Asia
To which language should you translate to localize in Cambodia?
What we know from our community
Cambodia is a country located in Southeast Asia, bordered by Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam. The official language of Cambodia is Khmer, which is spoken by approximately 95% of the population. Khmer is a member of the Austroasiatic language family, and it is the only official language in the country. However, due to its history of colonization and influence from neighboring countries, other languages such as French, English, and Vietnamese are also spoken by some Cambodians.
The linguistic landscape in Cambodia is diverse, with over 20 minority languages spoken by various ethnic groups throughout the country. Some of these languages include Cham, Chinese, and Vietnamese. The Cham language is spoken by the Cham people, who are descendants of the Champa kingdom that once ruled parts of Vietnam and Cambodia. Chinese is spoken by the Chinese population in Cambodia, who are primarily involved in business and trade. Vietnamese is spoken by the Vietnamese population in Cambodia, who migrated to the country during the French colonial period and the Vietnam War.
Cambodia has a rich cultural heritage, with influences from Hinduism and Buddhism, as well as French colonialism. The country is known for its ancient temples, including the famous Angkor Wat, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The temples are a reflection of the country’s history and culture, and they attract millions of tourists every year.
The Cambodian people are proud of their cultural heritage and traditions, which are deeply rooted in their daily lives. One of the most important cultural traditions in Cambodia is the Khmer New Year, which is celebrated in April and marks the end of the harvest season. During this time, families gather together to share meals, exchange gifts, and participate in traditional games and dances.
Despite the challenges the country has faced in the past, such as the Khmer Rouge regime, Cambodia’s linguistic and cultural landscape remains diverse and vibrant. The country is home to a rich tapestry of cultures, traditions, and languages, which make it a unique and fascinating destination for travelers and scholars alike.
Khmer
កម្ពុជាជាប្រទេសមួយស្ថិតក្នុងតំបន់អាស៊ីអាគ្នេយ៍ មានព្រំប្រទល់ជាប់ប្រទេសថៃ ឡាវ និងវៀតណាម។ ភាសាផ្លូវការរបស់ប្រទេសកម្ពុជា គឺភាសាខ្មែរ ដែលនិយាយដោយប្រជាជនប្រមាណ ៩៥%។ ភាសាខ្មែរគឺជាសមាជិកនៃគ្រួសារភាសាអូស្ត្រូអាស៊ី ហើយវាជាភាសាផ្លូវការតែមួយគត់នៅក្នុងប្រទេស។ ទោះយ៉ាងណាក៏ដោយ ដោយសារប្រវត្តិនៃការធ្វើអាណានិគម និងឥទ្ធិពលពីប្រទេសជិតខាង ភាសាផ្សេងទៀតដូចជា បារាំង អង់គ្លេស និងវៀតណាម ក៏ត្រូវបានប្រជាជនកម្ពុជាមួយចំនួននិយាយផងដែរ។
ទិដ្ឋភាពភាសានៅកម្ពុជាមានភាពចម្រុះ ដោយមានភាសាជនជាតិភាគតិចជាង 20 ភាសានិយាយដោយក្រុមជនជាតិផ្សេងៗនៅទូទាំងប្រទេស។ ភាសាទាំងនេះមួយចំនួនរួមមាន ចាម ចិន និងវៀតណាម។ ភាសាចាមត្រូវបាននិយាយដោយជនជាតិចាម ដែលមានឈាមជ័រនៃកូនចៅនៃនគរចំប៉ា ដែលធ្លាប់គ្រប់គ្រងផ្នែកខ្លះនៃវៀតណាម និងកម្ពុជា។ ភាសាចិនត្រូវបាននិយាយដោយប្រជាជនចិននៅក្នុងប្រទេសកម្ពុជា ដែលភាគច្រើនពាក់ព័ន្ធនឹងអាជីវកម្ម និងពាណិជ្ជកម្ម។ ភាសាវៀតណាមត្រូវបាននិយាយដោយប្រជាជនវៀតណាមនៅក្នុងប្រទេសកម្ពុជាដែលបានធ្វើចំណាកស្រុកមកប្រទេសកម្ពុជាក្នុងអំឡុងពេលអាណានិគមបារាំងនិងសង្រ្គាមវៀតណាម។
ប្រទេសកម្ពុជាមានសម្បត្តិវប្បធម៌ដ៏សម្បូរបែប ដោយទទួលឥទ្ធិពលពីសាសនាហិណ្ឌូ និងពុទ្ធសាសនា ព្រមទាំងអាណានិគមនិយមបារាំង។ ប្រទេសនេះត្រូវបានគេស្គាល់ថាសម្បូរទៅប្រាសាទបុរាណ រួមទាំងប្រាសាទអង្គរវត្តដ៏ល្បីល្បាញដែលជាតំបន់បេតិកភណ្ឌពិភពលោករបស់អង្គការយូណេស្កូ។ ប្រាសាទនានាគឺជាការឆ្លុះបញ្ចាំងពីប្រវត្តិសាស្ត្រ និងវប្បធម៌របស់ប្រទេស ហើយប្រាសាទទាំងនេះទាក់ទាញភ្ញៀវទេសចររាប់លាននាក់ជារៀងរាល់ឆ្នាំ។
ប្រជាជនកម្ពុជាមានមោទនភាពចំពោះមរតកវប្បធម៌ និងទំនៀមទំលាប់របស់ពួកគេ ដែលចាក់ឫសយ៉ាងជ្រៅក្នុងជីវភាពរស់នៅប្រចាំថ្ងៃរបស់ពួកគេ។ ទំនៀមទំលាប់វប្បធម៌ដ៏សំខាន់បំផុតមួយក្នុងប្រទេសកម្ពុជា គឺពិធីបុណ្យចូលឆ្នាំថ្មីប្រពៃណីជាតិខ្មែរ ដែលប្រារព្ធឡើងក្នុងខែមេសា និងជាថ្ងៃបញ្ចប់រដូវច្រូតកាត់។ ក្នុងអំឡុងពេលនេះ ក្រុមគ្រួសារជួបជុំគ្នា ចែករំលែកម្ហូបអាហារ ផ្លាស់ប្តូរអំណោយ និងចូលរួមលេងល្បែងប្រជាប្រិយ និងរាំលេងកម្សាន្ត។
បើទោះជាប្រទេសនេះបានជួបប្រទះនឹងបញ្ហានាពេលកន្លងមក ដូចជារបបខ្មែរក្រហមក៏ដោយ ក៏ទិដ្ឋភាពភាសា និងវប្បធម៌របស់ប្រទេសកម្ពុជានៅតែមានភាពចម្រុះ និងរស់រវើក។ ប្រទេសនេះគឺបណ្តុំនៃវប្បធម៌ ប្រពៃណី និងភាសាដ៏សម្បូរបែប ដែលធ្វើឱ្យវាក្លាយជាគោលដៅទេសចរណ៍ប្លែកពីគេ និងគួរឱ្យចាប់អារម្មណ៍សម្រាប់អ្នកទេសចរណ៍ និងអ្នកសិក្សាដូចគ្នា។
Kanya, Khmer linguist
Language
Official language
Khmer 90%
Other languages
English, French
Minority languages
Chan, Vietnamese, Tumpoon, Lao, Yue Chinese, Jarai and Mon-Khmer
T-index
0.038%
T-Index ranks countries according to their potential for online sales.
English
Very low proficiency (EF) – 94 of 112 countries/regions in the world- 20/24 position in Asia.
Demography
Capital: Phnom Penh
Currency: Cambodian riel
Population: 16,58 m
Population density: 93/km2
Economy
GDP: 26.96 trillion USD (2020)
GDP per capita: 1,625.2 USD (2020)
Exports: $27.3 billion (2021)
Statistics
Internet users: 67.5% penetration, 11.37 million
Unemployment rate: 0.4% (2022)
Urbanisation: 24.67% (2019)
Literacy: 81% (2019)
Conventions
Numbering system
Arabic numerals and dot as decimal separator
Date format: dd-mm- yyyy
Time: 24h time system
Country code: 00855
Language data sources: Worldatlas/Britannica//EF/Wikipedia; Demography data sources: IMF/Worldometers; Conventions data source: Wikipedia; Economy data sources: WTO/OEC/CIA/Esomar/Datareportal; Statistics data sources: Datareportal/WorldBank/UN/UNESCO/CEIC/IMF/Culturalatlas/Commisceogloba
Facts and data
Economy
Imports
$41.6 billion (2021). Gold ($10.9B), Refined Petroleum ($2.71B), Light Rubberized Knitted Fabric ($2.66B), Bi-Wheel Vehicle Parts ($611M), and Cars ($578M), importing mostly from China ($11.3B), Singapore ($11.2B), Thailand ($6.69B), Vietnam ($4.91B), and Hong Kong ($955M).
Financial inclusion factors (over 15 years of age)
• 18% have an account with a financial institution
• 0.6% have a credit card
• 5.7% have a mobile money account
• 3.8% make online purchases
Ease of doing business
Difficult to conduct business (rated 53.8 out of 100) 18th out of 25 Asia Pacific countries 144th worldwide out of 190 countries (2020, World Bank)
Global Innovation Index
Ranked 15th out of 17 South East Asia, East Asia,and Oceania, 97th out of 132 worldwide.
The Global Innovation Index captures the innovation
ecosystem performance of 132 economies and tracks the most recent global innovation trends.
Exports
$27.3 billion (2021). Knit Sweaters ($2.47B), Trunks and Cases ($2.04B), Knit Women’s Suits ($1.84B), Non-Knit Women’s Suits ($1.52B), and Leather Footwear ($933M), exporting mostly to United States ($9.59B), China ($1.94B), Germany ($1.89B), Vietnam ($1.88B), and Japan ($1.74B).
Main local online stores
Glad Market, Mall855 and MAIO Mall.
Other top websites include, RoseRb.com, Aliexpress, TaoBao, MyPhsar, BookMeBus, Nika and ECamShopping.
Economic freedom
‘Moderately free’ (56.5 out of 100) 24th out of 39 Asia Pacific countries 110th worldwide out of 186 countries (2022, Heritage Foundation and Wall Street Journal)
Economy data sources: WTO/OEC/CIA/Esomar/Datareportal
Service Imports (2019)
Source: OEC
Service Exports (2019)
Source: OEC
RCA Index
Specialisation is measured using Revealed Comparative Advantage, an index that takes the ratio between Cambodia observed and expected exports in each product
Source: OEC
Most complex products by PCI
Product Complexity Index measures the knowledge intensity of a product by considering the knowledge intensity of its exporters
Source: OEC
Export Opportunities by Relatedness
Relatedness measures the distance between a country's current exports and each product, the barchart show only products that Cambodia is not specialized in
Source: OEC
T-index
Reach most of the online purchasing power
T-Index ranks countries according to their potential for online sales. It estimates the market share of each country in relation to global e-commerce.
Try it nowMedia
Media language Khmer, English
Information channels
Many Cambodian newspapers and private broadcasters depend on support from political parties. Prime Minister Hun Sen and his allies control several outlets. Media closures and the sale of a leading independent newspaper ahead of elections in 2018 mean that Cambodians “now only have access to news provided by major media groups directly linked to [Prime Minister] Hun Sen”, says media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The government uses “lawsuits, criminal prosecutions, massive tax bills and, occasionally, violent attacks” to intimidate the media, says the US-based Freedom House. BBC World Service broadcasts on 100 FM in Phnom Penh. Radio France International is also available on FM.
Ahead of elections in 2018, the government ordered ISPs to block access to 17 websites , including US-backed Radio Free Asia. Rules introduced in the same year require ISPs to install software to monitor and block content deemed illegal, including content on social media.
The press
Reaksmei Kampuchea (Light of Cambodia) – pro-government daily
Kaoh Santepheap – pro-government daily
Phnom Penh Post – English-language
Television
National Television of Cambodia (TVK) – state broadcaster
CTN – private
Bayon TV – private
Radio
National Radio of Cambodia – state broadcaster
Municipality Radio – commercial, jointly-run by Phnom Penh Municipality
Radio Bayon FM – commercial
News agency
Agence Kampuchea Presse (AKP)
Media data source: BBC
Internet Data
Internet users
67.5% penetration, 11.37 million
Share of web traffic by device
62.12% mobile phones, 36.35% computers (laptops and desktops), 1.53% tablet devices and 0% other devices
Median speed of mobile Internet connection
19.12 Mbps
Median speed of fixed Internet connection
20.22 Mbps
Mobile connection as a percentage of total population: 131.5%
Percentage of mobile connections that are broadband (3G-5G): 81.8%
Most popular web search engines
Google (95.98%), Bing (1.91%), Yahoo (0.76%), CoCoc (0.39%), PetalSearch (0.34%) DuckduckGo (0.18%)
Most used social media
Twitter (36.65%), Facebook (35.66%), YouTube (17.07%), Instagram (5.04%), Pinterest (4.49%), Vkontakte (0.5%)
Internet data sources: Datareportal/Statcounter
Social statistics
Life expectancy
70 yrs (2021)
Gender
Women or girls should be respected at work or home. They are not allowed to touch, hug, kiss or sit with men (e.g. in the car, in a home) who are not relatives. Some families are offended when their girls are asked to go out without their permission. Women or girls are required to be calm and soft mannered, to stay home, do housework, cook and obey their husband. Sometimes they are not allowed to sit and talk with a group of men. Traditionally, men are the breadwinners and make all the decisions in the family. They have power or control over all family-related issues. Children are mostly the responsibility of the mother. Notwithstanding this scenario, some women are now in the workplace and today, an increasing number of women are in management roles.
Current education expenditure
15.7% of total expenditure in public institutions
Current health expenditure
7.51% of GDP
Corruption perceptions Index
Algeria scored 33 out of 100, ranked 126 out of 180 countries worldwide.
The CPI measures the perception of corruption due to the difficulty of measuring absolute levels of corruption.
CO2 emissions
1 metric ton per capita
Religion
98 % of the people are Buddhist. The remainder are generally Christian, Muslim, Hindu etc. When participating in religious events such as rituals or ceremonies etc. you must follow religious tradition (ask local people if you do not know) such as bowing while kneeling, removing shoes and hat, sitting on the floor. Try to avoid dubious practices such as visiting fortune tellers.
Class
Cambodian society is divided, generally, into unspoken class categories: upper, middle, and lower. The upper class, usually, is very sophisticated and places more emphasis on wealth than on education. Sometimes, upper-class people can relate well with the middle class depending on their activities.
Ethnicity
There are some minority groups in Cambodia besides the Khmer ethnic group. They are Thai, Vietnam, Muslim (Cham), and Chinese. The Khmer ethnic group dominates society. There appear to be elements of discrimination against other ethnic groups due to historical events. Each ethnic group follows its own tradition. If you want more information you may need to contact each group or read local news. It is not considered very acceptable to marry someone from another ethnic group.
World Happiness Index
Cambodia ranked 115 out of 137 countries, with a score of 4.393.
The World Happiness Index measures happiness based on respondent ratings of their own lives, correlated with other life factors.
Ethnic composition Cambodia
Tertiary education in Cambodia
Social statistics sources: WorldBank/UN/UNESCO/CEIC/IMF
The Data Factbook is a work in progress project. Our community is helping us to fill it up always with new and updated data. Your contribution is precious. If you want to help us, please write your advices at imminent@translated.com
Languages research
Languages spoken in Cambodia
Legend
-
Khmer (Cambodian)
-
Khmer Loeu (Tribal)
-
Vietnamese
-
Cham
-
Mountain Cham
-
Lao
The geographical distribution of languages that you will find in the maps published in this section is a work in progress. Our community is helping us to fill it up with always new and updated data. Your contribution is precious. If you want to help us, please write to imminent.factbook@translated.com
Photo credit: Urf, IStock