Khmer

Introduction
This tribe mainly lives in Cambodia.  They speak their own language.  The Khmer have their own creation story.  They have been in Southeast Asia for over 4,000 years!!!! Theravada Buddhism is the state religion, but there are many other religions practiced in Cambodia as well.  They have a unique culture.  A significant number of Khmer people left Cambodia because of a civil war.

History
Legend has it they came from a Brahmin and a Naga.  They traveled to Cambodia and surrounding regions 4,000 years ago if not earlier.  They created the first alphabet in Southeast Asia!  India had a big influence on Southeast Asia (SA).

There was a great kingdom called Funan.  Funan covered most of SA around 200 BCE.  It was started 1900 years ago!  They traded with China, India, Persia, Greece, and Rome.  Buildings were made out of brick, they lived in slit houses, grew rice, pottery was created, and the various peoples retained their culture. Hinduism was popular, then Buddhism became popular.  A Chinese emperor was so impressed by Funan musicians he had a Funan music school created in China.  In 270 CE Funan and Champa attacked a Chinese province in Vietnam.  I assume they lost and China turned Funan into a vassal state in 375 CE.  Funan was destroyed inbetween 500-600 BCE.  Funan had a big impact on future SA kingdoms.

Chenla started off as a vassal state of Funan.  In 550 CE it became independent of it.  60 years later it conquered Funan.  Chenla later split into 2 kingdoms.  These 2 kingdoms were called Chenla of Land and Chenla of Sea by the Chinese. Chenla of Sea became a part of the Java Empire and Chenla of Land became the Khmer Empire.  Hinduism and Buddhism was still popping.  Those religions promoted farming and trading.  The temples became corporations because they got taxes from commoners and stimulated the economy by attracting foreign investors.  The design of the temple was similar to Gupta temples.  Temples were made out of brick and stone.  There were 14 different kinds of slaves that worked in the temple.  People who spoke Sanskrit were given governmental/religious jobs, and people who only spoke Khmer were given temple jobs.  Chenla traded with India, Persia, Greece, and Rome.    

The Khmer Empire was created by Jayavarman II.  He was held captive in Java.  Then he escaped and became the king of Chenla of Land.  He was anointed by a Brahmin in a Shiva ritual after he became king. The devarajra cult was created after the ritual.  People in the cult believed the king was a god in the flesh.  He conquered different parts of SA, which became the Khmer Empire.  The empire he founded started 802 CE and lasted until 1431 CE.  Angkor Wat became the capital of Khmer Empire in the 1100's.  Angkor Wat was as big as Los Angles and 1 million people lived there.  Its the biggest religious complex in the world!  It was dedicated 2 Vishnu; then it was transformed into Buddhist temples.  The Khmer Empire fought Champa and the Vietnamese.  In 1177 Chams looted Angkor Wat.  Jayavarman VII kicked the Chams out of Angkor Wat and caused a lot of infrastructure to be built.  He had 102 hospitals built.  The social classes were brahmins, metalworkers, textile weavers, stonemasons, potters, and slaves.  This empire had diplomatic relationships with India, China, and Java.  Arab historians wrote kings of Khmer Empire had great riches, and armies of men, horses, and elephants.  The Khmer Empire fell off after foreigners tookover, climate change, and/or disease.

Langauge
The Khmer language is part of the Austroasiatic language family.  It is the 2nd most popular language in that family.  Sanskrit and Pali had a big impact on the Khmer language.  Standard Khmer is the most common dialect; it is taught in schools and used in the media.  There are 4 other dialects as well.

Religion
Theravada Buddhism is the main religion in Cambodia.  They believe in karma, reincarnation, and becoming enlightened over many lifetimes.  Buddhist monks follow 227 rules and cannot participate in entertainment.  The hill tribes practice the indigenous religion of Cambodia.  It involves ancestor veneration and the belief that most objects contain spirits.  The Chams are Muslim and Chinese are Taoists and Mahayana Buddhists. Some Khmer are Hindu, Jew, and/or Christian. All these religions influence each other.

Wedding
The ceremony used last for 3 days and nights.  Now it is only 1 day.  It starts when the groom gets to brides home bearing a gift. Then people meet and greet and wedding rings are exchanged.  Songs are sung during these different events and the bride and groom have a tea ceremony.  They offer tea to their ancestors.  Then they both get their hair cut.  Finally, family and friends tie their writs together and bless them.  After that a reception.    

Medicine
The Khmer practice naturopathy.  They use natural products to help the body heal itself.  Medical books were written in Pali, later they were translated into Khmer. The medical books were made out of palm leaves. People go to the National Center of Traditional Medicine to become doctors.  This form of medicine was influenced by Ayurveda and Classical Chinese Medicine.

Doctors are called Kru Khmer and the have a teacher-student relationship with their patients.  Some of they focus on bone setting, divining, and/or herbalism, etc.  Spirits can cure or cause diseases.  The imbalance of yin and yang can lead to disease as well.

Kru Thnam: Herbalists
Kru Bakbeg: Bone-setters
Kru Teay: Diviners of the future.
Kru Sneh: Chramer
Kru Son Thith: Diviners of disease.  They are close to healing spirits.
Kru Chol Rup: Mediums that do exorcisms.  They are mostly women.
Chhmob Boran: Midwives

Martial Arts
Bokator: People are taught to strike with every part of their body and how to fight with weapons.  Practitioners like to fight with 2 sticks. This martial art was developed during the Khmer Empire.

Baok Chambab: This Khmer wrestling.  B4 the match the opponents do a ritual dance, while a man and a woman play drums.

Pradal Serey: Khmer kickboxing.  2 win a match you have to knockout the opponent or be a better fighter.

Kbach Kun Dambong Veng: This fighting with a bo staff.  It is popular with the youth.
                                   
Cuisine
Khmers love to eat fish and rice.  There are 2,000 different types of rice in Cambodia. Rice noodle soup is eaten for breakfast.  Their cuisine is similar to the cuisines of Thailand and Vietnam.  The Chinese, Portuguese, Spanish, and French had a big impact on Khmer cuisine.  Some Khmer food is pickled, others are fermented.  They have over 20 different spices, 8 kinds of meat, 15 kinds of soup, 17 stir-fries, 30 fruits and vegetables.  They have 10 kinds of salad and 26 different pastries.  There is also a lot of puddings and beverages.      

Civil War
After Prince Sihanouk visited the Soviet Union the national assembly removed him from office.  In response, he got help from China.  The communist forces were attacking his government when he was in charge but became his allies once he was voted out.  Cambodia got involved in the Vietnam War and it was bombed by the U.S. The communist took over the country and forced people to live in rural areas.  The communists made life hell in Cambodia.  They shut everything down and made people wear peasant clothes.  They destroyed medical books and other objects of cultural significance.

Pol Pot came to power and he was a damn monster!!!!!!!  The communist forces became known as the Khmer Rouge.  They tortured and executed many people.  They killed over 1 million people.  A quarter of Cambodia's population.  This led to over 100,000 Cambodians coming to the U.S.

Conclusion
The Khmer are an amazing people!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  They have great history and culture.  They have sweet language and religions.  They have excellent medicine and martial arts.  Their food is delicious.   Long live the Khmer.                    

References
http://realhistoryww.com/world_history/ancient/Khmer_Cambodia.htm
https://www.aboutasiatravel.com/cambodia/history/funan-kingdom.htm
http://toursintheextreme.com/cambodia/destinations/towns/khmer-kingdom-funan/
http://www.cambodia-travel.com/khmer/chenla.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chenla
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jayavarman_II
https://www.ancient.eu/Khmer_Empire/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angkor_Wat
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/20/science/angkor-wat-cambodia-archeaology.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khmer_language
http://www.tourismcambodia.com/about-cambodia
http://factsanddetails.com/southeast-asia/Cambodia/sub5_2e/entry-2879.html
http://cambodianbuzz.com/8-traditional-healing-medicines-used-in-cambodia/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khmer_Loeu
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traditional_Cambodian_medicine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khmer_sastra
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian_cuisine
https://www.britannica.com/place/Cambodia/Civil-war
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian_genocide
http://americanhistory.oxfordre.com/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.001.0001/acrefore-9780199329175-e-317