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Northern Khmer people

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Northern Khmer people
ជនជាតិខ្មែរខាងជើង
เขมรเหนือ
Northern Khmer women wearing Thai costume during Sen Don Ta festival in Surin
Total population
≈ 1.4 million[1]
Regions with significant populations
Isan (Buriram, Surin, Sisaket)
Eastern (Trat, Chanthaburi)
Languages
Northern Khmer, Thai, Isan
Religion
Theravada Buddhism
Related ethnic groups
Kuy Isan Thai Khmer
This article contains Khmer text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Khmer script.

Northern Khmer people (Khmer: ជនជាតិខ្មែរខាងជើង; Thai: เขมรเหนือ) or colloquially as Thais of Khmer origin (Thai: ชาวไทยเชื้อสายเขมร);[2] mostly referred to as Khmer Surin (Khmer: ខ្មែរសុរិន Thai: เขมรสุรินทร์) is the designation used to refer to ethnic Khmers native to the Isan region of Northeast Thailand.[3][4]

History

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Khmers have had a presence in this area after Khmer Empire.[5] With the fall of the Angkor, the Khmers of the Isan region were subject to increasing Thai influence. After the fall of Ayutthaya, the Thai kingdom officially reunited the country and expanded the territory to include Surin, which had been an area since the Sukhothai and Ayutthaya periods. The Khmer immigrants became citizens of the Thai monarchy, along with the Kuy and Isan people, and began a long and slow process of cultural assimilation.

Demographics

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Khmer percentage of the total population in various provinces of Thailand
Province Khmer % in 1990 Khmer % in 2000
Surin[6] 63.4% 47.2%
Buriram[7] 0.3% 27.6%
Sisaket[8] 30.2% 26.2%
Trat[9] 0.4% 2.1%
Sa Kaew[10] N/A 1.9%
Chanthaburi[11] 0.6% 1.6%
Roi Et[12] 0.4% 0.5%
Ubon Ratchathani[13] 0.8% 0.3%
Maha Sarakham[14] 0.2% 0.3%

Culture

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Northern Khmer silk in Thai traditional clothing displayed at Surin National Museum, Thailand
Prasat Phimai a 12th century Hinduism temple in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand

Although they are now a minority, the Northern Khmer still retain some of their own culture, which is unique from other Khmers. They practice Thai-style Theravada Buddhism, perform traditional ancestor worship rituals, and speak a local language called Khmer, Khmer, and Northern Khmer in English. The Northern Khmer use Thai as their writing language, as government schools teach only Thai.

The Thai language instruction has resulted in many of the younger generation being more comfortable using Thai as a medium of communication. In 1998, Smalley reported renewed interest in Khmer language and culture had resulted in a two-fold increase in the use of Northern Khmer since 1958.[15] However, usage of Khmer has subsequently declined.[16]

Northern Khmer-style Apsara dance

In the past two decades, there has been state-directed revitalization of 'local' cultures in Thailand, including of New culture, which has been challenged for adopting a state narrative combined with the creativity of music, art, dancing and culture of Thailand, Isan, Kui , Khmer and India. It has become an important identity that makes art dancing and culture in Surin, Buriram and Sisaket provinces stand out and become increasingly popular during the period 1950-2024.

Kantrum (Thai: กันตรึม, Khmer: កន្រ្ទឹម) is a new musical genre in the Southern part of Isan that originated within the Northern Khmer community. The musical accompaniment is similar to that of Isan music, includinc drums and fiddles. The lyrics are sung in Khmer.[17] Popular songs include สาวกันตรึม (‘Kontrum Girl’), รักสาวสะเราะแอง (‘In love with a girl of my country’), รักบ่าวอีสานใต้ (‘In love with a Southern Isan boy’), and คืนลับฟ้า (‘The night sets in the sky’).

An annual festival is celebrated each year in front of Prasat Phanom Rung temple to celebrate the 1000-year-old ancient heritage of Thailand. During the festivities, Apsara dancers are parading in front of the temple. [18]

Conflict

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Although it is not anywhere near the scale of the protests of the Khmer Krom in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam, some Northern Khmers living in the Isan region have demanded more rights and oppose Thaification of the Surin Khmer. Also, the occasional hostilities between Thailand and Cambodia have made their relations sometimes difficult.[19][20]

Genetics

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A 2016 study revealed genetic distinctiveness between samples taken from two geographically close Northern Khmer population clusters as well as with an ethnolinguistically related group, the Cambodian Khmer. [21]

Notable Northern Khmers

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Thailand - World Directory of Minorities & Indigenous Peoples". 19 June 2015.
  2. ^ "Cuam and the Beliefs of the Thai-Khmer". Khmerling.blogspot.com. 25 October 2005. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  3. ^ International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; landforms a growing larger by the second Reports submitted by States parties under article 9 of the Convention: Thailand (PDF) (in English and Thai). United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. 28 July 2011. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  4. ^ แผนแม่บท การพัฒนากลุ่มชาติพันธุ์ในประเทศไทย(พ.ศ.2558-2560) [Master Plan for the Development of Ethnic Groups in Thailand 2015-2017] (PDF) (in Thai). Bangkok: Ministry of Social Development and Human Security. 2015. p. 1.
  5. ^ "Thailand's World : Khmer People". Thailandsworld.com. Archived from the original on 11 August 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  6. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-02-15. Retrieved 2017-03-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-08. Retrieved 2017-03-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2017-03-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-08. Retrieved 2017-03-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-08. Retrieved 2017-03-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  11. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-08. Retrieved 2017-03-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-08. Retrieved 2017-03-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  13. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-08. Retrieved 2017-03-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  14. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-08. Retrieved 2017-03-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  15. ^ Smalley, William A. (1988). "Multilingualism in the Northern Khmer Population of Thailand". Language Sciences. 10 (2): 395–408. doi:10.1016/0388-0001(88)90023-X.
  16. ^ Vail, Peter (2013). "The Politics of Scripts: Language Rights, Heritage, and the Choice of Orthography for Khmer Vernaculars in Thailand". In Barry, Coeli (ed.). Rights to culture : heritage, language, and community in Thailand. Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books. pp. 135–162. ISBN 978-616-215-062-3. OCLC 837138803.
  17. ^ "กันตรึม" (in Thai). Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  18. ^ "Feature: Thailand holds annual event featuring 1,000-year-old Khmer history, culture". Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  19. ^ Chachavalpongpun, Pavin (2012). "Embedding Embittered History: Unending Conflicts in Thai-Cambodian Relations". Asian Affairs. 43 (1): 81–102. doi:10.1080/03068374.2012.643593. ISSN 0306-8374. S2CID 145309277.
  20. ^ Thị Trà Mi, Hoàng (2016). "The Preah Vihear temple dispute on the Thai-Cambodian border and ASEAN's role in conflict resolution". Journal of Science, Social Science. 61 (10): 170–174. doi:10.18173/2354-1067.2016-0100. ISSN 2354-1067.
  21. ^ Wibhu Kutanan, Jatupol Kampuansai, Metawee Srikummool, Daoroong Kangwanpong, Silvia Ghirotto, Andrea Brunelli, and Mark Stoneking (2016). "Complete mitochondrial genomes of Thai and Lao populations indicate an ancient origin of Austroasiatic groups and demic diffusion in the spread of Tai-Kadai languages". Human Genetics. doi:10.1007/s00439-016-1742-y. hdl:11858/00-001M-0000-002C-0639-D. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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