmer mythology, Reamker depicts the clothing of khmer people both male and female during the ancient times.
Cambodian Clothing also known as the fashion of Cambodia is refer to the style-dress, both from ancient times to present worn by Khmer people.
Contents
• 1 Textiles
• 2 National Dress
o 2.1 Sampot
 2.1.1 Sampot Chang Kben
 2.1.2 Sampot Phamuong
 2.1.3 Sampot Hol
 2.1.4 Sampot Tep Apsara
 2.1.5 Sampot Samloy
 2.1.6 Sampot Chorabap
 2.1.7 Sampot Sang
 2.1.8 Sampot Seai Sua
 2.1.9 Sampot Lberk
 2.1.10 Sampot Anlorgn
• 3 Tops
o 3.1 Chang Pong
o 3.2 Av Bumpong
o 3.3 Av Dai Puon
o 3.4 Av Pnot Kback
o 3.5 Av Neang Nov
o 3.6 Av Bar Bov
o 3.7 Av Pak
o 3.8 Krama
• 4 Cambodian Clothing style by period
o 4.1 Funan Era (68 AD – 550 AD)
o 4.2 Chenla (550 AD – 802 AD)
o 4.3 Angkor Era (8th Century to 14th century)
o 4.4 Charktomok period (1437 AD – 1525 AD)
• 5 Black pajamas
• 6 References

Textiles


Cambodian woman weaving silk
There are three important silk textiles in Cambodia. They include the ikat silks (chong kiet in Khmer), or hol, the twill-patterned silks and the weft ikat textiles. Patterns are made by tying natural and synthetic fibers on the weft threads and then it is dyed. It is repeated for different colors until the patterns firm and cloth is woven. Traditionally, five colors are used. Red, yellow, green, blue and black are the most used.[1] The Sampot Hol is used as a lower garment and as the sampot chang kben. The Pidan Hol is used as a ceremonial hanging used for religious purposes.
Sot silk weaving has been an important part of Cambodia's cultural past. It has been documented that people from Takéo Province have woven silk since the Funan era and records, bas-relief and Zhou Daguan's report have shown that looms were used to weave sampots since ancient times.[1] Since ancient times, women have learned highly complex methods and intricate patterns, one of which is the hol method. It involves dying patterns on silk before weaving. What remains unique to Cambodian weavers is the uneven twill technique, the reason remains unclear why they adopted such an unusual method. The ancient bas-reliefs however provides a complete look at how fabrics were like, down to patterns and pleats. Silk woven pieces are used as heirlooms, in weddings and funerals, and as decoration in temples.
National Dress
Sampot


Apsara dressed in Angkorian-style sampot cloth.
The sampot is the national garment of Cambodia. The traditional dress is similar to those worn in the neighboring countries of Laos and Thailand, but variations do exist between the countries. The sampot dates back to the Funan era when a Cambodian king allegedly ordered the people of his kingdom to wear the sampot at the request of Chinese envoys.
There are many variations for the sampot, each is washed according to social class. The typical sampot, known also as the sarong is typically worn by men and women of lower class. It measures approximately one and a half meters and both ends are sewn together. It is tied to safely secure it on the waist.
Sampot Chang Kben
Sampot Chang Kben (សំពត់ចងក្បិន, ALA-LC: saṃbát caṅ kpin) is the preferred choice of clothing for women of upper and middle classes for daily wear. This practice of daily wear died out in the beginning of the twentieth century. Unlike the typical Sampot, it is more of a pant than a skirt. It is a rectangular piece of cloth measuring 3 metres long and one metres wide.[2] It is worn by wrapping it around the waist, stretching it away from the body and twisting the knot. The knot is then pulled between the legs and held by a metal belt. Regardless of class, all Cambodian women wear the Sampot Chang Kben on special events. Men may also wear it, but the traditional patterns depend on gender. The Sampot Chang Kben is adopted in Thailand and Laos, where it is known as Chong Kraben. It dates to the to ancient Cambodia where deities often wore such styles.[3]
Sampot Phamuong
Sampot Phamuong (សំពត់ផាមួង ALA-LC: saṃbát phā muaṅ) are many different variations of traditional Khmer textiles.[4] They are single colored and twill woven. There are currently 52 colors used in Sampot Phamuong. The Phamuong Chorabap is a luxurious fabric using up to 22 needles to create. Phamuong variation are rabak, chorcung, anlounh, kaneiv and bantok. It usually contains floral and geometrical motifs. The most valued silk used to create the Phamuong is Cambodian yellow silk, known for its fine quality. New designs draw inspiration from ancient patterns of old silk.
Sampot Hol
Sampot Hol (សំពត់ហូល ALA-LC: saṃbát hūl) is a typical traditional textile. There are two kinds of Sampot Hol, one is a wrapping skirt that uses a technique called chong kiet and twill weave. Influenced by the Indian patola, it developed patterns and techniques over the centuries to become a genuine Khmer art style. The sampot hol has over 200 patterns combined with three to five colors, yellow, red, brown, blue, and green. There are four variations, sampot hol, sampot hol por, sampot hol kben and sampot hol ktong. Patterns are usually geometric motifs, animals, and flower motifs.
Both Sampot Phamuong and Sampot Hol believed to have invented from original Sampot in Oudok Era as word Phamuong comes from Siam language that Pha mean Fabric and Mung mean violet while Sampot Hol had introduced as ceremonial skirtcloth to the Thai court as sompak poom or pha poom in 19th century.[5][6] Although that era, Thai culture influenced that much into Khmer society, Khmer weaving however, is not a copy from Siam, because Cambodia already had a weaving culture before the Klung civilization. At this time, Cambodia still do not know what the word like Phamung meant in that time.
Sampot Tep Apsara
Sampot Tep apsara Angkor (Khmer: សំពត់ទេពអប្សរាអង្គរ) is a famous type of sampot in Khmer empire era, which still found on the base belief of Apsaras carving aroung Khmer Famous temple, Angkor wat. Generally, all of thoes skirt are tied to safely secure it on the waist and are held up with a style of golden belt. A long pleat is dropped at the middle of Sampot which the length of that fabric recoils at the calf of the leg. The hem of the skirt at the both part always get a small knot up. There are also two knots that come from the waist of sampot with the left Knot as the long knot like the thin long fabric while the right Knot has the same physical appearance but more decoration at the middle of the knot. Today, this style of sampot is the fictional skirt for nowadays people as No of this kind of sampot wearing by anyone but will an illustration to public as it will wearing in some show as they disgus as Apsara.
Sampot Samloy
Sampot Samloy (Khmer: សំពត់សម្លុយ) is long skirt used daily for men and women. The name Samloy mostly refers to no colour but black for ancient name, now it is sometimes recognized as the soft, thin fabric with more decoration and pattern look Sarong Batik but may be smaller. With its thin and soft appearance, the style of dress had been required to hold a knot, make it to become Sampot Chang Kben easily. However, it is necessary to make a fold at the left or right side like Sarong and Another sampot but most of female wearer, likely to hold its knot at up middle, drop a small division site at the length of Saloy at the knee to be easily to walk for the wearer. Saloy was known to be popular during Chatomok Era.
Sampot Chorabap
Sampot Chorabap (Khmer: សំពត់ចរបាប់) is a long skirt of silk embroidered all over the gold thread, worn by woman in Khmer classical dance, newlywed and the character of Mae Hua (Khmer: មេហួ) in Royal Ploughing Ceremony of Cambodia.
Sampot Sang
Sampot Sang (Khmer: សំពត់សេង) is a short skirt with silk embroidery.
Sampot Seai Sua
Sampot Seai Sua (Khmer: សំពត់សែសយ) is a kind of skirt of one colour with a gold or silver embroidered band along a lower ham. roday, this skirt is very popular among Laotian's lady than Khmer people.
Sampot Lberk
Sampot Lberk (Khmer: សំពត់លើ្បក) is a long skirt covered with entirely silk embroiredy. Today it is worn in marriage ceremonies in the place like Sampot Sabum. In ancient times, This kind of sampot is mostly worn by Noblemen of Cambodia during Lovek era.
Sampot Anlorgn
Sampot Alorgn (Khmer: សំពត់អន្លូញ) is a long skirt with the vertical stripes, commonly worn by old people or farmer in the countryside. This one is share highly common to Burma's Longyi.
Tops
There are many variation of Tops known as Shirt in Cambodia. The invention of traditional Aor is found after Khmer empire era at the late of 13 century to 14 century
Chang Pong
Chang Pong (Khmer: អាវចងពង់) is a piece of fabric in any colour which Khmer people at the late of 13 century especially women, started used it to cover their chest, showed up only the stomach. The style of Covering, is cover it at the back and each side of the fabric to join at the middle the chest and roll it to up to be smaller to tie which this style called Chang Pok.It then developed more to Tronum which is a thick and strong fabric cover on the chest of khmer lady, which stick on the body strongly. Sometimes, the commonly style of wearing this garment is similar way to wearing Aor Chang Pok, just Aor tronum, not showed as much skin like Aor Chang Pok. Popularity of wearing Aor Tronum, were for young rich lady during Chatomok Era and today an important costume of all to be used in Khmer classical dance.
Av Bumpong
Av Bumpong (Khmer: អាវបំពង់)mean tube skirt in English according to appearance like a long tube, bribe to the body at the head and drop to down easily. Aor Bupok is a long shirt like a dress than the regular shurt similar to Vietnamese Ao Dai, Indian's Kurta and Malaysia's baju kurung. Generally, It has a Collar with a button at the length from the neck to chest like Kurta while it normally norrow at the middle of the shirt in the stomach part like Baju Kurung but has the small hidden cut at hem of each shirt of shirt like Ao Dai which allowed the below part of shirt turn to Wide and Big. Most of Shirt is length at the knee while few one just only Length at the thigh. This Shirt is famous during Lovek to Oudong era worn by rich lady.
Av Dai Puon
Av Dai Puon is a traditional blouse in Lovek era. The name of dai puon is literally meaning according to inflated short arm. This shirt usually had a row of button and just of few of extremely rich girl counld had one during that era.
Av Pnot Kback
Av Pnot Kback is a female formal shirt primarily worn by wealthy young women. It is often adorned with a row of pleats with floral decorations. It is often paired with a collar and the hem of arm in the same style. The period in which this shirt was invented is not specifically known, but many believed it can be attributed to Lovek. This shirt is quite similar to a Burmese style, as it perhaps it was influenced by the culture of Burma.
Av Neang Nov
Av neang nov is a the long arm shirt, worn by woman.
Av Bar Bov
• Av Bar Bov is a no arm coat wear on the Av neang nov and Av Dai Puon. This shirt had the dounble of Button on its pleat. The name of Av Bar Bov is known as Lotus leaves, the literally meaning from Thailand.
Av Pak
Av Pak is a recent popular fashion blouse in Cambodia worn by Woman. This one is known as the khmer version of Kebaya with plain stamped cotton elaborately hand-painted embroidered silk with gold thread. In the past, this kind of shirt required it own unique style with only white colour with the high full of embroider. Today, This shirt has the more gold thread in several colour and had cut into a lot of modern fashion which highly popular to Khmer people especially middle aged and young woman with the narrow style and several decoration model. This shirt had been noted as today's khmer national costume where a lot of khmer girl had used this blouse at the special occasion both inside and outside Cambodia to revived the khmer identity. This shirt usually worn with Sampot Hol and a few worn with Sampot Chang Kben
Krama
Main article: Krama
Traditionally Cambodians wear a checkered scarf called a "Krama". The Krama has been a symbol of Cambodian dress since the first century reign of Preah Bath Hun Tean although it is not clear when exactly the krama became fashionable in the streets.


A Cambodian woman wearing a conical hat to keep off the sun's heat in the rice fields. Her krama is worn underneath
The "krama" is what distinctly separates the Khmer (Cambodians) from their Thai, Vietnamese, and Laotian neighbors. The scarf is used for many purposes including for style, protection from the hot sun, an aid (for your feet) when climbing trees, a hammock for infants, a towel, or a "sarong". A "krama" can also be easily shaped into a small child's doll for play. Under the Khmer Rouge, all Khmer were forced to wear a checkered "krama".[7]
The conical hat is also worn by many particularly by workers in the countryside to keep the sun off.[8] This, however, is a Vietnamese hat that has been adopted to a certain extent by Khmer in the provinces adjacent to Vietnam.
Cambodian Clothing style by period
Traditional Cambodian clothing is broadly referred to as Sampot with many variations as National Dress of Cambodia. Assisting on one status in Khmer society, Khmer clothing has varied by region and time, and each social class has a different sense of fashion. Generally, the new fashion which had been invented in the current period, will always passed down to next period but just with some elimination replaced by new version but some clothing had been disappeared through the new era for long times and restored in another period due to the popularity.
Funan Era (68 AD – 550 AD)
(Khmer: សម័យហ្វូណន)
As the first period of Cambodia, Funan lead its earlier fashion style to Khmer people, with its recently influenced by the India in totally. Some clothing style of this period got a high similarity to Indian, just some different according to the native origin until the popularity of Sampot came to the country after a Cambodian king ordered the people of his kingdom to wear the sampot at the request of Chinese envoys. Despite got some similarity on costume style, both men and women had on own.
• Men: All the male in the region had a totally Indian influenced in their clothing. The people in the region generally worn Sampot Chang Kben but the more influenced from Indian than today style. The noblemen, royalty and king prefer their own style in Sarabat textile, the imported from China. A bas belief evidence depicts that the wealthy people worn their clothing, very the same with Dhoti, as it tying around the upper body and tie the waist with a thin piece of clothes.
Noble man and royalty worn Sampot Chang Kben in their daily life with the chest exposed. The varieties of Yantra tattooing had found in drawing of ancient khmer script on their body in order for protection. With the Hinduism spread over the country, The King always crowned with long corner crown in different colour depicts their royalty.
• Women:the lady likely to suit themselves with Sampot in different color and wrap around with beautiful golden belt at their waist. The most useful sampot is Sampot Sarabap made from the expensive light silk in the country. They let the upper body naked but the lady need to have a sarong kor as a .collar to praise their beautyJewellery allowed such as the Big triangle earring made from wood or gold and another kind of earring similar to bracelets.
Begin short straight hair is a head hairstyle for average people while tying a chignon can seem for Royalty.
Unlike the average with rich people, poor people look like a naked person with just straw skirt cover around their waist or wearing a skirt make from animal's skin or from the cotton. They habitually have no jewelry but got a same hairstyle to rich people.
Chenla (550 AD – 802 AD)
(Khmer: សម័យចេនឡា )
Share the common with Funan but Chenla still received its unique style. According to the bas belief at Vat Phou, a still ruin of Chenla, its national costume noticed a high different from Funan, except the headdress which then allowed only King during that era.
• Men: wear always ties one's hair into a chignon and crown it with funan style's headdress. Sampot still certainly wore by Chenla People but in different variation. The men enjoyed wear that kind of Collar due to half undress, hold a sword meant for brave and begin muscle for known as strong.
• Women: the lady also ties a hair into a chignon, just like the guy but suit the hairs with a beautiful flower or jasmine, also rose into chignon, described about womanly. Otherwise, they likely to crown with the round headdress made of gold with flower decoration instead. They also loved to wear Sampot but Sometimes Lady likely to wore Sarong with flower texile around with a nice Pidan, match with the golden belt and hold a new style of khmer sarong kor below their neck despite naked their breast and stomach. The most important thing of this era, The servant lady in the palace, know to wraps this left shoulder to their back and stomach by shawl like sbai instead which is a symbol of Buddhism as well as Royalty wore Sava, a loosely decorated band of beads worn crosswise.
Angkor Era (8th Century to 14th century)
(Khmer: សម័យអង្គរ )
Khmer Empire or Angkor period is a strongly wave in Cambodia History, which then spread its whole culture to foreign as well as its more khmer fashion style rather than Indian of previous period. According to Zhou Daguan's Description of the Khmer people, He wrote that:
• Men: had their chests exposed, walked barefooted and wore only a piece of cloth wrapping around their waists known as Sampot. Golden Belt were used again for the people in that area. Another average people wear a heavy silk short with a hand design on the legs, with the gold, black and white colour for useful. Instead of Golden Belt, they also wraps around the waist with Khmer's Krama and wear Sarong as well. Two hairstyle is a regular ornament as straight hair and Chignon style.
• Women: Female people had a nude chest, has no shoes but their traditional Sampot and Sarong. Their Sarong and Sampot noticed to be longer than men's, having a lot of Knots. Zhou Daguan reported that the common women had no hair ornaments, though some wore golden rings or bracelets and metal belt. Beautiful women were apparently sent into the court to serve the king or his royal family at his whim. Another evidence illustrate that average lady and rich lady in that era, used a golden buckle to cover this upper body and normally, has a nignon hairstyle but allowed a large of polytail, on their shoulder.
• Apsara: To Compare to Apsara, a celestial dancer for royalty in Angkor Era as well as reminding a khmer clothing ornaments. their main dress ornament known as Sarong Kor, a gorgeous round decorative Collar (red colored) is highly visible, found just below the neck the collar is embellished with detailed gold colored copper ornaments and beaded designs. Also included a loosely decorated band of beads worn crosswise called Sava.They wore only Sampot but more higher decoration than ordinary Sampot with two knots around the waist. The right knot is long knot but left knot design more charming and fashionable. They cover their waist with a high professional design belt, decorated with warped spear-like tips draped on a red cloth, the straight cloth differs as it is a flat red cloth. Their most used jewelry confirmed as Ankle Jewelry, Dangling Earrings and Wrist Jewelry but best of all is Apsara's Crown features three points and two or three garlands with ornate adornments, made of Emerald and Gold.
Despite, this apsara costume not to wore today, it became the high culture of Khmer national costume and the main dress for Cambodian Famous, Apsara Dance.
• Royalty: For the guy in a first class or known as royalty, they retreat their own type of Funan and Chenla's costume back as well as that era, Female's national costume got motif than the male gender but extra with Sava and Sarong Kor. In Contrast. The court lady and Queen have no different that Apsara according to their costume but Queen Jayarajadevi and Indradevi carving are the best example with its unique different sava, made from silk feature golden twinkle floral print instead of bead to Apsara. The Queen Indradevi's crown confirmed a ten point and a large diamond center on headdress.
Charktomok period (1437 AD – 1525 AD)
(Khmer: សម័យចតុម្មុខ )
Since Thais sacked Angkor in 1400 AD. Chatomok period at its earliest time (Nowaday Phnom Penh) maintain the highly invader of Buddhism rather than Hindism influenced since King Jayavarman VII,the great reign. This post-angkor era submitted a power achievement dress contact with Buddhism and abandoned some style substitute to Hindu such which had came through three period already. Legacy Deva's Apsara's crown among the one. According to unsure evidence for clothing habit of Khmer People during Chartomok, some thoughts suoposed its style fade to Lovek region. However it then report that Chartomok People acquaint as great extraordinary fashion style than Lovek.
After a long lost war, Cambodia Suvivar aware to lost an original way of living but then created the newstyle with the influence from its neighbourhood Country s into uniquely khmer thinking. Different of first three kingdoms in Cambodia, Cambodian had no tops exposed again but the nice fabric cover around beautifulully for Lady.
• Men:Most of Men preferred Shirtless unless They were more wealty to find a top to suit their body. Odinary Khmer male's attire known specific as a wrapping like Chang Kben in several colour but more up to their thigh and strong hugging lower body, left them easily to work. The Noblemen or lord always worn a round collar shirt with a long pleat at the front and obtain four pocket at both side. At the period, most of male people had their hair long.
• Women: Lady for this era satisfied themselves with high decoration garment. The Young lady consumed to wrap a wide fabric which about 2 meter around their body in Chang Pok style showed up the small part of stomach. This fabric is likely to decorated with several colors and many piece of silver, made by both heavy and soft cotton depend on rich or poor. The poor had to bandaged their body by joined the ends at middle of chest, drop the remain tail, length to their navel. In contrast, the rich lady tied their self in Chang Pok style more firmly by bride the bit of its upper hem at the left of another side, surely as its was hugging. However, it then developed to more tight, used a strong and solid cotton to weaving a fabric then covered their tops and join it end at left or right side of their body but sewed it to one piece which made the worner decreased their worried for its accidentally drop off. They also tie a lovely, big and soft shawl around their shoulders or down to the centre of their back but hold it on their arm instead. They worns with wrap around skirt called Sampot Samloy in their favourite colour and textile especially flora print called Kean or in the light silk and more strong cotton. Sampot Samloy always worn by kept the front pleat, holding one side more up to make a knot at the top, secured with a golden or metal belt.Their hairstyle announced as worn their hair up in a bun or scatter the hair , raised the hem of hair at temple then drop over it shoulder to back with beautiful flower cover the hair or pinch it with nipper. As well as young lady, the old first class lady enjoyed wearing the fabric around their upper body but in weak decoration and not so charming colour. They worn it with their favourite Sampot Samloy generally in front pleat by only put its top hem to another side top or worn in 'Sarong included some head jewelry as Bracelets, necklace and earring, made from silver, gold and metal. Astonised from young age, The female elders, performed their hairstyle out as Chignon style only.
In contrast, the third class or average female people, had the some style of clothes to the upper class but with black colour the most and usually wearing Sarong with no decoration and Shawl but Krama is a useful fabric.
• Royalty: To Began in Monarchy, the fashion must be the most elegant of all. The King worn a long sleeves shirt at the top sewed with a hugging arms in rich embroidering, with a collar in sometimes round decoration and somes in a little sharp tips.It had sort of Epaulette that is a piece sewed with the shirt arching upwards like Indra's bow, represent a Chinese Style dressed influenced used during Tang Dynasty. There were Criss-crossing the front is the kse-sangvar of chains of rank which forms an 'X' as they cross over one another, on top of the kse-sangvar a diamond shaped pendant is worn. At the lower part they worn a knee length hugging trouser with some decoration at the hem, covering by a Chang Kben which kept at thigh and had a belt at the waist. Another accessories including one rectangular loin-cloth at the front and sometimes two others on the side that look like fish tails.THis three pieces was traced to Angkor era. The King need to crown with a similar crown of Angkor period but more sharp tip and high.
Black pajamas
The Khmer Rouge regime of the 1970s was well-noted for the popularity of unisex black "pajamas." Typically the peasant outfit consisted of a collarless black shirt, baggy trousers, and checkered krama knotted loosely about the neck. Brightly colored clothing was strictly prohibited under the Khmer Rouge. People were limited to black, dark blue, or maroon plain coloring. Women were strictly forbidden to wear any Western-style trousers or jeans at any time, although this has now changed, becoming increasingly popular particularly among young women today.[9]
Clothing, Traditional—Cambodia
The intricately patterned ikat silks (silks that whose threads are tie-dyed before being woven) created by the Khmer and Cham ethnic groups may come to mind when thinking of Cambodian textiles, but the peoples of Cambodia have produced many other cotton and silk textiles. Cambodians traditionally considered both domestic and imported textiles to be markers of identity, prestige, and wealth, and quantity and quality of textiles possessed by an individual or family contributed to their status within society.
Traditional dress in Cambodia is similar to traditional dress in neighboring Laos and Thailand. Sampot is the lower garment worn by either sex. The sampot for urban lower class and peasant women is a tube-skirt (sarong) approximately one and a half meters in length with both ends sewn together and is worn wrapped around the waist and secured with a cloth belt. Women of the middle and upper classes preferred to wear the sampot chang kben on a daily basis until the beginning of the twentieth century. This rectangular piece of cloth is approximately three meters long and one meter wide and is worn by first wrapping the cloth around the waist and stretching the ends away from the body. The outstretched ends are then twisted together and pulled between the legs and toward the back. The ends are tucked into the waist at the back, and the sampot chang kben is lastly fastened with a cloth or metal belt. Women of all social strata wear the sampot chang kben on special occasions such as religious ceremonies and weddings. Men also wear the sampot chang kben, but the traditional textile patterns worn by males differ from those worn by females. Traditionally, neither women nor men wore an upper garment. However, when the French colonial presence grew in Cambodia in the late nineteenth century, both men and women began to wear upper garments.
Even after the French presence in Cambodia from the 1860s onwards, Cambodians continued to wear traditional clothing. The Cambodian royalty and government officials combined the shot silk sampot chang kben (in the appropriate color for the day of the week) with a formal jacket. In the beginning of the twentieth century, Cambodians adopted forms of western style clothing such as a blouse or shirt. Men more readily adopted trousers as the lower garment for daily use, and both sexes continue to wear the sampot chang kben for formal occasions. Lower class and particularly rural women still wear a tube-skirt, but the material may be printed batik-patterned cloth bought at the market rather than hand-woven silk or cotton.
Silk Textiles
The most important silk textiles of Cambodia are the ikat silks (hol), twill-patterned, weft ikat textiles. The pattern is made by tying vegetable or synthetic fibers on sections of the weft threads before the threads are dyed. This process is repeated for different colored dye baths until the patterns are formed and the cloth is woven. The two types of hol textiles have five traditional colors: red, yellow, green, blue, and black. The sampot hol is the lower garment mentioned earlier, made from hol cloth (hol cloth can also be used for sampot chang kben). The pidan hol is a ceremonial hanging reserved for religious or sacred purposes.
The pidan hol is an example of excellent craftsmanship. It may be presented to a Buddhist temple or hung it in homes to create sacred space around the family's personal shrine. In a temple this textile is hung behind, above, or around the base of, a Buddha image. The narrative motifs of a pidan hol often depict tales of the previous lives of the Buddha.
Cotton Textiles
The various ethnic groups of Cambodia also produce cotton material for religious clothing and other purposes, such as for bedding and for various household textiles. The royal courts also imported Indian chintz with patterns especially for the Southeast Asian market.
The kroma is the all-purpose utility cotton cloth used by either men or women throughout the country as a head or neck scarf, belt, or towel. It is also used as a bag to carry things. This rectangular textile has a checkered pattern, usually blue and white or red and white, with striped ends. Political groups such as the Khmer Rouge have used the kroma to symbolize membership.
The Cham, an Austronesian group, are highly skilled silk weavers who produce cotton tube-skirts or sarongs for both men and women. Three or four hundred years ago, the Cham reportedly used to produce batiks (wax resist-dyed fabrics) in cotton similar to that of their kin in insular Southeast Asia. Cham women weave a checked or plaid cotton sarong for men. Natural or white cotton is important in Cham religious activities; it is worn by Cham priests and used as a sacred object during religious ceremonies.
Other Mon-Khmer and Austronesian minorities living in the northeastern region of Cambodia weave cotton cloth on back strap looms for clothing and domestic use. The groups of both of these linguistic families weave similar textiles by attaching the warp beam of the back strap loom to a tree or part of a house in order the achieve the lengths of woven material needed for their loincloths.
The male loincloth is approximately 20 to 25 centimeters wide and 3 to 7 meters long. It is indigo blue or black with large red warp stripes and smaller yellow and white warp stripes. Supplementary patterns also decorate the stripes. The ends of the loincloth are patterned with red bands with supplementary patterns of animal or plant motifs. Red tassels and lead, glass, or plastic beading sometimes decorate the edges and ends of the loincloth. Men of the various Mon-Khmer linguistic groups sometimes wear a blanket over a shoulder during rituals, but otherwise do not wear an upper garment. Occasionally, men wear a simple tunic made from plant fibers such as bark cloth or banana leaves. These plant-fiber tunics are reported to have been more common when the technology to weave cotton was not familiar to these groups. It is now rare to find clothing made from these fibers. Men of the Jarai and Ede Austronesian minorities wear a collarless shirt of indigo or black cotton adorned with red yarn or metal beads on special occasions.
Women of the different ethnic minorities wear tube skirts. The long tube-skirt is worn tucked in around the breasts and is made from two pieces of material sewn together to form a tube. The shorter version is made from one piece of cloth sewn into a tube and is worn tucked in at the waist. The color scheme of the women's tube-skirts is similar to that of the men's loincloth. Women either do not wear an upper garment or wear a simple tunic made from a single piece of cloth with a hole cut in the middle of the textile for the head and the sides sewn together leaving open spaces for the arms. Ede women add sleeves to the tunic and decorate them with red yarn and metal beading.
As with other Khmer and Cham ethnicities, the minority groups of northeast Cambodia presently reserve traditional dress for special occasions. Textile production in Cambodia has experienced disruption because of political conflict, particularly during the Khmer Rouge regime of the late 1970s. Textile production increased in the calmer conditions at the beginning of the twenty-first century, encouraged by renewed local and foreign interest in hand-woven textiles, particularly in mastering the dyeing and weaving of the pidan hol produced prior to the twentieth century.
Further Reading
Kuan, Chou Ta. (1992) The Customs of Cambodia. Trans. by Paul Pelliot. Bangkok, Thailand: White Orchid.
Hope, Jonathan. (1997) "Echoes of a Golden Age: Traditional Cambodian Ikat Cloths." HALI: The International Magazine of Antique Carpet and Textile Art 90 (January): 74–85.
Howard, Michael C., and Be Kim Nhung. (2000) "Textiles of the Katuic Speaking Peoples of Central Vietnam." Arts of Asia 30, 3 (May/June): 131–138.
Maxwell, Robyn. (1990) Textiles of Southeast Asia: Tradition, Trade, and Transformation. Melbourne, Australia: Australian National Gallery of Art.
The Institute for Khmer Traditional Textiles (1999). "Institute for Khmer Traditional Textiles." Retrieved 4 September 2001, from: http://www.geocities.co.JP/SilkRoad-Oce an/4148.
Chang Kben
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A Khmer traditional Dancer in Sampot Chang Kben
Sampot Chang Kben (Khmer: សំពត់ចងក្បិន) is a lower-body, wrap around cloth and is the national garment of Cambodia. It is the preferred choice of clothing for women of upper and middle classes for daily wear. This practice of daily wear died out in the beginning of the 20th century. Unlike the typical Sampot, it is more of a pant than a skirt. It is a rectangular piece of cloth measuring 3 meters long and one meters wide. It is worn by wrapping it around the waist, stretching it away from the body, twisting the ends together then pulling the twisted fabric between the legs and tucking it in the back of the waist.
The Sampot Chang Kben is adopted in Thailand and Laos, where it is known as kraben.
This article contains Khmer text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Khmer script.

History


A carving of deva wearing sampot chang kben.
The history of Sampot Chang Kben dates back to ancient Cambodia, where deities were often portrayed wearing such styles. References to most Khmer elders told a legend related to this garment; it said that a long time ago, the Khmer people worn Sampot Chang Kben, followed by Indian. In those times, India provided many religions, but the most important one was Hindism, as the Khmer King at that time built the temples such as Angkor wat, also dedicated to Hindism. In the era of the Khmer empire, most of the people were likely to read and see The Reamker at the Angkor wat carving in the first floor as well. The origin of Sampot Chang Kben is known as Indian. Also prayed and blessed to was a deva known as Hanuman, the guard of Prince Rama in Indian's famous mythology, Ramayana, as well as the Khmer adaptation, Reamker. To show its power, Indians preferred to wear the Sampot Chang Kben as their costume but today, countries under the Greater India, such as Cambodia, also wear it for special occasions.[1]
In the Ramayana mythology, Hanuman is a symbol of bravery, cleverness, and power, so the people, when wearing the Sampot Chang Kben, always drop a tail at the back like the tail of Hanuman. This practice lead a lot of people to believe that all Indians were guards of Hanuman. The influence of Sampot Chang Kben, known as Dhoti in India, were strongly sacked into Khmer culture from the ancient times to today. Apparently, this fabric is also known to be worn by Tamil people in South India, as well as Khmer people, till today.[2]
In fact, Sampot Chang Kben is the tradition of Southern India, and was imported to early Cambodian Kingdom, Funan by King Kaundinya I.[3]
In the middle of the 13th and 14th centuries, Thai people (from Sukhothai Kingdom, known as Thailand today) and Lao people (from Lan Xang, known as Lao today) had adopted the wearing of Sampot Chang Kben because they considered it superior for enjoying the special occasions, and useful for royalty or monarchy in their local royal palace, because the Thai people and Lao people had used Sampot Chang Kben in a similar way.[4]


Khmer lady worn Sampot Chang Kben in 1800s.
In ancient times, the Sampot Chang Kben was worn only by men, but in modern times, it is worn by both men and women, especially for a formal celebration; it is for instance worn by a bride and groom in a Khmer wedding. The general style of the garment has changed over the eras:
• King Norodom (1834–1904), During this time, most people wearing the Sampot Chang Kben kept the length down to the middle of the waist.[5]
• King Sisowath (born 1840, died 1927), During this time, the Sampot Chang Kben was worn higher up, just under the knee, like the model of Thai people. In Cambodia before, only men worn the garment, but in Thailand it was worn by both genders. When people from Cambodia saw Thai ladies wearing the Sampot Cheng Kben, they began to adopt this practice.
Today, the Sampot Chang Kben is worn mostly for formal occasions, or by royalties.
Longvek
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A reproduction of a 17th Century Dutch map of the Cambodian capital Lauweck (or Longvek)
This article contains Khmer text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Khmer script.

Longvek or Lovek (Khmer: លង្វែក; meaning "intersection" or "crossroads") was a city in ancient Cambodia, the capital city of the country after the sacking of Angkor by the Siamese in 1431. Little more than a village today in Kampong Chhnang Province, it lies just north of Oudong.
Longvek was chosen by Boromaracha III after the sacking of Angkor by the Siamese as a new capital because of its more readily defensible terrain. As a result there was a time when Cambodia was often referred to as "Lovek" or "Longvek" by foreign travellers.
Contents
• 1 History
• 2 References
• 3 Bibliography
• 4 External links

History
During the 14th and 15th centuries Cambodia was in a state of eclipse. Following the almost total destruction of Angkor, Longvek was chosen as the new capital of the now minor state of Cambodia. Longvek was located halfway between Phnom Penh and the southern end of the Tonle Sap and it was chosen by King Ang Chan (1516–66) as his official capital. King Ang Chan ordered his palace to be built in Longvek in 1553.
Longvek became the nation's capital in the 16th century after the Civil War Between Sdech Kan And Ponhea Chan. After Ponhea Chan's victory, he became the new king of Cambodia.
Spanish and Portuguese adventurers and missionaries, like Blas Ruiz de Hernán González from Ciudad Real, first visited the kingdom during this period. Blas became friends with King Satha of Longvek, who was well-disposed towards foreigners,[1] and while in the kingdom got to know Portuguese adventurer Diogo Beloso from Amarante. The Iberians referred to present-day Phnom Penh as "Churdumuco" and to Srei Santhor as "Sistor".[2] Not long thereafter Longvek was invaded by the Siamese ruler of Ayutthaya.[3]
King Naresuan of Siam conquered Longvek in 1593. This conquest marked a downturn in the kingdom's fortunes. In the historical period that followed Cambodia became a pawn in power struggle between its two increasingly powerful neighbours, Siam and Vietnam.
In 1618, the capital of Cambodia was once again relocated and was moved to Oudong.
Longvek
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Lovek)
Jump to: navigation, search


A reproduction of a 17th Century Dutch map of the Cambodian capital Lauweck (or Longvek)
This article contains Khmer text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Khmer script.

Longvek or Lovek (Khmer: លង្វែក; meaning "intersection" or "crossroads") was a city in ancient Cambodia, the capital city of the country after the sacking of Angkor by the Siamese in 1431. Little more than a village today in Kampong Chhnang Province, it lies just north of Oudong.
Longvek was chosen by Boromaracha III after the sacking of Angkor by the Siamese as a new capital because of its more readily defensible terrain. As a result there was a time when Cambodia was often referred to as "Lovek" or "Longvek" by foreign travellers.
Contents
• 1 History
• 2 References
• 3 Bibliography
• 4 External links

History
During the 14th and 15th centuries Cambodia was in a state of eclipse. Following the almost total destruction of Angkor, Longvek was chosen as the new capital of the now minor state of Cambodia. Longvek was located halfway between Phnom Penh and the southern end of the Tonle Sap and it was chosen by King Ang Chan (1516–66) as his official capital. King Ang Chan ordered his palace to be built in Longvek in 1553.
Longvek became the nation's capital in the 16th century after the Civil War Between Sdech Kan And Ponhea Chan. After Ponhea Chan's victory, he became the new king of Cambodia.
Spanish and Portuguese adventurers and missionaries, like Blas Ruiz de Hernán González from Ciudad Real, first visited the kingdom during this period. Blas became friends with King Satha of Longvek, who was well-disposed towards foreigners,[1] and while in the kingdom got to know Portuguese adventurer Diogo Beloso from Amarante. The Iberians referred to present-day Phnom Penh as "Churdumuco" and to Srei Santhor as "Sistor".[2] Not long thereafter Longvek was invaded by the Siamese ruler of Ayutthaya.[3]
King Naresuan of Siam conquered Longvek in 1593. This conquest marked a downturn in the kingdom's fortunes. In the historical period that followed Cambodia became a pawn in power struggle between its two increasingly powerful neighbours, Siam and Vietnam.
In 1618, the capital of Cambodia was once again relocated and was moved to Oudong.
Sarong
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Javanese men often wear sarongs during religious or casual occasions. Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia.
A sarong or sarung (pronounced [ˈsaɾoŋ] in Malay; English: /səˈrɒŋ/) is a large tube or length of fabric, often wrapped around the waist and worn as a kilt by men and as a skirt by women throughout much of South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, the Horn of Africa, and on many Pacific islands. The fabric most often has woven plaid or checkered patterns, or may be brightly colored by means of batik or ikat dyeing. Many modern sarongs also have printed designs, often depicting animals or plants.
Contents
• 1 Overview
• 2 Regional variations
o 2.1 Arabian Peninsula
o 2.2 South Asia
o 2.3 Somalia
o 2.4 Sri Lanka
o 2.5 Western World
• 3 Securing
• 4 Similar garments
• 5 Motion pictures
• 6 See also
• 7 Notes

Overview


Sundanese sarong weaver in Bandung, West Java, Dutch East Indies, 1900-1940.
In strict usage, sarong (Malay, "sheath") denotes the lower garment worn by the Malay (and other Maritime Southeast Asian) people, both men and women. This consists of length of fabric about a yard (0.91 m) wide and two-and-a-half yards (2.3 m) long. In the center of this sheet, across the narrower width, a panel of contrasting color or pattern about one foot wide is woven or dyed into the fabric, which is known as the kepala or "head" of the sarong. This sheet is stitched at the narrower edges to form a tube. One steps into this tube, brings the upper edge above the level of the navel (the hem should be level with the ankles), positions the kepala at the center of the back, and folds in the excess fabric from both sides to the front center, where they overlap and secures the sarong by rolling the upper hem down over itself. Malay men wear sarongs woven in a check pattern; women wear sarongs dyed in the batik method, with, for example, flower motifs, and in brighter colors.
The sarong is common wear for women, in formal settings with a kebaya blouse. Malay men wear sarongs in public only when attending Friday prayers at the mosque, but sarongs remain very common casual wear at home for men and women of all races and religions in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Northeast Part of India, in which Sarong is known as Phanek in Manipuri [1] and most parts of Southern India where it is called mundu or lungi in Myanmar.
Regional variations
Arabian Peninsula


Yemeni men in traditional loincloth.


Yemeni man tying his futah (sarong). Sometimes people keep money and other small utensils in the folds of the futah.
Sarongs known under a variety of local names are traditionally worn by the people of Yemen and elsewhere on the Arabian Peninsula. Local names for the garment include futah, izaar, wazaar and ma'awiis. In Oman, sarongs are called wizaar and are often white in color, similar to the Keralan mundu of South Asia and it is usually worn under the Thawb. In Saudi Arabia, sarongs are known as izaar. Designs can be checkered or striped as well floral or arabesque, but double plaid (i.e. a vertical section of the izaar with a different plaid pattern) designs from Indonesia are also very popular. In southwestern Saudi Arabia, tribal groups have their own style of unstitched izaar, which is locally weaved. This are also worn in northern Yemen. However, the tribal groups in Yemen each have their own design for their futah, the latter of which may include tassels and fringes. It is thought that these tribal futah resemble the original izaar as worn on the Arabian Peninsula since pre-Islamic times. They are generally worn open and unstitched in such a way that the loin cloth does not reach over one's ankles. Other izaars, often imported from Bangladesh, are also the traditional clothing of Arab fishermen of the Persian Gulf, the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. It was the traditional garment for men prior to the introduction of pant-like pyjamas and kaftans during the Turkish and European colonial periods. Tube-stitched as well as open sarongs are both worn, even in formal dishdasha-wearing countries, as casual sleep wear and at home.
South Asia


Bangladeshi boy in a traditional lungi loincloth.
Main article: Lungi
Sarongs are widespread in the Northeast part of India - in the state of Manipur, where they are called phanek, in the South Indian states of Kerala, where they are called mundu (if fully white or fully black) and lungi or kaili if coloured, and Tamil Nadu, where they are called sarem or veshti or lungi (worn by Muslims) and are usually worn at home. A standard lungi measures 2.12 by 1.2 metres.
Unlike the brightly coloured Southeast Asian sarongs, the Kerala variety (the mundu) is more often plain white and is worn for ceremonial or religious purposes. In Kerala, the brightly coloured sarongs are called kaily and the white ones are called mundu. The more formal, all-white Dhoti, is worn for formal and religious occasions. While there are also dresses based on the mundu which can be worn by women, they more commonly wear the sari.
Somalia


Somali man wearing a macawiis sarong.
Sarongs are ubiquitous in Somalia and the Muslim-inhabited areas of the Horn of Africa. Although both nomadic and urban Somali men have worn them for centuries in the form of a plain white kilt, the colorful macawiis (ma'awiis) sarong, which is the most popular form of the garment in the region, is a relatively recent arrival to Somalia courtesy of trade with the Southeast Asian islands and the Indian subcontinent. Prior to the 1940s, most macawiis were made of cotton. However, since the industrialization of the market for sarongs, they now come in many different fabrics and combinations thereof, including polyester, nylon and silk.
Designs vary greatly and range from checkered square motifs with watermarked diamonds and plaid to simple geometric lines. The one constant is that they tend to be quite colorful; black macawiis are rare. Sarongs in Somalia are worn around the waist, and folded several times over to secure their position. They are typically sold pre-sewn as one long circular stretch of cloth, though some vendors offer to sew them as a value-added service.
Sri Lanka


A Sri Lankan man wearing a sarong.
Sarongs are very common in Sri Lanka, and worn only by men. (A similar garment is worn by women. However, the women's garment is not called 'Sarong' but 'Redda', which is wraparound skirt.) It is the standard garment for most men in rural and even some urban communities. However, most men of upper social classes (whose public attire is trousers) wear the sarong only as a convenient night garment, or only within the confines of the house.
Statistically, the number of people wearing sarong as their primary public attire, is on the decline in Sri Lanka; the reason being that the sarong carries the stigma of being the attire for less educated lower social classes. However, there is a trend towards adopting sarong either as a fashionable garment, or as a formal garment worn with national pride, only on special occasions.[2] Political and social leaders of Sri Lanka whom want to portray their humility and closeness to 'common man' and also their nationalism, choose a variation of the sarong nicknamed the ‘National’ as their public attire.
Western World
In North America and Europe, hip wraps are worn as beach wear, or as a cover-up over swimwear. The wrap is often made of a thin, light fabric, often times rayon, and may feature decorative fringing on both sides. They may also have ties, which are long thin straps of fabric which the wearer can tie together to prevent the wrap from falling down. These wraps are almost exclusively worn by women, and do not usually resemble a traditional African or Asian sarong.
They do not resemble traditional sarongs as used in Africa or Asia, neither in size, pattern or design.
Securing
Numerous tying methods exist to hold a sarong to the wearer's body. In some cases, these techniques customarily differ according to the gender of wearer. If a sarong has ties, they may be used to hold it in place. If no ties exist, a pin may be used, the fabric may be tightly tucked under itself in layers, the corners of the main sheet may be around the body and knotted, or a belt may be used to hold the sarong in place.
Similar garments


A traditional Khmer dancer wearing a sampot in Cambodia
The basic garment known in English most often as a "sarong", sewn or unsewn, has analogs in many regions, where it shows variations in style and is known by different names.
• Africa
o In East Africa, it is called either a kanga (worn by African women), or a kikoi (traditionally worn by Southeast African men). Kangas are brightly coloured lengths of cotton that incorporate elaborate and artistic designs and usually include the printing of a Swahili proverb along the hem. Kikois are also made from cotton, but the fabric is heavier and their designs are much simpler, usually consisting of a single colour with striped borders along the edges.
o In Madagascar it is called a lamba.
o In Malawi it is called a chitenje.
o In Mauritius they are called pareos.
o In Mozambique it is called a capulana.
o In South Africa it is called a kikoi and commonly used as a furniture throw or for going to the beach.
o In Zimbabwe they are known as Zambias.
• Indian subcontinent
o In South Asia it is called a [phanek] or lungi. It is most often sewn into a large cylindrical shape, so there is no slit when the phanek or lungi is tied.
o In India similar articles of clothing are the [phanek] in Manipur, dhoti (or dhuti in West Bengali, vertti in Tamil, pancha in Telugu,panche in Kannada and Mundu in Malayalam).
o In the Maldives, and Indian state of Kerala, it is known as a mundu or neriyathu.
o In Punjab it is a called Chadra.(from chadar=sheet).
o In Sinhalese, it is known as the Sarama
• Southeast Asia
o In Cambodia it is used as an alternative to sampot.
o In Indonesia it is known as a kain sarung ('sarong cloth').
o In Malaysia it is known as a kain, kain pelikat, kain sarung, kain tenun, kain batik, or kain sampin (specialised sarong worn by men with Baju Melayu).
o In Myanmar, it is known as a longyi.
o In the Philippines it is also known as a malong (in Mindanao) or patadyong (in Visayan), often used as a cloth for making household "pang bahay" or outdoor shorts. A similar wrap-around worn by Tagalog women is called the saya or tapis, and is half of the Baro't saya.
o In Thailand, it is known as a pa kao mah for men and a pa toong for women.


Polynesian Hiva Oa dancers dressed in pāreu around 1909
• Pacific Islands
o In Fiji it is known as a sulu.
o In Hawaii it is referred to by the Anglicized Tahitian name, pareo.
o In Papua New Guinea the Tok Pisin term is lap-lap. Worn by men and women.
o In Rotuma, it is known as a "hạ' fạli"
o In Samoa it is known as a lavalava (also lava-lava).
o In Tahiti it is known as a pāreu.
o In Tonga it is known as tupenu.
Motion pictures
The American public is most familiar with the sarong for the dozens of motion pictures set in the South Seas, most of them romantic dramas made in the 1930s and 1940s. Dorothy Lamour is by far the actress most linked with the garment, which was designed by Edith Head. Lamour starred in multiple films of this genre, starting with The Hurricane in 1937. In fact, Lamour was nicknamed "The Sarong Girl" by the press and even wore a sarong on occasion in more traditional films. Among the other actresses to don the sarong for film roles are Maria Montez, Gilda Gray, Myrna Loy, Gene Tierney, Frances Farmer and Movita. Male stars who wore the manly sarongs on film include Jon Hall, Ray Milland, Tyrone Power, Robert Preston, Sabu Dastagir and Ralph Fiennes in The Constant Gardener (film). The sarong was also worn by Pierce Brosnan in The Thomas Crown Affair. In documentary movie, we can see soldiers in Sarong directed by Lokendra Arambam.[
Krama
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This article does not cite any references or sources.
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2008)

For the linguistic term, a level of politeness, see Javanese


Market woman with Krama in Kampong Thom
A krama (Khmer: ក្រមារ) is a sturdy traditional Cambodian garment with many uses, including as a scarf, bandanna, to carry children, to cover the face, and for decorative purposes. It is worn by men, women and children, and can be fairly ornate, though most typical kramas contain a gingham pattern of some sort, and traditionally come in either red or blue. It is the national symbol too. It is use to be folded as a hammock, worn on neck and many other uses.
Oudong
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For the dish, see Udon.
Oudong
ភ្នំឧដុង្គ
— Town —


Motto: City of the Past Kings


Oudong
Location of Oudong, Cambodia
Coordinates: 11°48′N 104°45′E / 11.8°N 104.75°E

Country Cambodia

Province
Kandal Province

District
Ponhear Leu

Time zone
Cambodia (UTC+7)

Oudong (also romanised as Udong, U-Tong and Odong) is a town situated in the north-western part of Kandal province, and the capital Phnom Penh.
The town is located on top of Phnom Odong, about 40 km northwest of Phnom Penh. The mountain itself runs from the southeast to northeast, with a low saddle in the middle
Contents
• 1 Etymology
• 2 History
• 3 Folklore
• 4 World Heritage Status
• 5 References
• 6 External links

Etymology


Stupa of Ang Duong
The city's name is derived from the Sanskrit word: उत्तुङ्ग "uttuṅga", meaning "supreme."
History
From 1618 until 1866 it was formally called "Oudong Meanchey", home to a succession of kings, deposed from the former capital of Lovek by the invading Thais. In 1866, it was abandoned by King Norodom, taking his royal court along with him to the current capital, Phnom Penh. Later during the 1970's it was extensively bombed by the American forces during the Vietnam War and damaged by the Khmer Rouge in 1977.[1]
Folklore
Legend has it that in the Arthross Temple (Temple of Eight Points). The Buddha located here faces north instead of the traditional direction of east, symbolizing a testimony to the strength and power of the ancient Khmer kingdom. In the 18th century, locals say, a Chinese emperor sent his people out across Asia to identify potential threats. When they came to Oudong, they saw a mountain shaped like a naga, with a cavern on top of the Arthross end, and they observed the wealth and power of Khmer society. The Chinese told their emperor that the Khmers were already a powerful race, and should a naga appear through the cavern of Arthross, they would be strong enough to rule the world.
The Chinese emperor did not want this, nor did he want a war. Instead, he asked the Khmer king if he could build a temple above the cavern, with the Buddha's face towards China in order to protect his empire. This was named the Arthaross temple which means "18 corners", because there are 18 points, or corners, built into the structure of the temple.
Curious About Cambodian Clothing?
Daily wear, special occasions, ceremonial, and more...

Cambodian clothing has a rich history and culture.

The nation’s daily and special dresses are central to their way of life, and provide lavish artistry in many settings. Their clothing adds a paintbrush of exquisite color and design to their fertile countryside and cities.
Traditional Cambodian wear
Men and women both slip on the following typical wear: Cambodian men typically wear cotton or silk shirts with short sleeves. They wear cotton trousers as well. Cambodian women customarily wear a sarong which is embellished with silver and gold threading and a sarong. A sarong/sampot is a long fabric piece, which is commonly wrapped around the waist and worn by both men and women in South East Asia.

The sampot is Cambodia’s national clothing. In addition, it is an integral part of the nation’s soul. It has similarities with other countries in the region, but remains a unique part of Cambodian heritage. There are several variations; most of which depend on social class. The sampot measures 5-6 feet long and each end is sewn together. The sampot originated in the Funan Era. In that era, a Khmer king ordered his people to wear the sampot at the behest of Chinese diplomats.

Cambodian Sampot
Photo by Melissa Chasse at Flickr




The sampot chang kben is primarily worn by upper and middle class women. It resembles a pant more then a skirt. The sampot chang kben is over 9 feet long and 3 feet wide. It is wrapped around the waist, and pulled from the body. Then, a knot is tied. The knot is drawn between the legs and held by a belt. Nowadays, it is worn by all woman of all classes on special occasions.

Cambodian dancer wearing sampot chang kben
Photo by Beth Kanter at Flickr

The sampot phamuong is another time-honored Cambodian textile. There are 52 colors used in sampot phamuong. 22 needles are used to construct the fabric. Ideally, it has floral and geometrical motifs. Cambodian yellow silk, a prized regional specialty, is used with this clothing article.

Ladies wearing sampot phamuong for different days of the week
Photo by khmernewstoday.blogspot.com

The sampot hol is another national cloth which comes in two varieties: one is a wrapping skirt which uses a customary technique, and the other is a twill weave. A twill weave involves a different color on each side of cloth. This weave is unique to Cambodia and is celebrated for its splendor worldwide. The sampot hol dress was influenced by the Indian patola silk cloth. The sampot hol possesses more then 200 patterns using yellow, red, brown, blue, and green. Like the sampot phamuong, the sampot hol’s motifs are gemotric, floral, and animal.

Cambodian clothing sampot hol for ceremonial purpose
Photo by National Gallery of Australia

A krama scarf distinguishes Cambodian dress from surrounding countries such as Laos and Vietnam. Checkered kramas are frequently donned underneath the hats worn by farm workers. Krama’s can be used for almost anything, such as baby carriers, decorations, pillow covers, and drying a work day’s sweat. Although primarily a rural resource, urban Cambodians use them as well. You'll see lots of krama being sold at the Old Market or the Central Market.

Colorful Krama
Photo by goodkrama.com

What should visitors wear?

Visitors to Cambodia should know of the typical dress used in different social circumstances. Just like in other countries, different occasions require appropriate clothing.

At temples no scanty clothing should be worn out of courtesy for devotees. The tourist should also not go shirtless, in shorts, hot pants, or any other offensive attire. When Cambodians attend proper proceedings, like at the temple, they wear formal Cambodian clothing. In addition, they remove their hats and shoes; so remember to do so yourself.

For practical purposes such as traveling through the country, a pair of comfortable walking shoes is necessary because the grounds are irregular in elevation. A hat is helpful in the intense sunlight that permeates the country. Drinking water should be carried as well, because the humid heat would make you suffer without it. Make sure that you get water bottles only, as tap water is not exactly safe, just yet.
So in short...
Cambodian clothing are unique, just like the country itself. It's interesting how you can see the influence of the Chinese in their clothing, which makes the whole Cambodia history interesting and fascinating.