Famous people from Cambodia
Here is a list of famous people from Cambodia. Curious if anybody from Cambodia made it our most famous people in the world list? Read the aformentioned article in order to find out.
Pol Pot
Military Commander
Pol Pot was a Cambodian revolutionary who led the Khmer Rouge from 1963 until 1997. From 1963 to 1981, he served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Kampuchea. As such, he became the leader of Cambodia on April 17, 1975, when his forces captured Phnom Penh. From 1976 to 1979, he also served as the prime minister of Democratic Kampuchea. He presided over a Communist dictatorship that imposed a radical form of agrarian socialism on the country. His government forced urban dwellers to relocate to the countryside to work in collective farms and forced labor projects. The combined effects of executions, forced labor, malnutrition, and poor medical care caused the deaths of approximately 25 percent of the Cambodian population. In all, an estimated 1 to 3 million people died due to the policies of his four-year premiership. In 1979, after the Cambodian–Vietnamese War, Pol Pot fled to the jungles of southwest Cambodia, and the Khmer Rouge government collapsed. From 1979 to 1997, he and a remnant of the old Khmer Rouge operated near the border of Cambodia and Thailand, where they clung to power, with nominal United Nations recognition as the rightful government of Cambodia. Pol Pot died in 1998 while under house arrest by the Ta Mok faction of the Khmer Rouge. Since his death, rumours that he was poisoned have persisted.
Norodom Sihanouk
Military Commander
Norodom Sihanouk was the King of Cambodia from 1941 to 1955 and again from 1993 to 2004. He was the effective ruler of Cambodia from 1953 to 1970. After his second abdication in 2004, he was known as "The King-Father of Cambodia", a position in which he retained many of his former responsibilities as constitutional monarch. The son of King Norodom Suramarit and Queen Sisowath Kossamak, Sihanouk held so many positions since 1941 that the Guinness Book of World Records identifies him as the politician who has served the world's greatest variety of political offices. These included two terms as king, two as sovereign prince, one as president, two as prime minister, as well as numerous positions as leader of various governments-in-exile. He served as puppet head of state for the Khmer Rouge government in 1975–1976. Most of these positions were only honorific, including the last position as constitutional king of Cambodia. Sihanouk's actual period of effective rule over Cambodia was from 9 November 1953, when Cambodia gained its independence from France, until 18 March 1970, when General Lon Nol and the National Assembly deposed him.
Lon Nol
Politician
Marshal Lon Nol was a Cambodian politician and general who served as Prime Minister of Cambodia twice, as well as serving repeatedly as Defense Minister. He led a military coup against Prince Norodom Sihanouk in 1970 and became the self-proclaimed President of the newly created Khmer Republic.
Khang Khek Leu
Politician
Kang Kek Iew or Kaing Kek Iev, also romanized as Kaing Guek Eav, nom de guerre Comrade Duch or Deuch; or Hang Pin, is a war criminal and former leader in the Khmer Rouge communist movement, which ruled Democratic Kampuchea from 1975 to 1979. As the head of the government's internal security branch, he oversaw the Tuol Sleng prison camp where thousands were held for interrogation and torture. The first Khmer Rouge leader to be tried by the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia for the crimes of the regime, he was convicted of crimes against humanity, murder, and torture for his role during the Khmer Rouge rule of Cambodia and sentenced to 30 years imprisonment. On February 2, 2012, his sentence was extended to life imprisonment by the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia.
Sam Rainsy
Politician
Sam Rainsy is a Cambodian politician. Sam Rainsy was born in Phnom Penh in 1949. He moved to France in 1965, studied there and then worked as an investment manager and executive director in a variety of Parisian financial companies. He became a member of the Funcinpec Party, and after returning to Cambodia in 1992 was elected a member of parliament for Siem Reap Province the following year. He became Minister of Finance, but was expelled from the party after losing a vote of no-confidence in 1994. In 1995, he founded the Khmer Nation Party, which changed its name before the 1998 elections to the Sam Rainsy Party to avoid registration issues. Sam was elected a member of parliament for Kompong Cham province in those elections, and the party polled 14% of the vote. In the 2003 elections, it polled 22% of the vote. Sam Rainsy went into self-imposed exile on 3 February 2005, citing fear of arrest after a vote in the National Assembly removed parliamentary immunity from himself and fellow SRP MPs Chea Poch and Cheam Channy. On that same day, Parliamentarian Cheam Channy was arrested, and detained in the Cambodian Military Prison. Sam faced multiple criminal defamation charges after accusing the Cambodian People's Party and Funcinpec of corruption in the formation of the current coalition government. He has also accused Prime Minister Hun Sen of involvement in the 22 January 2004 murder of SRP-affiliated union leader Chea Vichea.
Sinn Sisamouth
Blues Artist
Sinn Sisamouth was a famous and highly prolific Cambodian singer-songwriter in the 1950s to the 1970s. Widely considered the "King of Khmer music," Sin Sisamouth, along with Ros Sereysothea, Pan Ron, and other artists, was part of a thriving pop music scene in Phnom Penh that blended elements of Khmer traditional music with the sounds of rhythm and blues and rock and roll to make a Westernized sound akin to psychedelic or garage rock. Sisamouth died from sickness during the Khmer Rouge regime.
Norodom Sihamoni
Monarch
Norodom Sihamoni has been the King of Cambodia since 29 October 2004. He is the eldest son of Norodom Sihanouk and his second wife Norodom Monineath Sihanouk. He was Cambodia's ambassador to UNESCO and named by a nine-member throne council to become the next king after his father Norodom Sihanouk abdicated in 2004. Before ascending the throne, Sihamoni was best known for his work as a cultural ambassador in Europe and as a classical dance instructor.
Somaly Mam
Organization founder
Somaly Mam is a Cambodian author and human rights advocate who focuses primarily on sex trafficking.
Nuon Chea
Politician
Nuon Chea appeared in the 2007 film Terror's Advocate.
Dith Pran
Photographer
Dith Pran was a Cambodian photojournalist best known as a refugee and survivor of the Cambodian Genocide. He was the subject of the Academy Award-winning film The Killing Fields. He was portrayed in the movie by first-time actor Haing S. Ngor, who won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance.
Rithy Panh
Film Director
Rithy Panh is an internationally and critically acclaimed Cambodian documentary film director and screenwriter. The French-schooled director's films focus on the aftermath of the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia. Rithy Panh's works are from an authoritative viewpoint, because his family were expelled from Phnom Penh in 1975 by the Khmer Rouge. One after another, his father, mother, sisters and nephews died of starvation or exhaustion, as they were held in a remote labor camp in rural Cambodia.
Ros Sereysothea
Blues Artist
Ros Sereysothea was a famous singer during the final years of Cambodia's Sangkum Reastr Niyum and the Khmer Republic. She sang from a variety of genres but romantic ballads emerged as her most popular works. Despite a rather short career she is credited with producing hundreds of songs and even starring in a few movies. Details of her life are relatively scarce and her fate during Democratic Kampuchea remains a mystery.
François Chau
Actor
François Chau is a Cambodian-American actor. He is known for his role as Dr. Pierre Chang in ABC's Lost, and more recently as Dr Chang in the film 21 & Over.
Ta Mok
Politician
Ta Mok, which means "Grandfather Mok" in Khmer, was the nom de guerre of Chhit Choeun, a senior figure in the leadership of the Khmer Rouge. His name has also been reported as Ek Choeun, Oeung Choeun and Ung Choeun, and he was also known as "Brother Number Five" or "the Butcher".
Chea Sim
Politician
Chea Sim is a Chinese Cambodian politician. He was the President of the National Assembly of Cambodia from 1981 to 1998 and has been the President of the Senate since 1999.
Norodom Ranariddh
Politician
Prince Norodom Ranariddh is the second son of former king Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia and a half-brother of the current king, Norodom Sihamoni. He was Prime Minister of Cambodia from 1993 until 1997.
Loung Ung
Author
Loung Ung is a Cambodian-born American human-rights activist and lecturer. She is the national spokesperson for the Campaign for a Landmine-Free World. Between 1997 and 2003 she served in the same capacity for the "International Campaign to Ban Landmines", which is affiliated with the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation. Ung was born in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the sixth of seven children and the third of four girls, to Seng Im Ung and Ay Choung Ung. Her actual birthdate is unknown; the Khmer Rouge destroyed many of the birth records of the inhabitants of cities in Cambodia. At ten years of age, she escaped from Cambodia as a survivor of what became known as "the Killing Fields" during the reign of Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge regime. After emigrating to the United States and adjusting to her new country, she wrote two books which related her life experiences from 1975 through 2003. Today, Ung is married and lives with her husband in Shaker Heights, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio.
Heng Samrin
Military Commander
Heng Samrin is a Cambodian politician. He was the chairman of the People's Republic of Kampuchea and the State of Cambodia, and later vice chairman and chairman of the National Assembly of Cambodia since 2006.
Patricia Hy-Boulais
Tennis Player
Patricia Hy-Boulais is a former tennis player. Representing Hong Kong early in her career, Hy-Boulais became a citizen of Canada in 1991. She turned professional on October 12, 1986. After Hy-Boulais did it in 1992, Canada did not have another woman to survive into the second week at the French Open until Aleksandra Wozniak did it in 2009. Hy-Boulais represented her new country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where she was eliminated in the second round by the number one seed Monica Seles. Hy-Boulais reached her highest ranking in the WTA Tour on March 8, 1993, when she became the number 28 of the world.
Loto
Actor
Suon Bou Loto is an actor.
Kem Sokha
Politician
Kem Sokha, born on 27 June 1953 in Takéo, Cambodia, is a member of Parliament in Cambodia, the founder of the Human Rights Party, and Vice President of the Cambodian National Rescue Party formed in 2012 as a merger between the Human Rights Party and Sam Rainsy Party. Kem Sokha is well known for his weekly town hall meetings at local level throughout the country. He was the first to introduce a free and open forum discussing issues concerning civic and political rights, as well as social and economic development, at village level in Cambodia. Kem Sokha is known for his non-violent, political tolerant policy standing on democratic and unity principles. His words are often quoted and repeated by ordinary Cambodians. His phrase "Do Min Do" became the anthem for the Cambodian National Rescue Party's historical elections Campaign in July 2013, which drew an unprecendted number of youth participation.
Sisowath Sirik Matak
Politician
Prince Sisowath Sirik Matak was a member of the Cambodian royal family, the Varman dynasty, under the House of Sisowath. Sirik Matak was mainly notable for his involvement in Cambodian politics, particularly for his involvement in the 1970 right-wing coup against his cousin, Prince Norodom Sihanouk, and for his subsequent establishment, along with Lon Nol, of the Khmer Republic.
Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt
Celebrity
Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt is the adopted son of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt.
Norodom of Cambodia
Monarch
Norodom I ruled as king of Cambodia from 1860 to 1904. He was the eldest son of King Ang Duong, who ruled on behalf of Siam, and half-brother of Prince Si Votha as well as the half-brother of King Sisowath. Norodom was considered to be the first modern Khmer king. He was credited with saving Cambodia from disappearing altogether. In 1863, to prevent the two powerful neighbours, Vietnam and Siam, from swallowing Cambodia altogether he invited France to make Cambodia its protectorate. However, he sent many letters to Siam claiming French Admiral de la Grandière had forced him into signing a false treaty. Many Cambodians believed that this brilliant act and his shrewdness did actually save Cambodia from disappearing. When he was born, Cambodia was under Vietnamese and Siamese rule. The two powers had partitioned the country between them, but the royal family, being related to the Siamese, remained in the Siamese zone, as the Vietnamese were more authoritarian than the Siamese. Nonetheless, Vietnam and Siam frequently fought wars over Cambodian territory. The royal capital of Cambodia was in Oudong, but the main center of the area was the capital of Siam in Bangkok. Prince Norodom was sent by his father to study in Bangkok, where he studied Siamese, Politics, Military, Buddhist scriptures and the ancient Pali language.
Preap Sovath
Singer
Preap Sovath is a singer in Cambodia. He records for Cambodian production company Rasmey Hang Meas. Preap Sovath performs the style of music known as "Khmer Karaoke", the name derives from the fact that most sales are of VCDs rather than CDs and all VCD film clips come with karaoke-style subtitled lyrics. Preap Sovath generally eschews strictly traditional Khmer songs and musical styles, instead his music is modern style for Cambodia's youth. He performs on many televised anthology-style live concert programmes and holds residencies at Phnom Penh's nightclubs. He has also released a compilation album Do Re Mi with Kim Leakhena.
Prak Mony Odom
Soccer Midfielder
Prak Mony Udom is a footballer for Svay Rieng in Cambodian League. He plays as a Midfielder for club.
Vann Nath
Artist
Vann Nath was a Cambodian painter, artist, writer and human rights activist who was one of a diverse group of writers from 22 countries to receive the prestigious Lillian Hellman/Hammett Award which recognizes courage in the face of political persecution which he faced during the Khmer Rouge. He was the eighth Cambodian to win the award since 1995.
Pen Sovan
Man
Pen Sovan, sometimes also spelt Pen Sovann was the first Prime Minister of the Hanoi-backed People's Republic of Kampuchea. He served from June 27, 1981 until December 5, 1981. And he was Secretary General of Kampuchean People's Revolutionary Party from 1979 to 5 December 1981 . The KPRP was originally a Marxist-Leninist party.
Sisowath of Cambodia
Monarch
Sisowath I was king of Cambodia from 1904 to his death in 1927. He was the son of King Ang Duong and half brother of Prince Si Votha and King Norodom. When he was born, Cambodia was under joint Siamese and Vietnamese rule. The royal family lived in the Siamese zone rather than live under Vietnamese oppression. Like his brother King Norodom, Sisowath was educated in the Siamese capital of Bangkok. He did not return to his native Cambodia until 1860, when his father and the ruling monarch, Ang Duong, died. He hastily returned to Odong, the royal capital of Cambodia, to prevent his half-brother, Prince Si Votha from seizing the throne. He succeeded, and his other half-brother, Norodom, became king. Although Norodom was more compliant, rebellion broke out in Cambodia, and soon the French, seeking control of Southeast Asia, forced Norodom to comply with a French protectorate over Cambodia. The French thus drove out the Thai and the Vietnamese, and Cambodia became a French protectorate, though it was quite autonomous. Sisowath was enraged - and he exiled himself to Saigon in Vietnam in 1864, the other former overlord of Cambodia, in a show of defiance. The French, who also had control of Saigon, persuaded Sisowath to remain there under French "protection", as his life was in danger by the "rebels in Cambodia". In reality, the French used Sisowath as a tool to threaten Norodom. If Norodom was not following France's policies of reform, they could threaten Norodom with Sisowath and say that they would depose Norodom and replace him with Sisowath if he did not comply.
Son Sann
Politician
Son Sann was a Cambodian politician and anti-communist resistance leader. Son Sann served as the Prime Minister of Cambodia in 1967-68. A devout Buddhist, he fathered seven children and was married.
Arn Chorn-Pond
Film Actor
Arn Chorn-Pond is a human rights activist committed to preserving traditional Cambodian music.
Sisowath Monivong
Monarch
Sisowath Monivong was the King of Cambodia from 1927 until his death in 1941. Sisowath Monivong's full title was 'Preah Bat Samdach Preah Serei Monivarman Krom Luang Chao Chakarbangsa Sisowath Monivong Nai Preah Reacheanachak Kampuchea.' Sisowath Monivong was the sixth child and the second son of King Sisowath. His mother was Neak Moneang Van, later titled Samdeach Preah Voreachini, the fifth child-bearing wife of Sisowath. He was born in Phnom Penh in 1875. At this time his uncle King Norodom ruled Odong, the capital of Cambodia. Norodom was a puppet king for the French colonial protectorate. In 1884, after the French conquered Laos and occupied Vietnam, Cambodia became a direct colonial possession. Siam was defeated but not occupied. The royal family then moved from Odong to the new capital of Phnom Penh, where Sisowath Monivong resided. In 1904, both Sisowath Monivong's uncles died, and Sisowath Monivong became the Crown Prince of Cambodia as a result. In 1906 he traveled with his father King Sisowath to France.☃☃ There he was admitted to the Military School of Saint-Maixent. He graduated two years later with the rank Sous Lieutenant in the Foreign Legion. He was then posted to Brive and later to Paris. In 1909, he returned to Cambodia. In 1910 he was promoted to Lieutenant, in 1916 to Captain, and finally to Chief of Battalion in 1922, the same year he was released from military service. During the First World War, he actively recruited volunteer military personnel and workers. These services were recognized with the Cross of Commander of the Foreign Legion and the Cambodian title of Samdech Preah Keofea. He was then appointed Secretary-General of the Council of Ministers and President of the Council of the Royal Family.
Ieng Thirith
Politician
Ieng Thirith was an influential figure in the Khmer Rouge, but was neither a member of the Khmer Rouge Standing Committee nor of the Central Committee. Her original name is Khieu Thirith. Ieng Thirith is the wife of Ieng Sary, who was minister of foreign affairs of Democratic Kampuchea's Khmer Rouge regime. She is the sister of the late Khieu Ponnary, who was the first wife of Pol Pot. Thirith was the Minister of Social Action during the regime. She was arrested by the Extraordinary Chamber in the Courts of Cambodia in November 2007 with her husband, Ieng Sary as suspect of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Pisith Pilika
Actor
Oak Eap Pili, was a Cambodian ballet dancer and actress. Pilika appeared in hundreds of movies and thousands of karaoke ranging from the 1980s through the 1990s. Her career was brought to a premature end when she was murdered by a gunshot.
Khim Borey
Soccer Midfielder
Khim Borey is a Cambodian footballer who plays for Phnom Penh Crown in Cambodian League and Cambodia national team.
Preah Maha Ghosananda
Man
Maha Ghosananda was a highly revered Cambodian Buddhist monk in the Theravada tradition, who served as the Patriarch of Cambodian Buddhism during the Khmer Rouge period and post-communist transition period of Cambodian history. His Pali monastic name, 'Maha Ghosananda', means "great joyful proclaimer". He was well known in Cambodia for his annual peace marches.
Norodom Buppha Devi
Noble person
Princess Norodom Buppha Devi of Cambodia was born on 8 January 1943, in Phnom Penh. She is the daughter of Norodom Sihanouk and the late Neak Moneang Phat Kanthol. Princess Buppha Devi is the elder sister of Prince Norodom Ranariddh and a half-sibling of current King of Cambodia, Norodom Sihamoni. Her official title is Her Royal Highness Samdech Reach Botrei Preah Ream Norodom Buppha Devi.
Vann Molyvann
Architect
Vann Molyvann is a Cambodian architect. During the Sangkum Reastr Niyum regime Prince Norodom Sihanouk enacted a development policy encompassing the whole kingdom with the construction of new towns, infrastructure and architecture. Vann was the foremost of a generation of architects who contributed to the unique style of architecture that emerged during this era and that has been coined New Khmer Architecture.
Hor Namhong
Politician
Hor Namhong is a Cambodian diplomat who has served in the government of Cambodia as Minister of Foreign Affairs since 1998. He previously held the same post from 1990 until 1993. He is a member of the Cambodian People's Party.
Kris Dim
Bodybuilder
Krisna "Kris" Dim is an IFBB professional bodybuilder. His first national bodybuilding competition was the NPC USA Championships, where he took 6th. After many years of hard work, he finally got his "ProCard" after winning the overall light-heavyweight division in the NPC USA 2003. From there, he began his career as a professional bodybuilder and competed in his first IFBB Mr. Olympia competition in 2004, where he placed 12th. His first Arnold Classic was in 2006, where he placed 14th, followed by his first Ironman Pro Invitational in the same year, where he placed 10th. He also competed in the Mr. Olympia Europe in 2009 where he placed 3rd overall after Ronnie Coleman who was 1st. Kris has been featured in many fitness and bodybuilding articles, the cover of FLEX magazine and Muscular Development.
Norodom Suramarit
Monarch
Norodom Suramarit was King of Cambodia from 1955 until his death. He was the father of King Norodom Sihanouk and the grandfather of Cambodia's current king, Norodom Sihamoni. Suramarit was born in Phnom Penh. He was the son of Prince Norodom Sutharot and grandson of King Norodom. Norodom Sihanouk was both Suramarit's predecessor and successor as the head of the state. Suramarit was a nephew of King Sisowath Monivong. Surmarit became Monivong's son-in-law when he married Monivong's daughter. Upon the Monivong's death in 1941, Sihanouk, Suramarit's son and Monivong's grandson, was selected as the new king. In 1955, Sihanouk abdicated in favor of his father. Following Suramarit's death in 1960, Norodom Sihanouk again became head of state. He was given the posthumous title of Preah Karuna Preah Norodom Suramarit Preah Moha Kachanakkot. King Norodom Suramarit was married to Queen Sisowath Kosamak, daughter of King Sisowath Monivong who remained Queen Mother after her husband's death.
Kalyanee Mam
Film Director
Kalyanee Mam is a cinematographer, film director, producer and lawyer.
Cheng Heng
Politician
Cheng Heng was a Cambodian politician, who acted as the country's Head of State from 1970–1971, and was a relatively prominent political figure during the Khmer Republic period. Heng, who was of Chinese ancestry, was born in Takeo Province into a middle-peasant family: he went on to become a prosperous businessman and landowner. He served in the civil service of colonial Cambodia, eventually reaching the grade of Oudom-Montrey by the mid-1950s. His early political career, during the period when Prince Norodom Sihanouk's Sangkum party controlled the country, is relatively obscure: he entered politics in 1958, and served as Secretary of State for Agriculture in 1961-2. He was elected as the Sangkum deputy for Takhmau in 1962, but lost in the 1966 elections to a rival candidate, a young Sihanoukist doctor called Keo Sann. Heng subsequently returned via a 1967 by-election in Phnom Penh, and by 1970 was serving as President of Cambodia's National Assembly. Heng's levels of political support appear to have been limited up until 1970; aside from being President of the Assembly, he had previously been director of the main Phnom Penh prison.
Choulong Somora
Politician
Tioulong Saumura is a Cambodian politician. She belongs to the Cambodian National Rescue Party and was elected to represent Phnom Penh in the National Assembly of Cambodia in 2003. She was also the Deputy Governor of Cambodia's Central Bank from 1993 to 1995. Saumura was born in 1950, the daughter of former Prime Minister Nhiek Tioulong. She and her six sisters passed much of their childhood outside of Cambodia, primarily in France, but also in Moscow, and Tokyo. While in France, she received a postgraduate degree in economics from the University of Paris in 1974. She subsequently attended the European Institute of Administration and earned a further degree in financial analysis. After the Cambodian Civil War, as the Vietnamese withdrew from Cambodia and the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia began implementing the UN Settlement Plan, Saumura and her husband, opposition leader Sam Rainsy returned to Cambodia in 1992.
Tea Banh
Politician
Tea Banh is the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for National Defence for Cambodia. He is a former general and a member of the Cambodian People's Party and was elected to represent Siem Reap Province in the National Assembly of Cambodia in the 2003 elections. Banh is of Sino-Thai descent, His father named Tea Toek, a Thai-Chinese, and his mother Nou Peng Chenda, who is an ethnic Thai. Banh married Tao Toeun, who is also an ethnic Thai in 1975. They have three children Tea Siam, Tea Tyhas, and Tea Kanha.
Khuang Aphaiwong
Politician
Khuang Aphaiwong was three times the prime minister of Thailand. Khuang was born in Battambang, a son of the Siamese governor. Chao Phraya Abhayabhubet. The Aphaiwongs were of royal Khmer lineage. Kuang attended Debsirin school and Assumption College, Bangkok, later studying engineering at the Ecole Centrale de Lyon in France. On his return to Thailand, he worked in the telegraph department, finally becoming director of the department. He married Lekha Kunadilok, daughter of Ceylon-born lawyer William Alfred Goone-Tilleke, founder of the law firm Tilleke & Gibbins. During World War II he was commissioned a major and joined the guard of King Rama VII. This earned him the title Luang Kowit-aphaiwong. In the government of Plaek Phibunsongkhram he became minister of commerce and communications, and was elected as prime minister on August 1, 1944, after Plaek's plans to move the capital to Phetchabun and to create the Phutthamonthon park failed to get enough approval from the parliament. On August 17, 1945 he resigned to make way for a new administration.
Mu Sochua
Politician
Mu Sochua is an elected Sam Rainsy Party opposition member of the Cambodian parliament and a mother of three children. In 2005, she received the Leadership Award in Washington, DC, from the Vital Voices Foundation, co-founded by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. In 2002 she mobilized 12,000 women candidates to run for commune elections, with over 900 women winning and still actively promoting the women's agenda at the grass-roots level. In that same year she helped create and pass the Prevention of Domestic Violence Bill, which imposes severe penalties on marital rape and abuse of minors. Her work in Cambodia also includes campaigns with men to end domestic violence and the spread of HIV/AIDS; working for the rights of female entrepreneurs; working for labor laws that provide fair wages and safe working conditions for female workers; and working for the development of communities for squatters with schools, health centers, sanitation, and employment.
Sok An
Man
Sok An is a Cambodian politician. He belongs to the Cambodian People's Party and was elected to represent Takeo Province in the National Assembly of Cambodia in 2003. Sok An is currently one of the six Deputy Prime Ministers of Cambodia. Cambodia has six cabinet members designated Deputy Prime Minister; however, the other five hold separate portfolios and Sok An is considered the "most senior", thus making his "first" job that of deputy prime minister. Sok An was into a family of Hakka Chinese descent. One US Major who had worked in Cambodia during the 1990s also mentioned that Sok An had Vietnamese ancestry from his mother, and had given him the name of Hoa Van Anh. Sok An spent his formative years in his hometown at Takeo province where he completed his high school in 1967. In April and May 2009, the Khmer Machas Srok Newspaper published two articles accusing Sok An and his official entourage of corruption. Following the stories and complaints by Cabinet Ministers, Hang Chakra, editor in chief of the Khmer Machas Srok was sentenced to one year in prison and a $2,250 fine for disinformation and defamation. Hang Chakra remained in Prey Sar prison in poor health until April 2010, when he was pardoned by the Cambodian King.
Sos Suhana
Soccer Midfielder
Sos Suhana is a footballer for Phnom Penh Crown in the Cambodian League. He plays as a Midfielder.
Long Boret
Politician
Long Boret or Long Boreth was a Cambodian politician who served as Prime Minister of Cambodia from December 26, 1973 to April 17, 1975. Highly regarded for his honesty, he tried unsuccessfully to negotiate a peace settlement with the Khmer Rouge during the Cambodian Civil War. He was later arrested by the Khmer Rouge and executed.
Chuon Nath
Lyricist
Samdech Sangha Raja Jhotañano Chuon Nath is the late Kana Mahanikaya Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia. Amongst his achievements is his effort in conservation of the Khmer language in the form of the Khmer dictionary. His protection of Khmer identity and history in the form of the national anthem, Nokor Reach and Savada Khmer are also amongst his contribution to the country.
Virak Ou
Human rights activist
Virak Ou is a Cambodian human rights activist and intellectual, the President of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, founder of the Alliance for Freedom of Expression in Cambodia, and winner of the Reebok Human Rights Award for his civil society campaign for freedom of expression and for the release of human rights advocates imprisoned for criticizing the Cambodian government.
Chea Vichea
Man
Chea Vichea was the leader of the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia until his assassination on Chinese New Year, 22 January 2004. Following his death, he was succeeded in his position at the FTUWKC by his younger brother Chea Mony. Vichea was shot in the head and chest early in the morning while reading a newspaper at a kiosk in Daun Penh district, Phnom Penh. He had recently been dismissed by the INSM Garment Factory as a reprisal for helping to establish a trade union at the company. He also had close affiliations with the opposition Sam Rainsy Party.
Chhet Sovan Panya
Pop Artist
Chhet Sovan Panya is a Cambodian singer. She is the only singer to reach the top rankings in Cambodia's competitive music industry with almost no self-promotion.
Chinary Ung
Man
Chinary Ung is a composer. After arriving in the United States in 1964 to study clarinet, he additionally studied composition with Chou Wen-chung and Mario Davidovsky, receiving a Doctor of Musical Arts from Columbia University in 1974. His music is noted for combining traditional Cambodian musical elements with western instrumentation, and his series of pieces titled Spiral has received considerable acclaim. Now a U.S. resident, Ung teaches at the University of California, San Diego. In 2013, UCSD promoted Ung to the rank of Distinguished Professor. Previously, he had taught at Northern Illinois University, Connecticut College, the University of Pennsylvania, and Arizona State University. In 1988, he became the first American to win the University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award for musical composition. Additionally, he received the Kennedy Center Friedheim Award, as well as awards from The American Academy of Arts and Letters, Asia Foundation, Asian Cultural Council, Rockefeller Foundation, Ford Foundation, Guggenheim Foundation, Joyce Foundation, and The National Endowment for the Arts. In October 2007 the Del Sol String Quartet was invited to premiere the composer's Spiral X playing the Library of Congress' collection of Stradivarius instruments. He remains committed to the cause of Cambodian music and culture. He frequently lectures and performs in Asia and is the principal curator for the 2013 Season of Cambodia festival in New York.
Norodom Arunrasmy
Woman
Norodom Arunrasmy is the youngest daughter of HM King Father Norodom Sihanouk and stepdaughter of Queen Norodom Monineath Sihanouk. Her birth mother is Mam Manivan Phanivong, a Lao woman who was born in Vientiane, Laos, who married King Sihanouk in 1949. She was born in Phnom Penh on October 2, 1955. Princess Arunrasmy attended primary school at the Petit Lycée Descartes in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and attended secondary school at a Roman Catholic boarding school called Mater Dei in Kep province. She is fluent in Khmer, Lao, Thai, French, and English. She was selected as the Funcinpec candidate for the 2008 Cambodian parliamentary elections and has been the Cambodian Ambassador to Malaysia since 2005.
Tep Rundaro
Actor
Tep Rindaro, is Cambodian actor and singer, who started acting in 1987. With career spanning more than two decades, he is one of the longest starring actor in Cambodia since the fall of Khmer Rouge.
Kith Meng
Man
Kith Meng is a Cambodian businessman. He is the Chairman of The Royal Group and also owns a majority stake in Cambodia's leading television and telecommunications networks, Cambodian Broadcasting Corporation and CamGSM. Meng is known for his preferences with making joint ventures with international companies to Cambodian companies, and in this particular regard has been likened to Dr Mark Mobious.
Khieu Ponnary
Woman
Khieu Ponnary was the first wife of Pol Pot, sister of Khieu Thirith and sister-in-law to Ieng Sary. Khieu Ponnary was born in 1920 in Battambang Province, and her sister, Khieu Thirith, was born about 12 years later. Their father, a Cambodian judge, abandoned the family during World War II, running off to Battambang with a Cambodian princess. As a member of a privileged family, she was educated at the Lycee Sisowath. Her younger sister, Khieu Thirith, and their future husbands, Ieng Sary and Saloth Sar also attended. Graduating from the Lycee in 1940, she became the first Cambodian woman to receive a baccalaureate degree. In 1949, she left Cambodia with her younger sister for Paris where she studied Khmer linguistics. In Paris, her sister married Ieng Sary in 1951 and took his name, becoming Ieng Thirith. Returning to Cambodia she married Saloth Sar on Bastille Day, 1956. Together the two sisters and their husbands later became known as 'Cambodia's Gang of Four', a reference to the radical group led by Jiang Qing the widow of Mao Tse-tung. Ponnary returned to Lycee Sisowath but now as a teacher, while her husband taught at Chamraon Vichea, a new private college.
Hok Lundy
Man
General Hok Lundy, also transliterated as Hok Lundi and Hoc Lundy, was the National Police Commissioner of Cambodia from 1994 to 2008; he had previously been the governor of Svay Rieng Province. He was linked to Hun Sen, the current Prime Minister, whom he met in Vietnam in 1979: during the 1997 military coup, he commanded troops loyal to Hun Sen; as well, his daughter, Hok Chindavy, is married to one of Hun Sen’s sons, Hun Manit.
Dy Saveth
Actor
Dy Saveth is a renowned Cambodian actress and first Miss Cambodia. She featured several films throughout the 1960s until the communist takeover in 1975, and later from 1993 to present. She married Huoy Keng, an actor, producer and film director, during the 1970s. Just as Van Vanak ran his own production company, Huoy Keng and Dy Saveth jointly ran Sovann Kiry. After the Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975, Dy Saveth and Huoy Keng escaped to France together and later moved to Hong Kong. There they separated while Keng continued his film business and became one of Hong Kong's first millionaires. She returned to Cambodia in 1993 and resumed acting. In 2011, she appears in documentary Golden slumbers by filmmaker Davy Chou. In 2012, she makes her stage debut in the play Cambodia, here I am by Jean-Baptiste Phou.
Eh Phoutong
Man
Eh Phoutong is a Khmer/Chinese Cambodian professional kickboxer and former reality TV host. Born in Mondol Seima district, Koh Kong province, Cambodia, Eh Phoutong currently lives in Phnom Penh. He has a father name Yem Lim and a mother named At Uth. He also has a brother and a sister. Eh Phoutong began learning Kun Khmer, traditional Khmer kickboxing at age twelve with Mr. Yuth Phouthong in the 1980s, who then held the position of Prey Veng provincial governor and now, Koh Kong Province governor. Eh Phoutong had his first Khmer traditional kickboxing contest at the age of 17. He initially began fighting at the 48 kg weight class and then moved to the 63 kg weight class. His current weight is around 82 kg. Growing up he did not have access to education because he was either working jobs to support his family or training in his passion of Khmer kickboxing. He has also trained with Chhit Sarim at the Ministry of Defense Boxing Club. Eh Phoutong now owns his own gym and boxing club, Eh Phouthorng Tonle Bassac Club. Among his boxers is his younger brother, Auth Phoutong. In recent years, Eh Phouthang has explored media opportunities outside the ring. He has starred in two Khmer-language action films and was the co-host of CTN's highly-rated reality show, Kun Khmer Champion. Finalist, Ai Kosal, is a boxer from 7NG, Eh Phouthang Boxing Club.
Chum Mey
Mechanic
Chum Mey is one of only twelve known survivors of the Khmer Rouge imprisonment in the S-21 Tuol Sleng camp, where more than 16,000 Cambodians were sent for execution. He survived two years of torture and fear in a Khmer Rouge death camp, sustained by thoughts of his pregnant wife and unborn child. His life was only spared because of his high level of competence in machine repairing for Pol Pot's soldiers. Marched at gunpoint into the provinces by his fleeing Khmer Rouge jailers following the Vietnamese invasion, he had a chance encounter with his wife and the young son who was born a few weeks after he was sent to the infamous Tuol Sleng prison in early 1977. For two days they travelled together to an isolated hamlet with a group of other prisoners. On the second evening, as the family rested beside a pagoda, the guards ordered them to walk into a rice field before suddenly opening fire with their AK-47 assault rifles. "First they shot my wife, who was marching in front with the other women," he said. "She screamed to me, 'Please run, they are killing me now'. I heard my son crying and then they fired again, killing him. When I sleep, I still see their faces, and every day I still think of them".
Keo Pich Pisey
Dancer
Keo Pich Pisey is a Cambodian actress, model, and former dancer. She is best known for her portrayal of San Chhay in the F4 Cambodian film series. She has also appeared in karaoke DVDs and TV commercials since 2003 and she is considered one of the top Cambodian movie stars. Some of her films include Tokchet Ovpuk, Ath Bey, Kong Kam Kong Keo, Ros Cheat Chivith, Domnok Cheam Chong Krouy, Samoth Tok Sap, and recently Pka Thkol Sor and Sromol Krom Pnek. She is an incarnated angel of kampuchea krom, in the true story of Pok Phak Rop, author of ‘'The stream of a true story through my karma’’.
Khieu Kanharith
Man
Khieu Kanharith is the Cambodian Minister of Information. Khieu, formerly a newspaper editor, was first elected to the National Assembly of Cambodia in 1981. He was jailed in 1990 for suspicion of dissident activities; in 1991, Hun Sen asked him to serve as an advisor, and in 1992, he was promoted to Minister. Khieu was born in Phnom Penh to Khieu Than, who was a customs official and his wife Lor Lienghorn. He is also an author and translator, and has produced an unauthorized Khmer language version of the James Clavell novel Shōgun, which he has had printed with his own money.
Meas Sophea
Military Person
H.E General Meas Sophea is a senior general in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces. He is currently the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the R.C.A.F and chief of the Royal Cambodian Army.
Aki Ra
Man
Aki Ra is a former Khmer Rouge conscripted child soldier who works as a deminer and museum curator in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Penn Nouth
Politician
Samdech Penn Nouth was a Cambodian politician. He served in the French colonial administration, then took active part in Cambodian politics, was several times a Prime Minister of Cambodia as part of the Sangkum regime of Prince Norodom Sihanouk. He was prime minister for the sixth time from 31 January 1968 to 14 August 1969. On 18 March 1970, when Norodom Sihanouk was deposed by Lon Nol, Penn Nouth joined the monarch in his exile and became prime minister in the GRUNK coalition. After the Khmer Rouge took Phnom Penh in 1975, he served as prime minister of the country for the last time, but did not have real power; he then emigrated.
Vichara Dany
Actor
Vichara Dany was a widely popular actress in Cambodia who most likely made her debut in 1967. She starred in a majority of films which include Thavory Meas Bong, Tep Sodachan, and Sovann Pancha during the nation's golden age of cinema. She is often paired on screen with fellow actor Kong Sam-Oeurn. Other notable actors she started with are Chea Yuthorn and Vann Vannak. In only a span of at least seven years she is credited to have starred in over one hundred films. Details of her life are relatively unknown and is believed to have perished shortly after the Khmer Rouge regime. Recently a popular Cambodian magazine has shed some light on her life during and after the Khmer Rouge regime. She is said to have been married to a Khmer Rouge cadre just as Ros Serey Sothear was. By the time the Vietnamese forces had invaded Cambodia in 1979, Vichara was able to escape her captors and headed back to Phnom Penh. Along the way she is said to have died of complications during childbirth.
Chan Sy
Politician
Chan Sy, also spelt Chan Si, was a Cambodian politician. He became Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Kampuchea from 1981 to 1984.
Sisowath Kossamak
Noble person
Sisowath Kossamak was a Queen consort of Cambodia. She was married to King Norodom Suramarit of Cambodia. Sisowath Kosamak was born Princess of Cambodia as the daughter of King Sisowath Monivong of Cambodia. She became Queen Mother after her husband's death. Her official title is Her Majesty Samdach Preah Mahaksatriyani Sisowath Kossamak Nearirâth Serey Vatthana.
Norodom Narindrapong
Noble person
Somdech Norodom Narindrapong was a Prince of Cambodia. He was born in Phnom Penh on 18 September 1954 to King Father Norodom Sihanouk and Queen Mother Norodom Monineath Sihanouk. The prince studied philosophy, criminology, and law at the Moscow State University, and spoke fluent French and Russian. Prince Narindrapong died in his Paris apartment from a heart attack on 7 October 2003 at the age of 49. He was married and had two daughters: ⁕Princess Norodom Simonarine ⁕Princess Norodom Moninouk He was the brother of King Norodom Sihamoni and 14 other surviving half-siblings.
Heng Pov
Man
Heng Pov was the Undersecretary of State and an assistant to the Minister of the Interior of Cambodia, as well as police commissioner of the city of Phnom Penh, and a personal advisor to Prime Minister Hun Sen. Heng Pov was born in Kandal province to a family of Chinese-Vietnamese descent. In 1981, Heng Pov married Tung Thi Van, the daughter of Tung Pov, Vietnamese government agent based in Phnom Penh. The following year, Heng Pov joined the police force. Heng Pov was shot in the leg while on police duty in 1992, and his left leg was amputated. In July 2006, while he was in Malaysia for medical treatment on his leg stump, Cambodian officials announced that he was wanted on a variety of charges, including corruption, possession of illegal weapons, involvement in several high-profile murders, and possession of counterfeit currency. Heng Pov responded by seeking refugee status in Malaysia, and by releasing a lengthy statement accusing several high-profile Cambodian officials, including National Police Commissioner Hok Lundy, of corruption and involvement in several high-profile murders. While Malaysian officials were considering Heng Pov's refugee claim, Cambodian officials tried and convicted him in absentia; Cambodian Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith said "if says he knows about crimes within the government, it means he is an accomplice to these crimes. So he has no right to seek political asylum."
Hong Lim
Politician
Hong Muy Lim, Australian politician, has been a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly since 1996, representing the seat of Clayton for the Australian Labor Party. Lim was born in Cambodia, and is of Chinese Cambodian origins. He was educated at schools in Phnom Penh before coming to Australia in 1970, and then at the University of Tasmania and Monash University, Melbourne, where he graduated in arts. He was Chairman of the Victorian Indo-Chinese Communities Council 1984–92 and President of the Cambodian Association of Victoria 1992–96. He was a commissioner of the Victorian Ethnic Affairs Commission 1985–92, and a member of the Monash University Council 1996–98. Lim was elected to the Legislative Assembly in 1996, and was an appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Victorian Communities, John Thwaites, in 2002.
Virak Dara
Actor
Virak Dara is a Cambodian actress primarily known for her roles in the 1960s and early-to-mid-1970s. In 1967 she starred as "Kong Rey" in Puthisean Neang Kong Rey, which is to date the biggest Cambodian movie ever made. Her most famous film is An Euil Srey An, released in 1971. Dara, who is of Cambodian and Chinese Hai Nam origin, quickly became a fan favorite.
Tea Lim Koun
Cinematographer
Tea Lim Koun is a film director, screenwriter, cinematographer and film editor.
Ampor Tevi
Woman
Ampor Tevi is a Cambodian actress active in 1990s. Within the span of her career she has starred in numerous films, from movies to musical skits. Her career started in 1988 with her paired actor Sam Vityea. After Sam Vityea died that year, Ampor Tevi was often paired with fellow actor, also famous at the time, Tep Rindaro.
Soun Veasna
Soccer Midfielder
Soun Veasna is a Cambodian football player.
Danh Monica
Dancer
Danh Monica is a Cambodian actresses of the 2000s along with Keo Pich Pisey, Veth Rattana, Suos Sotheara, Chan Leakenna, Keo Nisa, Duch Sophea, and Sarai Sakana. She is the only Cambodian actress today who started acting as a child actor and who is skilled in classical Cambodian ballet.
Sam El Nasa
Soccer Forward
Sam El Nasa is a footballer for Preah Khan Reach in Cambodian League. He plays as a Striker for club.
Sichan Siv
Man
Sichan Siv is the international bestselling author of Golden Bones, an American dream story, published by HarperCollins. In 2001 after unanimous confirmation by the Senate, he was appointed by President George W. Bush as an ambassador to the U.N. serving until 2006. In June 2005, he addressed the 60th anniversary of the U.N. in San Francisco, following a tradition established by Presidents Truman in 1945, Eisenhower 1955, Johnson 1965, and Clinton 1995. From 1989 to 1993, Ambassador Siv served at The White House as deputy assistant to President George H. W. Bush and at the State Department as deputy assistant secretary of State. In the private sector, he has held positions in social services, educational exchange, financial management, and investment banking. He provides global strategic advice and gives motivational speeches around the United States and the world, including the Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush Presidential Libraries, Columbia University, Harvard, U.S. Air Force Academy, American Library in Paris, and University of Texas. Ambassador Siv escaped Cambodia’s killing fields in 1976 and arrived in New England with his mother's scarf, an empty rice bag, and two dollars. He picked apples in Connecticut and drove a taxi in New York, before enrolling in Columbia University's Master of International Affairs Program with a full scholarship. In 1988, he volunteered in the presidential campaign of George H.W. Bush and was appointed to his White House position the following year. He later attended the U.S. Army War College.
Kouch Sokumpheak
Soccer Forward
Kouch Sokumpheak is a footballer for Phnom Penh Crown in the Cambodian League and the Cambodia national team. He plays as a striker.
Hem Bunting
Man
Hem Bunting is a Cambodian marathoner. Bunting is one of nine children from a family of farmers in Stung Treng Province. The British Broadcasting Corporation has described him as "so poor he lives in the crumbling athletics stadium where he trains". He won a silver medal in the marathon and a bronze at the 5,000 metre race at the 2007 Southeast Asian Games. He represented Cambodia in the marathon at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, finishing 73rd in a time of 2:33:32. Bunting had few facilities and little funding to prepare for the Olympics. He trained by running laps on a track simultaneously used by casual joggers, and could not afford to buy running shoes. The BBC's article on him moved one reader to send him new training shoes prior to the Beijing Olympics. He has made a significant effort in his second Marathon outing of 2012 after finishing in top 50 at the Paris Marathon on April 15 with a personal best of 2:23:29. The time also improved on his previous national record 2:25:20 set during 2009 Southeast Asian Games in Vientiane where he won a bronze medal. Not only that, his official intermediate time at half marathon shows 1:09:04, which is a new national record.
Reach Sambath
Spokesperson
Reach Sambath was a Cambodian journalist and a former spokesperson and "Chief of Public Affairs" of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, commonly known as the "Khmer Rouge Tribunal", set up to try the most senior Khmer Rouge leaders from 1975-1979. Reach was a respected journalist with a master’s degree from Columbia University and a career as a university lecturer at the Royal University of Phnom Penh and a reporter in Cambodia with Agence France-Presse since 1990s.
Vann Vannak
Actor
Vann Vannak was a popular actor in Cambodia during the late 1960s until 1975. Despite his talents, producers usually favored casting his rivals Kong Som Oeurn or Chea Yuthorn in their movies. Due to their lack of support, Vann Vannak starred in considerably fewer films when compared to his rivals. Nevertheless he was pivotal in movies such as Sovann Pancha, Neang Kakey, and Champa Meas all which had Vichara Dany as the female lead. To increase his presence in the industry he created his own production company known as Pisnoka in 1970 which made eight films casting himself as the male lead in all of them. Details of his life are relatively unknown and he is believed to have perished under the Khmer Rouge regime. Of all the films he's starred in only Sovann Pancha is known to have survived and remained intact.
Cheam Channy
Politician
Cheam Channy is a Cambodian politician and member of parliament for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party. He was elected as a representative for Battambang Province in the 1998 National Elections, then again for Kompong Cham province in 2003.
Chhim Sothy
Man
Chhim Sothy is an acclaimed Cambodian painter and sculptor noted for his ability in a diverse number of artistic techniques and mediums.
Cham Prasidh
Politician
Cham Prasidh is the Cambodian Minister of Industry, Mines and Energy. He belongs to the Cambodian People's Party and was elected to represent Siem Reap Province in the National Assembly of Cambodia in 2003. Cham was born Ung You Teckhor to an ethnic Chinese family who were engaged in Entrepot trade. His father, Ung You Y, served as the member of parliament for Stung Treng during Lon Nol's regime.
Sorn Davin
Olympic Taekwondo Athlete
Sorn Davin is a taekwondo practitioner set to represent Cambodia at the 2012 Summer Olympics. She was born in Phnom Penh. She had the honor of carrying the flag for her country during the Parade of Nations. She narrowly lost 3-2 to defending gold medal champion Maria Espinoza of Mexico in the opening round.
Lay Raksmey
Soccer
Lay Raksmey is a footballer for Svay Rieng in the Cambodian League. He has represented Cambodia at senior international level.
Thet Sambath
Cinematographer
Thet Sambath is a film producer, director and cinematographer.
Sak Sutsakhan
Man
General Sak Sutsakhan was a Cambodian politician and soldier who had a long career in the country's politics. He was the last Head of State of the Khmer Republic, the regime overthrown by the Khmer Rouge in 1975. Sak Sutsakhan formed a pro-US force known as the "Khmer Sâ".
Chan Rithy
Soccer Midfielder
Chan Rithy is a footballer for Boeung Ket Rubber Field in the Cambodian League. He plays as a Midfielder for club.
Soy Piseth
Soccer Defender
Say Piseth is Cambodian footballer who plays for home town club National Police Commissary in Cambodian League. He has represented Cambodia at senior international level.
Saukam Khoy
Man
Peter Khoy Saukam was Acting President of the Khmer Republic in Cambodia for 12 days in April 1975.