Profile
Background and figures as recorded in the CIA World Factbook.
Most Cambodians consider themselves to be Khmers, descendants of the Angkor Empire that extended over much of Southeast Asia and reached its zenith between the 10th and 13th centuries. Attacks by the Thai and Cham (from present-day Vietnam) weakened the empire, ushering in a long period of decline. The king placed the country under French protection in 1863, and it became part of French Indochina in 1887. Following Japanese occupation in World War II, Cambodia gained full independence from France in 1953.
- Capital
- Phnom Penh
- Government
- parliamentary constitutional monarchy
- Population
- 17,230,333
- Area
- 181,035 sq km
- Location
- Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos
- Climate
- tropical; rainy, monsoon season (May to November); dry season (December to April); little seasonal temperature variation
- Natural resources
- oil and gas; timber; gemstones; iron ore; manganese; phosphates…
- Languages
- Khmer (official) 95.8%; minority languages 2.9%; Chinese 0.6%; Vietnamese 0.5%…
- Religions
- Buddhist (official) 97.1%; Muslim 2%; Christian 0.3%; other 0.5%
- Independence
- 9 November 1953 (from France)
- Administrative divisions
- 24 provinces (khett, singular and plural) and 1 municipality (krong, singular and plural) provinces: Banteay Meanchey, B…
- Currency
- riels (KHR)
- Export partners
- USA 36%; Germany 6%; China 6%; Japan 6%…
- Import partners
- China 39%; Thailand 20%; Vietnam 12%; Singapore 6%…
Source: CIA World Factbook — a work of the US government, in the public domain