The Cham minority group in Cambodia

Division within

Introduction to the temporary changes

in Cham communities.

Cham-Jahed in mosque for Friday prayer

Asian -und African Institute

Ethnic minorities on the mainland of Southeast Asia
Semester 2005
Dr. Uta Gärtner

Claudia Seise
ClaudiaSeise@yahoo.com

2nd Semester
Southeast Asian Studies

22. July 2005

1
Content

Introduction

1. Who are the Chams in Cambodia?

1.1. A short introduction to Cham history – The Champa Kingdom

1.2. The legend of the Kerik-Tree – The beginning of the downfall of the Champa Kingdom
1.3. Islamisation
1.4. Cham language

2. Recent history - The Cham group after the colonial period

2.1. Sihanouk’s idea of the Cambodian ethnic minorities - unity in diversity

2.2. 1975 – 1979: Were the Chams persecuted because of their ethnic or religious
background during the Khmer Rouge regime?

3. The Chams in contemporary Khmer society

3.1. Division within – The 3 main groups within the Cham minority

3.2. Living areas and working fields in modern day Cambodia

3.3. New Trends in the Cham Community

3.3.1. Formation of a more orthodox Islam – The influence of the Arab and Malay
World
3.3.2. The Cay – cult and other ceremonies of the Jahed – keepers of the old
tradition?

Conclusion

2
Introduction

The Chams form an ethnic minority group, both in Vietnam and Cambodia. In my research
paper I will focus on the Cham in Cambodia, who emigrated from their lost homeland - the
Champa Kingdom in present day Vietnam. The Chams in Cambodia number around 200,000
people and make up two percent of the country’s population.
In part one I will try to give an idea on who the Chams in Cambodia are, by presenting a short
introduction to Cham early history. And with the help of the popular legend of the Kerik-tree;
clarify certain aspects of Cham history, like the gradual disappearance of the once great
Champa kingdom and the four main immigration waves to Cambodia. The first contact with
Muslim traders or missionaries and the later Islamisation of the majority of the kingdom,
plays a significant role in Cham history. But since history is not my focus in this research
paper, I will only give a general survey on the three main theories of when Islam arrived in
Champa. A brief overview is given on the Cham language to classify its belonging within the
Asian language families.
Because recent Cham history has a considerable impact on current changes within the Cham
minority, I will discuss certain aspects of it in the second part of my research paper. King
Norodom Sihanouk’s attempt to include ethnic minorities, living in Cambodia was an
important step towards more general acceptance of the Chams among Khmer nationals. The
horrendous time under the Khmer Rouge regime is also seen as extremely influential for
present developments among the Cham communities. I will make an attempt to answer the
question, whether or not the Cham in particular, were persecuted under the Khmer Rouge.
In part three, I will analyse Cham’s life in contemporary Khmer society. Today we have to
differentiate the Cham minority group into three major subgroups. We find the division within
their Islamic faith and therefore distinguish between the traditional branch and the orthodox
branch. The second distinction is found in terms of descents, which on the one hand we have
descendents of the former Champa kingdom and on the other hand immigrants from the
Malaya-Indonesian region, both groups which are referred to as Cham. Attention is also given
to the living and working areas of the Cham in modern Cambodia. The Chams used to follow
their own way of Islamic faith. Recently, since Cambodia’s re-opening to the outside world in
the beginning of the 1990s, the Chams experience contrasting transformations within their
communities. Reflecting to the past, I will discuss two major movements observed among the
Cham. On the one side, Chams revolve towards a more orthodox version of Islam, introduced
by foreign Islamic missionaries. On the other side the Cham-Jahed recall their old traditional

3
ways of Chamic Islam and experience a revival of certain ceremonies. I will introduce the
Cay-Cult ceremony and introduce possible explanations of the recent invigoration. How will
Cham communities continue to cope with future changes and influences from outside? And
the last question is, how we can continue to do research work about the Chams and their
distinctive cultures and traditions.

1. Who are the Chams in Cambodia?

1.1. A short introduction to Cham history – The Champa Kingdom

We find the name of Champa the first time in two stone inscriptions in the Sanskrit language.
One was found in Central Vietnam and dated 658 AC and the other one was discovered in
Cambodia and dated 668 AC. Those inscriptions only show the date, on which Champa was
first mentioned. Of course the name could have been in use in earlier times, but until now
there is no proof.
Starting from the 8th century AC, Champa achieved its maximum geographical extent for
around 200 years. The northern limit (Gate of Annam), which bordered with South China,
was located on the city of Hoanh Son. The southern limit of Champa was just about on the
level of Baigaur1.
The Champa Kingdom consisted of five federal state-like districts which from north to south
were named: Indrapura, Amaravati, Vijaya, Kauthara and Panduranga. At the end of its
zenith, Champa was attacked from the Viet-people in the north in 982, who killed the Cham
king, destroyed the capital and seized the land of Indrapura. The new built capital of Vijaya
was in 1471 captured by the Vietnamese. The fall of Vijaya left the Champa kingdom with
only the two southern districts of Kauthara and Panduranga. It took almost another 400 years,
until the Vietnamese captured all of the Champa Kingdom and basically made it disappear
from the map. Around the years of 1830, the last remains of the great Champa kingdom
disappeared. In Vietnam as well as in Cambodia, the Chams are an ethnic minority group.
Because of the recurred invasions of the Viet people further south, Cham people immigrated
to the neighbouring country of Cambodia. Historians speak of four waves of immigration.
The first immigration to Cambodia was during the 15th century after the Vietnamese invaded
the northern part of the Champa kingdom. This invasion is connected to the legend of the

1
Modern day Ho Chi Minh City

4
mystical Kerik tree, which gave supernatural powers and the energy to the Cham king and its
people since ancestral times. Later in my paper I will present a short version of this historical
legend, which is basically the beginning of the Chams’ misfortune. During the killings many
Cham fled over the borders into Khemara, the old name for Cambodia or into the woods2.
The second major migration wave from the Champa kingdom to Cambodia, which is
mentioned in the Khmer Royal Chronicles, occurred in the year of 1692. Again we find the
reason in the nam tien3 policy of the Nguyen, which are located in Hue in central Vietnam. At
the expense of the Cham and Khmer, they pushed south towards the Mekong delta. In 1623
the Viet people obtained a customs house in Prei Nokor, which they soon renamed in Saigon.
Many Vietnamese moved further south and settled in and around this new acquired
Vietnamese town. Soon they were joined by Chinese refugees from the Ming dynasty, who in
turn established a sister town with the name Cholon. The Cham were superseded by the
Vietnamese and Chinese. Finally in 1692 the royal family of the Chams from Panduranga
immigrated with about 5000 people to Cambodia and received official land from the present
Khmer King Preah Chez Choetta4 around the former capital of Oudong5. There are grounds
for the assumption that those immigrants from 1692 are the ancestors of the Cham-Jahed
group, which is still located around Oudong.
When the Champa kingdom of Panduranga became the battleground in a Vietnamese civil
war between Tay Son rebels and the Nguyen prince, Nguyen Anh in the last quarter of the
18th century, can we speak about the third wave of immigrants that sought refugee in the
nearby Cambodia. It was also around this time, when the Chams themselves became
internally divided, probably about the issue of religion. It is presumed, that the Muslim group
under the guidance of Tuon Set Asmit left Panduranga for Cambodia.
After their victory, the Nguyen established their emperor in Hue. During the reign of Minh
Menh between 1820 and 1841, there was a huge Vietnamisation campaign on the remaining
Chams in the South. Religious observance, ceremonies and customs were suppressed. This ill-
treatment went as far as that the Vietnamese forced the Hindu-Chams to eat beef and the
Muslim-Chams to eat pork and lizard. The Khmer Royal Chronicles report that the Cham that
left Panduranga to seek refugee in Cambodia during the fourth immigration wave, were
accused of rebelling against the Vietnamese. Before the final demise of the once great
Champa kingdom, several small groups tried to fight back the nam tien, but after a short time

2
The Chams that fled to live in the woods are known as the Penik Phnong group.
3
Nam tien: Vietnamese policy of pushing south towards the Mekong delta.
4
King Preah Chez Choetta – also known as: Jayajettha III, who was in power 1677-1709
5
Oudong was the Cambodian capital 1618-1866. Oudong is about 45 km north of the present day capital of
Phnom Penh.

5
left for sanctuary in Cambodia. The four main waves of immigration from the Champa
kingdom to Cambodia are those officially recognised in the Khmer Royal Chronicles. We
assume that there were smaller groups of refugees during all times beginning with the first
immigration.

1.2. The legend of the Kerik Tree – the beginning of the downfall

History is often connected to legends, known throughout time by the peoples. When looking
at Cham History and especially at the first invasion of the Viet people from southern China
into the northern Cham state of Indrapura and the capture of the capital in 982 AC, we find
that the legend of the Kerik tree was formed to explain the happenings. Passed on from
generation to generation the legend became the explanation for the beginning of the downfall
of the great Champa kingdom. Because this legend became a part of the history of a nation, I
want to stress the importance of it.
There was once the great Champa king, whom the Vietnamese were not able to defeat, neither
on land nor on sea. The king and his kingdom of Champa were under the protection of a
magic tree, which was located in front of the palace gates. It is said, that this tree was the
source of the powers and strengths of the king and his soldiers. After not being able to defeat
the Champa kingdom, the Vietnamese strived to uncover the secret of the Cham’s steady
victory. Soon they discovered the mystery of the tree and now attempted to destroy this
source of power. They sent a beautiful young Vietnamese woman and her mother to the
palace of the Champa king. They were granted admission and soon the young woman became
the second wife of the king. After a short period she pretended to be very ill and for weeks she
was not able to leave her bed. Because she had put dry rice under her mattress, every move
she made sounded like the cracking of her bones. The king was very anxious about his young
wife and asked all his medicine men and sorcerers, but none of them could find a remedy to
help her. Finally a Vietnamese fortune-teller revealed the cause of the unknown illness of the
king’s wife. It was supposed to be the spirit living in the Kerik-tree that made her suffer. He
advised to cut down the tree. None of the king’s subordinates was able to cut down the tree,
so the king had to do it himself. Blood flowed out of the tree and covered the land. Soon later
the Vietnamese attacked the Champa kingdom and the king and his soldiers were merciless
defeated. To escape the cruelness of the enemies, the Champa king tried to hide in a well,
covered under cobwebs. But a lizard, with its distinguished shouting betrayed him to the Viet

6
people. They found him and beheaded him. The conquerors annexed the land and ever since
followed their policy of nam tien – pushing south towards the Mekong delta. The beheaded
Champa king turned into an evil spirit. This legend is still known and told in Cham
communities today. We can still observe the influence of the legend of the Kerik-tree in
modern day Cham communities. Trankell6 suggests that the reason for the silence among the
Chams concerning their near past, experienced under the Khmer Rouge and connected with
this, the flourishing of the Cay-Cult among the Jahed group, could be already rooted in the
legend of the Kerik-tree. I will go into further details in the Cay-Cult discussion.

1.3. Islamisation

The Islamisation of Champa is controversial and there are to be found several theories on it.
In the 13th century the Muslims invaded India and soon later Islam spread to Southeast Asia.
The vectors of this Islamisation were the merchants who moved permanently to Southeast
Asia. Those traders could have been Indian traders, who centuries before brought Hinduism
with them, but now arrived in Champa and the rest of Southeast Asia with their new Islamic
faith. Cabaton (1906) suggests that Islam came between the 10th and 14th century with Arab
and Persian traders in connection with Muslim expansion or in the 14th century with Malay
immigrants. Cabaton did not mention the possibility that Indian merchants or Sufi
missionaries from Gujarat and Bengal7 could have spread Islam in Champa. About Malay
immigrants, I only found that they were in constant contact with Cambodian traders and that
we find the descendants in the Cham-Chvea group still living in Cambodia. There is a
possibility that the Chams, after immigrating to Cambodia got in touch with the Malay
minority and their orthodox version of Islam. Researchers do not only face the question of
who brought the Islamic faith to the Champa kingdom, but also when. Manguin (1985) was
looking for the date in history of the Champa kingdom, which marks the conversion of the
King (or ruler)8. In his opinion we can not speak of an Islamisation before the conversion of
the ruler. He did not find this date before the 17th century. This vague theory does not show if
there were common people before that period, who converted to the new faith.

6
Ing-Britt Trankell: Songs of Our Spirits
7
See William Collins: The Chams of Cambodia
8
„A kingdom will be defined as Muslim when the Sovereign, his court and a notable portion of the population
have been converted.” (Manguin 1985)

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There exist several theories of the Islamisation of the Champa kingdom. I imply that Indian,
as well as Arab and Persian traders, on their way to China, paused in the former Champa
kingdom. During this period, the population received the information about this new religion
and gradually started converting to the new Islamic faith. In my point of view, not so much
attention should be given to the conversion of the ruler, respectively the king, like Manguin
suggested. It is important that a great number of commoners went over to a different faith. It
will be interesting to research the influence of the Sufi missionaries, since we do find
elements of mysticism from the Sufi branch in Cham Islam, especially among the Jahed
group.

1.4. The Cham Language

The Cham Language belongs to the Austronesian family and to the subgroup of the Malayo-
Polynesian languages. The Cham language which nowadays exists in Cambodia is called
Western Cham and differs somewhat from the Eastern Cham dialect spoken from the Chams
in Central Vietnam. The writing developed from the devanageri script. In Cambodia it is
spoken near the major cities and along the Mekong River.
The main scholars in the Chamic language field are Ètienne Aymonier and Antoine Cabaton
with the Dictionnaire cham – francais9. According to Dyen10 belong the Chamic languages,
respectively the Cham language probably to the West Indonesian group of languages. On the
basis of lexicostatistic evidence the closest relatives of the Chamic languages are the
languages of Borneo, Sumatra, Java and Bali. He further argues that no one ever questioned
that the languages mentioned above form a single subgroup within the Austronesian family,
which in other references is called the Malayo-Polynesian group. This again proofs the
general opinion that Cham belongs to the Austronesian language family. Dyen presents
another interesting theory from a scholar named G.K. Niemann, who made the suggestion that
the Cham language is more closely related with the Achinese spoken in Sumatra. Apart from
finding agreements in the phonology, grammatical forms and particularly in the lexicon, he
explains his agreements with the theory that a large number of the population of Aceh
originated from Champa. Collins11 remarks that the Cham language as an Austronesian
language is surrounded by only Austroasiatic languages. He further notes that there is also an

9
Publications de l’Ecole Francaise d’Extreme – Orient, VII (1906)
10
Isidore Dyen: The Chamic Languages
11
For more details see Collins, William: The Chams of Cambodia

8
Austroasiatic enclave in the central highlands of Malaysia. Collins argues that concerning the
Chamic people “…it would be incorrect to think in terms of migrations, because what
happened […] people stayed where they had always been and the land changed around them.
[…] the Chamic peoples were separated from their fellow Austronesian speakers, who […]
followed the receding coasts to higher land and found themselves on islands when the sea
levels stabilised.” In conclusion it is to say, that there exist more theories on language
relations between the Chamic languages and other Southeast Asian languages. I only
presented three theories that are partly congruent with theories concerning the origin of the
Cham people.

Areas of Western Cham language

2. Recent history - The Cham group after the colonial period

2.1. Sihanouk’s definition of Khmer ethnic minorities – Unity in diversity

After Cambodia’s official independence from France in 195312 until 1970 Cambodia was
ruled by King Sihanouk and his officials. He strongly followed a nationalist policy to take
economic control of the country from the Chinese and Vietnamese living in Cambodia. His
aim was to advance the interests of the Khmer. In this context Sihanouk shaped a new
terminology for some of the ethnic minorities in the country, using the term “Khmer”. He
distinguished the “Highland Khmers” (“Khmer Loeu”), which are the people of the hill tribes
located in the Northeast of Cambodia, mostly in the provinces of Rattanakiri and
Mondulkiri13. Further more he points out the Muslim Khmer and the Cham-Malay

12
France granted Cambodia internal autonomy in January 1946 (modus vivendi agreement), but not until
November 1953 was Cambodia independent.
13
Some of the Khmer Loeu also live in the provinces of Stung Treng and Kratie. For more information on the
Khmer Loeu see http://countrystudies.us/cambodia/44.htm or www.cascambodia.org .

9
community, referring to these groups as the “Khmer Islam”. And he also distinguished the
“Khmer Krom”, which are the “Lowland Khmers”, ethnic Khmers who live in the Mekong
Delta, which now belongs to Vietnam. It is interesting that Sihanouk emphasized the fact that
the ethnic minorities apart from the Chinese and Vietnamese, belong to the Khmer population
and are therefore seen as ethnic Khmers. This official terminology also found its way to the
people of Cambodia, who are using those terms, when speaking about Khmer ethnic
minorities. And when we look at the Cham-Chvea, we see that they are explicitly referring to
themselves as “Khmer Islam”. This term again, reflects their status of being Khmer, but with
a different religious faith. I think it is important to see that apart from his intention of why
including those ethnic minorities into the ethnic Khmer, he did take a noticeable step towards
general acceptance of those groups and in particular of the Khmer Islam among the Khmer
population. Nevertheless we do have to see the diversities of cultural differences from the
ethnic Khmers especially among the Khmer Islam, respectively the Chams. Since the Chams
practise Islam, which prohibits intermarriage with non-Muslims, they are already separated
from other non-Muslim Khmers. This separation is further enforced by numerous ritual
practises that contrast sharply with those of the Khmer majority community. The term
“Khmer Islam” in fact points to the tolerance of the Cambodian nation, which includes
Muslims among its diverse peoples.
All three Khmer ethnic minorities are settled along the Mekong River. The Khmer Loeu live
on the upper stream of the Mekong, the Khmer Islam cultivate the middle reaches of the river
and are experts in coping with the changes of the Tonle Sap Lake. And the Khmer Krom built
their villages in the Mekong Delta of nowadays Vietnam. We could say that because the
Mekong flows steadily through the Cambodian mountains and plains and therefore belongs to
the Cambodian landscape and culture, the ethnic minorities that inhabit the areas around the
Mekong, belong to Cambodia as well.

2.2. 1975 – 1979: Were the Chams persecuted because of their ethnic or religious
background during the Khmer Rouge regime?

Besides the Horror the people of Cambodia had to face during this time, irrespective what
ethnic or religious origin they were from, I want to have a closer look, whether the Chams as
an ethnic or religious group were more persecuted than others. In my opinion this is a really
delicate question to ask, especially from a person, not from Cambodia. And asking or doing

10
research on these questions might lead to the opinion that some people suffered more than
others, which by no means I want to emphasize. I want to give an overview on what
Cambodian Scholars and other researchers had to say about this topic and with my knowledge
of Cambodian history I will try to find my own position on whether or not the Cham minority
group was more persecuted than other Cambodians.
Ben Kiernan14 describes the politics of Democratic Kampuchea concerning the Chams as
“an intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as
such.” He further argues that Cham girls had to cut their hair and men their beard and hair as
well. The Chams had to abandon their traditional clothes and adapt to the official black suits
of the Khmer Rouge. They were forced to eat pork and behave like Khmers. They had to
speak the Khmer language. They were prohibited to practise their Islamic faith and most of
their mosques were destroyed or desecrated. Their Cham communities were broken up and
dispersed. According to Kiernan, only 20 Hakkem (community leaders) of 113 before the Pol
Pot period survived, out of 226 Hakkem rong (deputies) survived 25 and only 38 of approx.
300 religious teachers at Koranic schools survived. All in all one third of the Cham Islam
Community perished under Pol Pot. Kiernan argues that the total death rate among the Chams
was statistically higher than among Cambodians. In the end of his article he concludes that
there had been a persecution of the Cham based on race and/ or religion.
Becker15 describes the Khmer Rouge policy as racial pogroms, which she compares with
those of the Nazis in Germany.
The Khmer Rouge Ideology also included an attempt to eradicate religions. All religious
believes were suppressed and Buddhists, Moslems, Christians and other followers were not
allowed to practise their faith. Serge Thion16 adds concerning the Cham group that “If there
was more resistance among Muslims, and then more repression [from the Khmer Rouge], it is
because Islam as a cement was stronger than other religious beliefs”. That would explain the
higher number of perished Chams during this period of Cambodian history. Democratic
Kampuchea was establishing a completely new social order, which did not have any space for
religion and individualism. Not only the Cham language was prohibited to practise, but also
English, French, Vietnamese and all other foreign languages, because knowing other
languages than Khmer was a threat to the system and showed sympathy with imperialistic
ideas. All 51 interviewees Kiernan asked, whether or not the Cham population had been
dispersed or broken up, all of the surveyed answered with yes. My question is, if there is one

14
Ben Kiernan: Orphans of Genocide: The Cham Muslims of Kampuchea under Pol Pot.
15
Elizabeth Becker: When the war was over.
16
Serge Thion: Watching Cambodia.

11
Cambodian, who would answer “no” to this particular question. Families were torn apart
during and after the evacuation of the capital Phnom Penh, men sent away to the woods to be
executed and children were taken away from their mothers to work for the revolution in
working camps. By no means have I wanted to deny that in some cases, people of the Cham
minority group were specially targeted by Khmer Rouge Cadres. But until now, there has not
been a proof that Khmer Rouge policies were especially designed to eliminate ethnic minority
groups as the Chams. Of course they were to some extant more affected than their Cambodian
fellows, because of their distinctive tradition, religion and language, which they had to
abandon.

3. The Chams in contemporary Khmer society

3.1. Division within – The 3 main groups within the Cham ethnic minority

The Chams of Cambodia are not a homogenous ethnic minority group. There are three main
groups within the Cham community in Cambodia, whose descendent can only partly traced
back to the former Champa Kingdom in nowadays central Vietnam. All three groups have in
common their Islamic faith, although it is also a criterion for the division among the Cham
Muslim. This differentiation is found between traditionalists on the one side and puritans on
the other. The traditionalists, which more or less practise the Chamic Islam, are referred to as
the Jahed17 group.
The Jahed themselves refer to their group as the “followers of Imam San”, who was a former
leader, that was granted a place for his mosque on a holy temple near Oudong from the then
Khmer king. The Jahed, which number about 23,000 persons, about ten percent of the total
number of Cham in Cambodia, stress the importance of their origin from the Champa
kingdom. They preserved their Cham script, which developed from a south Indian script.
They are not only using the Cham language in every day life, but also, in contrast to the other
Cham groups which use either Malay or Arab, in their religious literature.
In addition to preserving their language, they also celebrate some pre-Islamic and other
Islamic ceremonies, which I will discuss later. The Jahed group rejects the authority of clerics
and only follow what they believe; Mohamed (the prophet) received from god. They believe

17
The word “Jahed” (Arabic: zahid- anchorite, recluse, devotee, ascetic) or “Kom Jumat” is used by other
Moslems to emphasize that this special group of Cham only prays once a week; the Friday prayer.

12
that one can come into personal communion with god, without accumulated rules. For this
reasons they only pray one time a week and instead say, that they are in a state of prayer at all
times of the day. These believe, in a way, shows their superiority towards the other Chams.
But because of this attitude and their rejection of more orthodox ways of Islam, which are
brought to Cambodia from Malaysia and other Islamic countries, do they not receive any
foreign Islamic aid. Missionaries want them for example to abandon their tradition of only
praying once a week and to adopt the Arabic writing for the Koran. In return they would be
sponsored with new mosques and money for schools and books.

Local Cham-Jahed religious leader in a wedding procession.

The other two groups are attracted to a more orthodox version of Islam, which is mostly
brought to Cambodia from foreign Muslim organisations from the Malay and Arab world.
The Cham-Cham18 and the Cham-Chvea19, often tempted by economic offers follow the
purification movements. Even though both subgroups follow the same Islamic way, we have
to distinguish them because of their geographical and cultural background.
The Cham-Cham are descendents from the kingdom of Champa, but rather than emphasizing
their cultural, historical and ethnical heritage, in contrast to the Jahed, they prefer to point out

18
Cham-Cham refers to the ethnic minority of the Cham and the name Cham, they give themselves.
19
Chvea is Khmer for Java. They prefer to call themselves Khmer Islam.

13
their religious background. Because they only trace their descent through their Islamic faith,
they are more open towards more modern Islamic practises that mostly come from the Malaya
Islamic culture and more recently from Arab countries as well. Especially after the Khmer
Rouge regime did they turn towards a more orthodox version of Islam. In contrast to the
Jahed, which they call kaum hakekat - the group devoted to Divine Truth; they consider
themselves to belong to the kaum sharia group - the group to devote to God’s ordinances,
ritual and liturgy. They usually pray five times a day.
In recent times the Cham-Chams, like the Cham-Chvea belong to the Cham division, which
receives foreign aid from Muslim organisations from Malaysia or the Arab Islamic World. In
a later Chapter I will discuss the influence and effects of the purification movements on the
Cham.
The Cham-Chams still speak the Cham language, but in addition they also speak Khmer and
Malay. The use of the Cham script in religious literature among this group is replaced by
Arabic script.
The Cham-Chveas are superficially numbered to the Cham minority group, even though they
do not descent from the former Champa kingdom, but belong to the Islamic minority group in
Cambodia. They prefer to call their group Khmer Islam, which shows their national and
linguistically affiliation. In turn they are called Chvea by other Khmer nationals, which shows
their foreign origin, which is probably in the Malaya-Indonesian region. The Cham-Chveas
have the theory that they are the children of a Malay man and a Khmer Mother, which would
explain their affiliation with Khmer customs and their Islamic faith. Malay traders did pass
through Cambodia and brought with them their religious faith. To review this ethnic minority
of the Cham-Chvea more thorough would go beyond the means of this paper, which discusses
the Cham ethnic, as originated from the former Champa Kingdom.

3.2. Living Areas and working fields in modern day Cambodia

The Chams of all three groups mentioned above, the Jahed, Cham-Chvea and the Cham-Cham
typically live in villages inhabited only by other Cham, not by Khmer or other ethnic
minorities. Cham villages may be along the banks of water courses, like the Mekong and are
referred to as play krong – river villages. The population of a play krong usually engage in
fishing, raising rice or growing vegetables, especially onions. They trade fish for rice with
local Khmers. Women in play krong earn additional money by weaving.

14
The Cham living inland, inhabit villages called play ngok – upper villages, where locals
support themselves by various means, depending on the play ngok. Some villages specialize
in metal working; others raise fruit trees or vegetables. The Cham often serve as butchers of
cattle for their Khmer Buddhist neighbours and in some areas are skilful water buffalo
breeders.

3.3. New Trends in the Cham Community

3.3.1. Formation of a more orthodox Islam among the Cham – The influence of the
Arab and Malay World

Since Cambodia opened itself again to the outside world, foreigners and especially foreign
NGO’s found their way to Cambodia, which for over thirty years was basically isolated from
the rest of the world. Knowing that Cambodia has a Muslim minority, organisations from
Islamic countries like Malaysia and Middle East countries, mainly Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and
the Arab Emirates arrived. As I mentioned above, the Cham practise their own way of Islam,
which is not as orthodox as known in other Islamic countries. The aim of the Muslim
missionaries was and still is to spread a more orthodox version of Islam, which includes
praying five times a day and having to abandon certain traditional and pre-Islamic Chamic
practises. Like most Cambodians, the Cham suffered under the Khmer Rouge regime and lost
their valuables, lands and traditions. Their mosques and schools were destroyed. They were in
need for foreign aid, respectively financial support. Islamic donors, wanting to help their
Muslim brothers, visited the Cham communities and introduced their programs and rules, in
order to support the village. Flexible communities swiftly received financial aid from their
foreign fellows.
More and more Cham Muslims join the orthodox movement that strives to purify Cham
Islamic practises from Buddhist influence or Pre-Islamic traditions. Money from overseas not
only finances the building of new schools, mosques and wells for the village, but also opens
the opportunities to education abroad and to go on pilgrimage to Mecca. People returning
from the pilgrimage or school; bring new views of Islam to their community, which often
oppose localized Cham practises. The two groups of the Cham-Cham and the Cham-Chvea
are mostly tempted by economic offerings from the puritans. Some religious leaders are
financed through foreign funds.

15
The majority of the Cham take criticism on the Jahed group for holding on to ancient Cham
believes, but in turn are criticised by the reformists for holding on to some of the same
believes as the Jahed. The reformist movement opposes any form of religious synthesis,
which we do find in some of the traditional Cham practises, ex. the traditional burial and
commemoration practise for the dead or wedding ceremonies that are accompanied with the
use of a drum or other instruments and the Cay-Cult, which I shall discuss in the next chapter.
In some Cham-Cham villages we can tell dissension within the community. Cham elders
accuse missionaries of creating unwanted disagreement in the village by criticising Cham
traditional practises20.

Religious Jahed leaders praying at a funeral.

We can observe several solutions in different villages. In some mosques are blankets put up to
separate the two different groups, the traditional and the orthodox. Other mosques have two
religious leaders for their community and in some villages we can even find two mosques for
the two branches within the Muslim Cham community.
The Jahed group, which are seen as the keepers of the old traditions and culture known since
the Champa kingdom among the Cham, reject those kinds of religious transformations to
more orthodox versions of Islam. Therefore they do not belong to the Muslim minority in
Cambodia, receiving financial aid from foreign Islamic organisations.
Recently there has been a controversial, whether or not there is a potential for terrorism
among the Cham Muslim communities. Several foreigners, working in Islamic schools have
been arrested and a school has been closed down. There has not been any Cham person
involved in any of these matters and on questioning the Minister of Cults and Religions Chea
Savoeun, he replied:” Khmer Islam is very peaceful and the people are innocent. […]”21

20
Bjorn Blengsli: Trends in the Islamic community. Blengsli recently spent several months living among the
Cham in Cambodia.
21
“Cambodia starts to wonder about Muslim minority” Reuters, Phnom Penh.

16
However, the Wahhabiyah22 reformist movement has a strong influence on nowadays Cham
communities.
There is a second purification movement working in Cambodia today, which I only want to
mention shortly. The Tablighi Jama’at movement23, which originated in India and follows the
six principals, is found in some villages. Men dress completely in white and wear white
turbans. Women are found covered from head to toe in black clothes and veils. It will be
particularly interesting observing the development among the Muslim communities under the
influence of the two reformist and purification movements originated in other Muslim
countries. The question is if there will be Cham elders in one or two generations who will be
complaining about the dissension within the Cham community or if there simply will not be
any dissension left, because of the complete loss of the old Chamic traditions. Or if the Cham,
financially independent, find back to their roots and will experience a revival of their old
traditions, like we can find among the Jahed nowadays. How long will the Jahed group be
able to reject financial support from Islamic organisations? Cheaply printed Islamic scriptures
in Arabic find their way to Cham villages, respectively Jahed communities. The question
rises, if it is just a matter of time until those booklets take the place of the abundantly
produced, handwritten Islamic literature of the Jahed.

3.3.2. The Cay-Cult ceremony of the Jahed – keepers of the old tradition?

The Spirit possession cult, respectively the cay-cult is a ceremony celebrated by the
traditional branch of the Cham minority, the Jahed. The main purpose of the ceremony is to
heal a suffering person where medical treatment has proofed insufficient and to purify the
same and his relatives. The state of health of a person is connected to once primary social
relations. Trankell also describes the Cay-Cult as a state ceremony to celebrate the glorious
past of the Cham nation.
The Cay-Cult experienced some sort of revival since the end of the civil war and the arrival of
the UNTAC- Soldiers in Cambodia. Baccot24 wrote in 1960 that the Cay-Cult was about to
disappear. Before I discuss what the causes were of the recent revival, I will give a short
introduction to the Cay-Cult ceremony for a better understanding.

22
Wahhabiyah: An Islamic renewal group established by Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Whhab’ (d.AH1206/1792CE).
According to the teachings of ‘Abd al-Whhab’, the movement is not a new Islamic school, but a call or mission
for the true implementation of Islam. The Wahhabiyah often refer to “the mission of the oneness of God”.
23
Khmer: Da’wa Tabligh
24
Baccot: On g’nur et Cay à O Russei.

17
Trankell, who in recent years consulted several field studies among the Jahed is my main
source of information on the Cay-Cult ceremony of the Jahed.
The Cay-Cult ceremony is mainly done by mediums, which are possessed by spirits, which
were members of the royal court of the historical Champa. In the old society25 those mediums
were mostly women from the Po-cast26, putative descendants from the Champa royal lineage
or aristocracy. Qualities like beauty, refined manners, high education, knowledge of the royal
language and etiquette and Muslim texts and teachings were prerequisite. Mediums used to
form a close network with training in etiquette and protocol during the ceremony.
Nowadays, in the new society27 the distinction between Po and Ries28 has little importance.
New mediums come from all kinds of social backgrounds. Trankell explained that after the
Pol Pot regime and the invasion of the Vietnamese, most Jahed gathered together at a Village
called O’ Russei, where they stayed until they were able to move on to other villages. The
people, who were staying in O’ Russei can today claim some kind of elite status, which means
that they are able to become a medium.
The possession of a medium is transgender, which means that male spirits can possess female
mediums and reversed. The transgender of a medium expresses the general ambivalence
within the cult world. Categories like male and female, past and present, spirits and humans
are blurred. The initiation of a new medium is mostly brought about by the experience of a
trauma, which includes near death experiences, serious illness and the sense of being
vulnerable or exposed. In addition a new medium still has to find a teacher, who is willing to
introduce the novice to etiquette and protocol of the ceremony.
In the new society we not only find many new mediums, but also new spirits in the Cham
spirit pantheon that nowadays also include Khmer Royal spirits, like the spirit of the Princess
Daun Penh29.
Knowing that the Cay-Cult almost vanished before the Khmer Rouge takeover, it is
interesting to ask why the Cay-Cult experienced such a revival since the beginning of the
1990s. Trankell introduced the theory that because of the traumatic experiences most of the
Chams suffered during the Khmer Rouge period, more people experienced the possession of a

25
Trankell does not specify what is meant with old society, but I suppose that it refers to the period before the
revival of the cult and the disregard of the old rules known from the former Champa kingdom. My interpretation
is that the old society and the execution of the rules, is mainly found in the old Champa kingdom. And it
probably reaches as far as the beginning of the Khmer Rouge period.
26
Po: Cham for royal and aristocracy.
27
In contrast to Trankell’s term of the old society, I use „new society“, referring to the time since the cay cult’s
revival.
28
Ries: Cham for commoner.
29
Princess Daun Penh is the guardian spirit of the present capital of Cambodia, Phnom Penh.

18
spirit. This would explain the high number of mediums. But without people who want to
perform a cay-cult ceremony the mediums would not be worth anything.
I think after suppression, like the one experienced under the Khmer Rouge, where a person
was stripped of any individualism, material goods and spiritual resort, people try to re-build
their traditions to take resort in them. Religion and old traditions help to look forward, work
with the experiences or try to forget about them. After years of separation Jahed communities
and families were joined together and discovered their almost lost traditions again.
I suggest that the Islamic purification movements experienced in Cham communities might
also have a particular influence on the Jahed group. Seeing that other Cham Muslims abandon
their old believes and traditions for financial aid from foreign Islamic sources, the Jahed come
to terms of having to preserve their old Cham Islamic traditions and oppose the purification of
their own way of Islam by becoming somewhat extreme traditionalists. The flourishing Cay
Cult is one expression.
Another factor of the quick revival of the Cay-Cult might be found in the very sense of it. The
Cay-Cult is performed on an ill person, where other remedies do not help anymore. Looking
at the medical situation in Cambodia, people had to face after the civil war and still have to
face outside of the major cities; the cay-cult ceremony was and is a welcome hope. Hospitals
and other medical institutions were destroyed and most doctors were killed during the Khmer
Rouge period. People gained a higher conscious of traditional remedies and therefore for the
Cay-Cult as well.
In connection with the explanation of the recent revival of the Cay-Cult, Trankell argues that
the revival of the Cay-Cult might be the verbalisation of the near and far past and the
connected experiences. Foreigners can experience deep silence when confronting people in
Cambodia with their experiences under the Khmer Rouge. Trankell suggests that the reason
for this silence among the Chams concerning their near past under the Khmer Rouge and the
flourishing of the Cay-Cult among the Jahed, could already be rooted in the legend of the
Kerik-tree. Because through its’ talkativeness, the lizard betrayed the Champa king, who was
hiding in the well from the Vietnamese.
Not only the betrayal expressed in the legend shows that talking can bring misfortune, but
also the betrayal experienced under the Pol Pot Regime, where spies were waiting under the
houses to bear witness of any criticism on the revolution. The consequence was to keep quiet.
Because speaking and talking with each other could bring harm, the Cham express their grief,
suffering, guilt and other feelings attached to the pasts in the state ceremonies of the Cay-Cult.

19
I experienced similar silence among the Khmer when confronting them with their recent past
and their suffering during the Pol Pot regime. I suggest that not only the fear to talk, because
of possible consequences, but the pain and the speechlessness facing those happenings lead to
the silence. There are simply no words to describe. Often I also had the impression that the
people in Cambodia want to forget about what had happened to them, which by all means is
understandable. And when looking at the Cham, we should consider the above mentioned as
well. The cult might be seen as a way to deal with history. Combined it can be said, that
several reasons led to the revival of the Cay-Cult among the Jahed and all of them should be
considered to be part of the explanation.

Conclusion
First I have to mention, that we face quiet a small collection of literature about the Chams. I
still could not include everything I was planning to. One of the reasons is that it would have
definitely been too much material for the present research paper, so I had to make a selection
of material and topics, which I will probably include in one of my next essays about the
Chams in Cambodia.
After discussing the given themes, I noticed that especially in Cham history there are several
theories, which all try to explain certain aspects of history, like the Islamisation or even
earlier, the descent of the inhabitants of the Champa kingdom and the relations between the
Chamic language as an Austronesian language and other languages of the same family in
Southeast Asia. In my opinion, it is important to recognise each theory as a possible right
answer to the question of origin and changes within the Cham society. The difficulty with
historical theories is that we can not proof them one hundred percent, because there is nobody
left to ask. For this reason I rather focused on temporary development and change within the
Cham community, since this subject left me with the possibility of doing further research in a
Cham community in the future.
In my discussion about Cham’s history as well as modern Cham society I ascertained that
both are recognized by major changes within the nation and community, coming mostly from
foreign influences, which caused a change of thinking within the Cham group.
I could recognize the following important transformation:
The development from a strong kingdom to an ethnic minority group that today lives in
Vietnam, where the former Champa kingdom existed and in Cambodia, where the people had
immigrated to for sanctuary.

20
The conversion from Hinduism to Islam is a second important change in Cham consciousness.
After working through the material on Islamisation of the Champa kingdom, I noticed that we
are facing a gap on historical information, which we might be able to cover through future
research in Southeast Asian archives.
The geographical alteration from present central Vietnam to the banks of the Mekong and the
Tonle Sap probably had a major impact on Cham’s living conditions and lifestyle, which shall
be a future aspect of research and discussion.
These are the dominant transformations in Cham’s history, connected with the loss of their
homeland and the immigration to the neighbouring country of Cambodia.
I also discussed two major changes in contemporary Cham society. The present amendments
have a great influence on the Cham’s sense of identity, because the conversion to a more
orthodox version of Islam on the one side and the revival of old Cham Islamic traditions, like
the Cay Cult ceremony on the other side, divide the Cham ethnic minority as a whole in two
parties. This division weakens the feeling of unity, which bounded the Cham group together.
In present days we can not talk anymore about one Cham minority group, but because of
religious dissensions have to distinguish between a traditional Cham group and an orthodox
Cham group. The question is to what extent we can still number the Cham-Cham group to the
Cham minority group. I already emphasised, that the Cham-Chvea, respectively the “Khmer
Islam” group are not descendents from the former Champa kingdom and could therefore not
be counted to the Cham minority, but form a minority group alone, like we can already notice
by the name they give themselves. Since Islamic missionaries have arrived in Cambodia, the
Cham-Chams gradually have abandoned their traditional Cham Islamic practises. Less and
less, we can recognize typical features of their distinctive Cham culture. The question on
whether or not, a group (here the Cham-Cham) within a minority group (here the Cham) that
left their distinctive features behind can still be seen as a part of this minority group, has to be
discussed more thorough.
However, the Chams were officially accepted as an integral part of Khmer society by King
Norodom Sihanouk. The Chams, which among the Khmer population are recognized as a
minority group that includes all three subgroups mentioned above became an important
feature in the otherwise mostly homogenous Cambodia.
To do further research on present changes and transformation in the Cham communities, it is
important to conduct field studies in Cham communities. I already remarked the lack of
scientific material about the Cham minority. To achieve new results in this subject, one has to
contact and probably live with Cham locals in Cambodia.

21
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Pictures:
- Local Cham religious leaders in a wedding procession (Trankell, Ing-Britt &Ovesen,
Jan)
- Cham in mosque for Friday prayer (Trankell, Ing-Britt &Ovesen, Jan)
- Religious Jahed leaders praying at a funeral (Trankell, Ing-Britt &Ovesen, Jan)

Map:
- Areas of Western Cham language (www.Ethnologue.com)

23