Southeast Asia’s Indochinese mainland is home to the nation of Cambodia. The majority of Cambodia is made up of plains and huge rivers, and it is situated along significant overland and river trade routes that connect China to India and Southeast Asia. The civilization of Cambodia absorbed Indian and Chinese influences for 2,000 years before passing them on to other Southeast Asian civilizations. It ruled over regions that are today a part of Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos from the Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms of Funan and Chenla (1st–8th century) until the classical age of the Angkor period (9th–15th century).
With a history spanning thousands of years, Cambodia has a rich and eclectic cultural heritage. Architecture, the arts, music, dance, and religion are some of the subcategories under which the nation’s cultural legacy can be broken down.
Introduction To Religious Architecture
Khmer architecture, which grew from Indian influences, acquired its own unique qualities, some of which were produced independently and others of which were integrated from nearby cultural traditions. As a result, it became distinctly distinguishable from that of the Indian subcontinent.
Only temples and other religious structures were built of stone during the Angkorian era. Brick, sandstone, laterite, and wood were the building materials employed by the Angkorian builders. The wood components of the ruins are no longer present due to corrosion and other corrosive processes; now, the structures are made of brick, sandstone, and laterite.
Whereas their neighbours, the Cham, favoured haut-relief, the Angkorian Khmer preferred working in bas-relief. The Khmer Bas-reliefs tell stories from mythology or history are also known as narrative bas-reliefs.
Music
Traditional Cambodian culture was mostly characterised by music. It plays a crucial role in religious and customary rituals including weddings and temple festivals. The polyphonic layering of Cambodian music is built mostly on the pentatonic (five-tone) scale. It is constructed sequentially and lacks Western-style harmony. Nowadays, Cambodia is home to many different kinds of musical groups. The pin peat that goes with the classical repertoire is the most striking. The accompaniment of court dancing, masked theatre, shadow play, and religious rites is its primary purpose. The ensemble is made up of the following instruments: the sralai (quadruple-reed oboe), the roneatek (xylophone), the roneat dek (high-pitched metallophone), the kong tauch (high-pitched circular frame gongs), the kong thomm (low-pitched circular frame gongs), the chhing (small finger cymbals), the s (vocals).
Dance
Drama and dance were significant means of creative expression as well. The Royal Ballet in Phnom Penh specialised in dance-dramas that told the Reamker (Ramayana) epic and other stories, as well as the traditional, highly stylized apsara dances. Both the Khmer and the Thai over the years have modified those dance styles from the prehistoric Angkor dances.
Fine Arts
The conservatism of the Khmer people was formerly manifested in Cambodia’s ancient visual arts. There was a preference for traditional themes, and there was very little attempt to develop or adapt. Weaving, silver- and goldsmithing, jewellery creation, and carving in stone and wood were the main crafts.
Literature
A strong literary heritage exists in Cambodia, mostly influenced by Indian and Thai literary styles. Yet, traditionally only a tiny percentage of the populace was literate, making it difficult for many people to read the indigenous literature. Yet, the majority of Khmers are aware with the tales of classical epic heroes like Neang Kakey and Dum Deav, as well as the Jataka Tales describing incidents in the life of the Buddha; all of these stories are regularly broadcast on radio and are available in comic book form. Reuang preng folktales are likewise well-known.
Religion
Buddhism is the majority religion in Cambodia, and it has greatly influenced the culture of that nation. The temples of Angkor were among the most well-known structures in the nation that were constructed as Buddhist temples. Traditional Cambodian music, dance, and art are all influenced by Buddhist doctrines and practises.
Featured in UNESCO’S Intangible Cultural Heritage list –
1. Royal Ballet Of Cambodia
The dance embraces the ancient ideals of elegance, respect, and spirituality since it is imbued with a holy and symbolic purpose. The myths about the Khmer people’s ancestry are preserved in its repertoire. As a result, this custom is revered throughout Cambodia as the symbol of Khmer culture. In the traditional repertoire, there are four different character types: Neang the lady, Neayrong the man, Yeak the giant, and Sva the monkey. Each has unique colours, outfits, make-up, and masks.
2. Khmer Shadow Theatre
The Sbek Thom is a Khmer shadow theatre containing two metre high, non-articulated puppets made of leather openwork. Devoted to the divinities, performances could only take place on specified occasions three or four times a year, such as the Khmer New Year, the King’s birthday or the reverence of notable persons. For each puppet depicting a god or deity, a single piece of leather is used at a specific ritual. A solution prepared from Kandaol tree bark is used to colour the skins. The performances often take place outside, next to a pagoda or rice field, at night. A sizable fire or, these days, projectors are placed in front of a giant white background that is held between two tall bamboo screens. On the white screen are projected the shadows of the silhouettes of the puppets.
3. Chapei Dang Veng
A Cambodian musical tradition known as Chapei Dang Veng is strongly related to the way of life, traditions, and beliefs of the Cambodian people. It includes singing and the chapei, a lute style frequently performed during cultural events. Songs may contain classic poetry, folk tales, or Buddhist tales in addition to satirical, educational, and social commentary lyrics.
4. Khmer Masked Dance
One of the earliest performing arts traditions in Cambodia dates back to the Angkorian era, and it is known as Lakhaon Khaol. It is said to have begun about the ninth century. The Reamker, which is the Cambodian translation of the Ramayana, is the only tale that lakhaon khaol expressly performs. There is narrative in addition to the performance. The traditional pin peat orchestra is used to accompany the performance, which is heavily directed by the narrators.
Cultural Institutions
King Sihanouk established the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh in 1965 to protect and promote traditional arts. The school was shut down together with all other educational institutions in 1975, when the Khmer Rouge came to power. A tiny group of artists who managed to survive the Khmer rouge regime by concealing their names reopened it.
It is actively educating young artists in traditional art forms and supporting performances in Cambodia and throughout the world through its two core sections, one of which encompasses archaeology, architecture and urbanism, plastic arts, and music, and the other of which encompasses choreographic arts.
The two largest museums in Cambodia. Bronze objects, sculpture, ceramics, and ethnography from Cambodia are all featured in the National Museum. The Toul Sleng Genocidal Museum commemorates the crimes committed by the Khmer Rouge regime and is located in the infamous S-21 prison and execution facility, a former school in Phnom Penh. In 1992, UNESCO classified the Hindu-Buddhist ruins of the Khmer state of Angkor (dating from the ninth to the fifteenth centuries) as a World Heritage site. A world heritage site designation was also given to the Shiva-worshipping Preah Vihear Temple in 2008.
REFERENCES:
- Khmer architecture (2023) Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khmer_architecture
- Cambodia (2023) Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodia
- Cambodia. Britannica. Available at: https://www.britannica.com/place/Cambodia/Cultural-life#ref52471
- Sbek Thom Shadow Theatre. ICH Unesco. Available at: https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/sbek-thom-khmer-shadow-theatre-00108
- Lakhaon Khaol, Male masked theatre. Intocambodia.org. Available at: https://intocambodia.org/content/lakhaon-khaol-male-masked-theatre
- Chapei Dang Veng. (2023) Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chapei_dang_veng
https://www.iccrom.org/cprofiles/doku.php?id=countries:khm#:~:text=Cambodia%20has%20three%20sites%20inscribed,(Chapei)%2C%20and%20the%20Khmer
