Khmer historian Michel Tranet (Photo: RFA)
Chaimongkol Chalermsukjitsri, a promoter of the Khmer language in Surin, and his children (Photo: The Phnom Penh Post)06 June 2008
By Sarah Oliveira
Ka-set
Unofficial translation from French by Tola Ek
Click here to read the original article in French
Click here to read the original article in Khmer
They are called “Khmer Surin” from the name of the province where they live, but for the majority of Cambodian people, they are exactly the same as their compatriots living in the northeast of Thailand. Nevertheless, Khmer people living north of the Dangrek mountain chain are borne out of the Khmer culture. They were separated from the motherland following the shrinking of the Khmer territory to the benefit of the neighboring Siam, and these Khmer people nowadays have Thai citizenship. Between them and Cambodian people, the border is nothing but a delineation on the maps, and one that is also ingrained in their heads.
“These are Siamese kramas (scarfs)!” a tailor in Phnom Penh burst at the sight of fabrics from Surin. When she is informed that they were woven by “Khmer Surin,” she continues to get mixed up: “Khmer Surin, they are Siamese,” she muttered. It is difficult to conceive that on the other side of the Thai border, those whom people call “Khmer Surin” constitute the same people, the same language … And even, according to the Cambodian ethnologist and historian Michel Tranet, there is no doubt that they are Khmer people.
A foremost geographical isolation
To understand the history of the people in the area, Michel Tranet suggested to completely forget about the concept of border. According to him, the presence of Khmer people in the province of Surin, Buriram, Sa Keo, Ubon, Sisaket, Trat and other provinces [currently in Thailand] took place since the Funan and Chenla eras, and even before those eras. “They have preserved a particular archaism in the Khmer language and culture because, living on high plateau, they were geographically isolated,” Michel Tranet explained.
The [Khmer] culture is preserved even though Cambodia lost the sovereignty on these territories since the 16 and 17th centuries (1). Nowadays, Khmer Surin are gradually tipping towards the Thai culture, the youths in particular. Other Khmer people in Thailand, especially in the province of Nakhon Ratchasima (Nokor Reach Seima in Khmer), taken over by Thailand in 1374, are completed blended with the Thai people. Currently, what is left of the Khmer culture are some temples, the most famous of which is the Phimaï temple. As for the Khmer culture, it has disappeared and the Khmer people living in this region do not speak their native language anymore. This phenomenon is not unique to Thailand: “In summary, one can consider that this is also taking place in the same manner for the Phnong people in Cambodia,” Michel Tranet underscored.
A political rift
Nowadays, contacts between Khmer Surin and the Cambodian people remain limited. Cambodian workers mainly cross the border through the Poipet border gate to look for work in Thailand, much to the south of Surin. Cambodian tourists visiting Surin are very rare even though there are a lot of sights that would impress them there: dozens of pre-Angkorian and Angkorian temples, as well as several Baray (water reservoirs) with imposing area extent. “One day, some Cambodians living in the border refugee camps, obtained the authorization to attend a conference in Surin. When they realized that we spoke Khmer also, they were so moved that they embraced us,” Thong Luang, an old villager from Phum Ponn, Surin, recalled.
It would be easily conceivable that Khmer Surin and the Cambodian people would have maintained strong links among themselves, even with a dividing border, the latter is not completely shut. According to Thong Luang, the main reason of the rift is political,” to hear him speak about it, this remnants of this rift still remain, in particular due to Norodom Sihanouk’s hostility towards Thailand.
To this political rift, there are other minor incidents and preconceived ill hardships which do not favor the warm up of the relationships between the two camps. “As soon as I cross the border, even just to buy fish, I am conned even if I speak Khmer with the sellers,” Thong Luang complained. As for Tim, a young Khmer Surin woman, she confessed that she does not actually understand what the meaning of “bombs excuse” she uses is, for her not to travel to Cambodia.
Chaimongkol, a fervent defender of the Khmer language in Surin, is concerned about the generalized state of corruption which exists in Cambodia – while recognizing that Thailand suffers from corruption as well, “but, to a lesser extent”. “There’s no need to eliminate corruption at 100%! A drop of 20% would be sufficient for now. Why not set a day where there is no corruption at all, a day in which everybody promises not to accept bribes?” Chaimongkol suggested with irony. Then, turning to a more serious tone, he confided: “If corruption does not back down in Cambodia, I believe that we will meet with catastrophe.”
Preab Sovath in Surin?
Lack of relationships, mutual misunderstanding, prejudice … If Cambodia is not tempting for young Tim, it was with emotion that she pronounced the name “Angkor.” Thong Luang had the opportunity to visit Cambodia already, the “Khmer from below” as he called it. He has photos showing him and his wife posing religiously in front of the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, in front of Angkor Wat. While turning the pages of his photo album, Thong Luang said: “You know, this is not like traveling overseas. This is like going back to your own country, because, over there, everybody speaks Khmer…”
“Staking on cultural exchanges would be an effective mean to create a rapprochement with the Khmer from below,” said Thong Luang. On this subject, Chaimongkol is filled with ideas: “Why not inviting a ‘chapey’ player from Cambodia or even Preab Sovath [a Cambodian pop star singer] to give a show in our Phum Ponn village during the next New Year celebration?” Lum Leut, the Sino-Lao commune chief who also speaks some Khmer, said that he does not see any problem to this idea. “However, the commune cannot fund the event by itself,” he indicated. This year, during the New Year evening celebration organized by the commune, several Khmer Surin songs were added to Thai songs.
Would Preab Sovath – some of whose songs feature Khmer Suring ‘kamtreum’-style music – know that this Khmer Surin music was originally used for spirit possession ceremony? “It’s better off that the Cambodian people do not know about this, they could be scare of it, and they would stop listening to kantreum!” Chaimongkol said with a bursting laugh.
Researches end at the border
Among all the Cambodian historians, Michel Tranet is the exception, he is the only one closely interested in Khmer Surin. “Numerous Thais are conducting research on Khmer from northeast Thailand. But their views are biased because they have no choice. The Thais being a young people, their speeches are filled with politics and nationalist rhetoric,” he said. Nevertheless, Michel Tranet believes that his researches will not upset the Thais. It is not about taking back the territory, but to help them understand better the people living in their land.
Michel Tranet is sorry to see the lack of interest among Cambodians to research. And for the very few who dedicate their time to them, he deplored that their interest more often than not, stops at the border, or is limited to the Angkor period. He suggested a non-politic and not-cloistered approach closer to historic reality by studying the larger outreach of the Mon-Khmer culture.
Conducting research on the Khmer Surin culture allows a better knowledge of the Chenla history and the evolution of the Khmer language, Michel Tranet insisted. “Not to study the history of a people on all their territorial extent, and limiting it to a single era, it’s crippling it. The Angkorian period is only one tree, whereas the Mon-Khmer culture, it’s the forest. The goal of my research is to preserve the collective memory of an ancient people. By knowing where we came form, then we find our identity, our pride, our spirit.” As a historian, one must place oneself above the crowd, above the political disputes, in order to contribute to the building of a culture of peace, Michel Tranet concluded.
------
(1) Michel Tranet (2005). “History of the Kingdom of Cambodia, Alliance between the Khmer and Thai people from the 13th Century,” in Khmer.
Don’t miss next Friday, we will publish the second part of this report conducted in Surin with Chaimongkol who wants his peers to use the Khmer language because now, Khmer Surin tend to speak Thai rather than Khmer.
“These are Siamese kramas (scarfs)!” a tailor in Phnom Penh burst at the sight of fabrics from Surin. When she is informed that they were woven by “Khmer Surin,” she continues to get mixed up: “Khmer Surin, they are Siamese,” she muttered. It is difficult to conceive that on the other side of the Thai border, those whom people call “Khmer Surin” constitute the same people, the same language … And even, according to the Cambodian ethnologist and historian Michel Tranet, there is no doubt that they are Khmer people.
A foremost geographical isolation
To understand the history of the people in the area, Michel Tranet suggested to completely forget about the concept of border. According to him, the presence of Khmer people in the province of Surin, Buriram, Sa Keo, Ubon, Sisaket, Trat and other provinces [currently in Thailand] took place since the Funan and Chenla eras, and even before those eras. “They have preserved a particular archaism in the Khmer language and culture because, living on high plateau, they were geographically isolated,” Michel Tranet explained.
The [Khmer] culture is preserved even though Cambodia lost the sovereignty on these territories since the 16 and 17th centuries (1). Nowadays, Khmer Surin are gradually tipping towards the Thai culture, the youths in particular. Other Khmer people in Thailand, especially in the province of Nakhon Ratchasima (Nokor Reach Seima in Khmer), taken over by Thailand in 1374, are completed blended with the Thai people. Currently, what is left of the Khmer culture are some temples, the most famous of which is the Phimaï temple. As for the Khmer culture, it has disappeared and the Khmer people living in this region do not speak their native language anymore. This phenomenon is not unique to Thailand: “In summary, one can consider that this is also taking place in the same manner for the Phnong people in Cambodia,” Michel Tranet underscored.
A political rift
Nowadays, contacts between Khmer Surin and the Cambodian people remain limited. Cambodian workers mainly cross the border through the Poipet border gate to look for work in Thailand, much to the south of Surin. Cambodian tourists visiting Surin are very rare even though there are a lot of sights that would impress them there: dozens of pre-Angkorian and Angkorian temples, as well as several Baray (water reservoirs) with imposing area extent. “One day, some Cambodians living in the border refugee camps, obtained the authorization to attend a conference in Surin. When they realized that we spoke Khmer also, they were so moved that they embraced us,” Thong Luang, an old villager from Phum Ponn, Surin, recalled.
It would be easily conceivable that Khmer Surin and the Cambodian people would have maintained strong links among themselves, even with a dividing border, the latter is not completely shut. According to Thong Luang, the main reason of the rift is political,” to hear him speak about it, this remnants of this rift still remain, in particular due to Norodom Sihanouk’s hostility towards Thailand.
To this political rift, there are other minor incidents and preconceived ill hardships which do not favor the warm up of the relationships between the two camps. “As soon as I cross the border, even just to buy fish, I am conned even if I speak Khmer with the sellers,” Thong Luang complained. As for Tim, a young Khmer Surin woman, she confessed that she does not actually understand what the meaning of “bombs excuse” she uses is, for her not to travel to Cambodia.
Chaimongkol, a fervent defender of the Khmer language in Surin, is concerned about the generalized state of corruption which exists in Cambodia – while recognizing that Thailand suffers from corruption as well, “but, to a lesser extent”. “There’s no need to eliminate corruption at 100%! A drop of 20% would be sufficient for now. Why not set a day where there is no corruption at all, a day in which everybody promises not to accept bribes?” Chaimongkol suggested with irony. Then, turning to a more serious tone, he confided: “If corruption does not back down in Cambodia, I believe that we will meet with catastrophe.”
Preab Sovath in Surin?
Lack of relationships, mutual misunderstanding, prejudice … If Cambodia is not tempting for young Tim, it was with emotion that she pronounced the name “Angkor.” Thong Luang had the opportunity to visit Cambodia already, the “Khmer from below” as he called it. He has photos showing him and his wife posing religiously in front of the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, in front of Angkor Wat. While turning the pages of his photo album, Thong Luang said: “You know, this is not like traveling overseas. This is like going back to your own country, because, over there, everybody speaks Khmer…”
“Staking on cultural exchanges would be an effective mean to create a rapprochement with the Khmer from below,” said Thong Luang. On this subject, Chaimongkol is filled with ideas: “Why not inviting a ‘chapey’ player from Cambodia or even Preab Sovath [a Cambodian pop star singer] to give a show in our Phum Ponn village during the next New Year celebration?” Lum Leut, the Sino-Lao commune chief who also speaks some Khmer, said that he does not see any problem to this idea. “However, the commune cannot fund the event by itself,” he indicated. This year, during the New Year evening celebration organized by the commune, several Khmer Surin songs were added to Thai songs.
Would Preab Sovath – some of whose songs feature Khmer Suring ‘kamtreum’-style music – know that this Khmer Surin music was originally used for spirit possession ceremony? “It’s better off that the Cambodian people do not know about this, they could be scare of it, and they would stop listening to kantreum!” Chaimongkol said with a bursting laugh.
Researches end at the border
Among all the Cambodian historians, Michel Tranet is the exception, he is the only one closely interested in Khmer Surin. “Numerous Thais are conducting research on Khmer from northeast Thailand. But their views are biased because they have no choice. The Thais being a young people, their speeches are filled with politics and nationalist rhetoric,” he said. Nevertheless, Michel Tranet believes that his researches will not upset the Thais. It is not about taking back the territory, but to help them understand better the people living in their land.
Michel Tranet is sorry to see the lack of interest among Cambodians to research. And for the very few who dedicate their time to them, he deplored that their interest more often than not, stops at the border, or is limited to the Angkor period. He suggested a non-politic and not-cloistered approach closer to historic reality by studying the larger outreach of the Mon-Khmer culture.
Conducting research on the Khmer Surin culture allows a better knowledge of the Chenla history and the evolution of the Khmer language, Michel Tranet insisted. “Not to study the history of a people on all their territorial extent, and limiting it to a single era, it’s crippling it. The Angkorian period is only one tree, whereas the Mon-Khmer culture, it’s the forest. The goal of my research is to preserve the collective memory of an ancient people. By knowing where we came form, then we find our identity, our pride, our spirit.” As a historian, one must place oneself above the crowd, above the political disputes, in order to contribute to the building of a culture of peace, Michel Tranet concluded.
------
(1) Michel Tranet (2005). “History of the Kingdom of Cambodia, Alliance between the Khmer and Thai people from the 13th Century,” in Khmer.
Don’t miss next Friday, we will publish the second part of this report conducted in Surin with Chaimongkol who wants his peers to use the Khmer language because now, Khmer Surin tend to speak Thai rather than Khmer.
15 comments:
it can be one of the problems that they don't speak khmer because they don't have radios or tv in khmer language to listen to or to watch.and another is that khmer songs or musics are not good in quality.
" another is that khmer songs or musics are not good in quality."
too seriouse to hear that. but i do not think sll thai songs and musics attracted all thai people. every body has right to choose which song they like and dislike. some people love romantic song but other like cha-cha cha
One small note, when we live in another country, we tend to follow the accent of that certain country. Cambodian in Thailand and Cambodian in the mainland speak with two completely different accents, except Cambodian in Siem Reap and it usualy not as popuplar as Cambodian from Battambang or Kampong Cham or from Phnom Pehn where these accents were regard as the true National accent. They are the standard of the Cambodian Language. If you want more respect, please speak Khmer with these 3 regions' accent, unless, you're a comedian. Otherwise see Lok Sam Rainsey and Mr. Hun Sen? you will be always regard as an ignorant Cam. and it doesn't matter, if you are Mr. Premier. So please learn to speak Khmer with our own standard, even thought more and more of us are becoming awared of our differences and tend to accept it better than it uses to be.
hun sen may be from kampong cham, but he never went to school or may be just have a little bit of schooling and disappeared with other Cambodian that were living only in the jungle. no wonder, he came across as an asshole half of the time.,if not more. yeik!
i totally am agree with mr. tranet's educational assessment of khmer in thailand and khmer in cambodia when you said that they were only separated by political boundary. but how are we suppose to get longer with all the animosity towards one another. i think sometime, people forget the good, common bond they have with each other when they are too busy arguing and fighting each other; this is so true in a marriage discord as well. people tend to forget when or why they were in love with each other in the first place despites the ups and downs life brings as they got older. if we really think about it, everything seems to have some form of connection to everything else.
as for 1:34am, what you are saying may sound like a typical stereotyping a person. i don't think it's necessary true all the time, though of what you refer to. people can change and people don't have to stay the same way, unless they are cookoo or something, but that would be an acception to the rule; however, in general people do changed e.g. education level is changed over the years, demeanor changed, appearance changed, etc.... and understand too that sometime the society where a person lives can play an important role in how well that person become or vis versa. psychology and philosophy are very interesting subjects. check it out.
I am Khmer (Cambodian)my parent's relatives are living in, some part of Surin Province, the others are in BURIRAM province. My grand parent's childrend are there many of them. When i was 11-13 year old boy, I went to visit them twice with my ungle and once when I was in refugee camp 1978-79. As I know many others Khmer in these provinces such:BATTAMBORG, SIAM REAP,ODDORMEANCHEY, PREAH VIHEAR,STEIN TRENG Provinces are having relatives in SURIN,BORI RAM, ROY AET, NOKOR REACH SEYMA, AND SISAKET PROVINCES. I hope they will have some intention to learn Khmer Language later on. I would like to reunited as a unic khmer nation.I know this territory more than I knew Cambodia
God bless khmer all!
Language is not what make a person Khmer. It is the mentallity. Some Khmer will not be able to speak Khmer, but Amerikang, Barang, Japon, ...
At any rate, what it's said in the title is not fully truth. It is not just "misunderstood each other", but more like "strong disagreement" that cause the division between khmer, just as what we see happening this very moment in Cambodia. Some is pro-infidel and some is pro-Yuon.
And that goes for Ah Khmer-Lao and Ah Khmer-Yuon as well. The difference is Ah Khmer-Thai and Ah Khmer-Lao have get along fine with their protectorate Thai and Lao, but Ah Khmer-Yuon didn't. Well, may be not so much with Yuon but Communist Yuon.
agree, that khmer are all same heritage and ancestry, however, "disagreement is the culprit since historical time until now. remember in khmer history, if one is perserverant enough to learn about khmerness like history, legends, language, etc., historians indicated the facts to us that our great khmer kings of the angkor dynasty, King Jayavarman II exiled and then came to power because the king can unite all disagreeing khmers in the regions and thus the king created one of the world's great khmer civilization heritage that actually last until the end of the 15th century. because our great god-like kings, then can unite his all his subjects, the great khmer race who were made up of many small stately provinces at that time. remember the key word the first great king of the angkor dynasty did was he has the ability to UNITE all the khmer states at that time. so, perhaps, that is a wake up call for all khmers to unite again for the benefit of peace and prosperity of our country. i still see our happy time is still to come. god bless cambodia and her beautiful khmer people.
Dream on, mate. "United" has been out of fashion for Khmer for hundreds of years now, and it will never come back. Everyone wants a piece of pie and a foreigner protectorate to secure it, may it be the US, AU, Portugo,..., or Yuon.
Lighting will strike ah 2:04p.m's mother first and then it will strike him.
There is no such thing as Khmer misunderstand each other. It is more like viciously disagreed with each other, and they want to split. This no difference from among political parties in Cambodia today. If they can split Cambodia again, they would have, and Cambodia would not be any bigger than Phnom Penh today. The rest will be new countries again. May be US, French, Russia, who know. It's time that we stop mitigating our bad history and stick to the truth.
Khmer hates Khmer's culture. That is why they are trying to wipe it out everyday or whenever they can. What they love is westerner, thai, lao, or yuon culture; and that is why Cambodia is nearly wipe out right now.
Khmer are supporting one anothers; it's not like you 6:19am said. You said what you see, enjoyed!!..Khmer're travelling toward peace , and reunion. Sometime in the future that region will reglorifie one more and forever!!!, after a bigs earthquak, and tenderstorm hit. 2:04PM you're to smart but you don't know WHAT you didn't know, your childrend, and grands.., will be living as Khmer nation, under Khmer rule. Your conception is beleived that the cold war is over in 21 centuries.
Long lives the King-TA and Khmer all
Why khmers Surin are more peaceful than their counterpart in vietname ?
may be we both having the same religion culture and perhaps language, Mr. Chaimonkol? With ah Vietcong? just the sound of their language alone will drive you up the bonker! and talking about letting their daughters loose or becoming a whore? or their sons becoming a ganster? or a criminal. It makes you wonder where is their real value? No wonder we repell them like oil would repell the water.
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