Kampong Thom province

Coordinates: 12°42′N 104°53′E / 12.700°N 104.883°E / 12.700; 104.883
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Kampong Thom
កំពង់ធំ
Province
Kampong Thom Province
ខេត្តកំពង់ធំ
Sambor Prei Kuk, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the symbol of the province
Sambor Prei Kuk, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the symbol of the province
Official seal of Kampong Thom
Seal
Map of Cambodia highlighting Kampong Thom
Map of Cambodia highlighting Kampong Thom
Coordinates: 12°42′N 104°53′E / 12.700°N 104.883°E / 12.700; 104.883
Country Cambodia
Provincial status1907
CapitalKampong Thom
Subdivisions1 municipality; 8 districts
Government
 • GovernorNgoun Ratanak (CPP)
 • National Assembly
6 / 125
Area
 • Total13,814 km2 (5,334 sq mi)
 • Rank2nd
Population
 (2019)[1]
 • TotalIncrease 681,549
 • Rank11th
 • Density49/km2 (130/sq mi)
  • Rank17th
Time zoneUTC+07:00 (ICT)
Dialing code+855
ISO 3166 codeKH-6
Websitewww.kampongthom.gov.kh
This article contains Khmer text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Khmer script.

Kampong Thom (Khmer: កំពង់ធំ, UNGEGN: Kâmpóng Thum [kɑmpɔŋ tʰom]; lit. 'Great Port') is a province (khaet) of Cambodia. It borders the provinces of Siem Reap to the northwest, Preah Vihear to the north, Stung Treng to the northeast, Kratie to the east, Kampong Cham and Kampong Chhnang to the south, and the Tonle Sap to the west.

The provincial capital is Stung Saen, a town of approximately 30,000 people on the banks of the Stung Sen River.

Kampong Thom is Cambodia's second largest province by area. There are a number of significant Angkorian sites in the area, including Prasat Sambor Prei Kuk and Prasat Andet temples. As one of the nine provinces bordering Tonle Sap Lake, Kampong Thom is part of the Tonlé Sap Biosphere Reserve.[2]

Etymology[edit]

Kampong Thom in Khmer means 'great port' or 'great harbor'. Kampong in Khmer translates as 'port' or 'harbor'. The word Kampong is shared in other Asian languages, the Malay and Indonesian, both meaning 'village'. Thom in the Khmer language means 'big', 'grand', or 'large'.

Administration[edit]

The province is divided into eight districts and one municipality, further divided into 81 communes.

ISO code District Khmer Population (2019)
06-01 Baray ស្រុកបារាយណ៍ 104,032
06-02 Kampong Svay ស្រុកកំពង់ស្វាយ 90,271
06-03 Steung Saen Municipality ក្រុងស្ទឹងសែន 53,118
06-04 Prasat Balangk ស្រុកប្រាសាទបល្ល័ង្ក 47,888
06-05 Prasat Sambour ស្រុកប្រាសាទសំបូរ 43,390
06-06 Sandaan ស្រុកសណ្ដាន់ 62,013
06-07 Santuk ស្រុកសន្ទុក 101,428
06-08 Stoung ស្រុកស្ទោង 108,372
06-09 Taing Kouk ស្រុកតាំងគោក 64,888

History[edit]

The previous name of the province was Kampong Pous Thom ('Port', 'City of the Great Snakes'). According to local legend, at a lakeside dock near the Sen River, a pair of large snakes inhabited a nearby cave. On every Buddhist holiday, the snakes would make appearances to the people nearby who then began to refer to the area as Kampong Pous Thom. Eventually the snakes disappeared and the name was shortened to Kampong Thom. During the Colonial Cambodia period, the French divided Cambodian territory into provinces and named most of them according to the local popular names for the respective areas.

Kampong Thom was a powerful capital in Southeast Asia during the Funan period.[citation needed] Prasat Sambor Prei Kuk, dating from the Chenla era, is in Kampong Thom province.[3]

The ancient temple complex of Sambor Prei Kuk in northern Kampong Thom.

Geography[edit]

Two of the three core areas in Tonlé Sap Biosphere Reserve lie in Kampong Thom.

Prey Pras, Kampong Thom

Religion[edit]

Religion in Kampong Thom (2019 census)[5]

  Buddhism (98.6%)
  Islam (1.0%)
  Christianity (0.3%)
  Animism and Other religions (0%)

The state religion is Theravada Buddhism. More than 98.6% of the people in Kampong Thom are Buddhists. Chams have been practicing Islam for hundreds of years. A small percentage follow Christianity.

Economy[edit]

Much of Kampong Thom is on the floodplain of the Tonlé Sap lake. In 2003–2004, it was a significant producer of wild fish (18,800 tons) and the fourth largest producer of fish through aquaculture in Cambodia (1,800 tons). Most of the fish-raising is done by home production, with a growing segment devoted to rice field aquaculture.[6]

Kampong Thom is also one of the largest producers of cashew nuts in Cambodia, with 6,371 hectares under production in 2003–2004.[7]

The province is one of the largest producer of cashews in the country.
Rice paddies in Baray District.
Irrigation canals and farmlands

Notable people[edit]

Attraction[edit]

  • Tonle Sap See
    Tonle Sap See
  • Sambor Prei Kuk
    Sambor Prei Kuk
  • Phnom Santuk
    Phnom Santuk
  • Prey Pras
    Prey Pras

References[edit]

  1. ^ "General Population Census of the Kingdom of Cambodia 2019 – Final Results" (PDF). National Institute of Statistics. Ministry of Planning. 26 January 2021. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  2. ^ "Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve Environmental Information Database - Home". Archived from the original on 5 September 2008. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
  3. ^ Kubo, Sumiko; Shimamoto, Sae; Nagumo, Naoko; Yamagata, Mariko; Him, Sophorn; So, Sokuntheary; Chang, Vitharong; Lun, Votey; Shimoda, Ichita; Nakagawa, Takeshi (March 2012). "Geomorphology, Archaeo-stratigraphy, and 14C Ages of Sambor Prei Kuk Pre-Angkorean Site, Central Cambodia" (PDF). BULLETIN of the Graduate School of Education of Waseda University. 22. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 22 December 2015.
  4. ^ Save Cambodia's Wildlife. The Atlas of Cambodia: National Poverty & Environment Maps, SWC, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 2006, p. 72.
  5. ^ "Final General Population Census 2019-English.pdf" (PDF). National Institute of Statistics Ministry of planning. October 2020.
  6. ^ Save Cambodia's Wildlife. The Atlas of Cambodia: National Poverty & Environment Maps, SWC, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 2006, pp. 78–81.
  7. ^ Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries, The Fruit Crops: Agricultural Statistics, 2003–04, Phnom Penh, 2004.

External links[edit]

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