Khmer Krom Origins

Khmer Krom Origins

The Khmer Krom (Khmer: ខ្មែរក្រោម, Vietnamese: Khơ Me Crộm) are indigenous Khmer people in southern Vietnam. In the Khmer language, Krom means "lower" or "below", as it refers to the lower reaches of the Mekong Delta, south of Cambodia proper. In the Vietnamese language, they are known as Khơ-me Crộm or Khơ-me dưới, which literally means "Khmer from below", a translation of the Khmer term.

The Khmer Krom are ethnic Khmer who inhabit Kampuchea Krom, an area in southern Vietnam that was once part of the Khmer Empire. Among the Khmer Krom the belief is held that they are the descendants of ancient Funan, the core of Suvarnabhumi, which covered a vast extent of Southeast Asia including present day Cambodia, southern Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Burma, Malaya, Sumatra and other parts of Indonesia.
According to Vietnamese government figures (1999 census), there are 1,055,174 Khmer Krom in Vietnam. Other estimates vary considerably, with up to 7 million reported to Taylor (2014) in his The Khmer lands of Vietnam.