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Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand ...
is the smallest of the three Francophone communities in Southeast Asia, the others being found in
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...
and
Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...
. Out of all Asian Francophone nations, Cambodia is where French has declined the most. In 2014, French was spoken by people as a foreign language, which is 3% of the country's population and by only 873 people as a mother tongue according to the country's 2008 census.


History

The French language began its presence in Cambodia in the late 19th century after French explorers and merchants made their way from Vietnam into Cambodia. In 1863, Cambodia became a
protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its inter ...
of France and was incorporated into
French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China),; vi, Đông Dương thuộc Pháp, , lit. 'East Ocean under French Control; km, ឥណ្ឌូចិនបារាំង, ; th, อินโดจีนฝรั่งเศส, ...
in 1887. The French did not exert much influence on Cambodia as they did in Vietnam and Khmer still remained widely taught and spoken in Cambodia as French was only limited to politicians. It was not until the 1890s that French began to be introduced in Cambodian education, but that was only limited to elite classes and it was only until the 1910s that the masses began learning French nationwide. With the growth of revolutionary movements in Vietnam, the French did not promote education in Cambodia and literacy rates remained low. The French language's growth in Cambodia only slightly increased until the Japanese invasion of Cambodia in World War II. Under the Japanese, Khmer was also made a government language alongside French and the two were taught alongside in schools. After the war, French again became the sole official language. When Cambodia became independent in 1953, the French language continued to be widely taught and used in the government. Despite its strong presence in the government and education, French declined earlier and heavier in Cambodia than in Vietnam and Laos. Lower rates of influence and education in Cambodia meant that by the 1960s, French began to decline in Cambodia in contrast to being a government language in
South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...
and Laos. In the mid-1970s, the
Khmer Rouge The Khmer Rouge (; ; km, ខ្មែរក្រហម, ; ) is the name that was popularly given to members of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK) and by extension to the regime through which the CPK ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979. ...
came into power in Cambodia and began killing thousands of educated Cambodians, most of whom were French-educated. By the end of their reign in 1979, French had almost been completely wiped out in Cambodia. A Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia that established the
People's Republic of Kampuchea The People's Republic of Kampuchea (PRK), UNGEGN: , ALA-LC: ; vi, Cộng hòa Nhân dân Campuchia was a partially recognised state in Southeast Asia supported by Vietnam which existed from 1979 to 1989. It was founded in Cambodia by the Kam ...
reintroduced French into the nation, though ironically, French began its decline in Vietnam around this time. French continued to gain ground in Cambodia until 1993, when the present government of Cambodia took power and Khmer became the sole language of government and primary language of education. Beginning in the late 1990s, the English language became more widely taught in Cambodia and French continued its decline as English was seen as a more useful international language. Revival of the French language has gained ground much later in Cambodia than in Vietnam and Laos. In 1997, a French-language center opened in
Phnom Penh Phnom Penh (; km, ភ្នំពេញ, ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Cambodia, most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since the French protectorate of Cambodia and has grown to become ...
and French-language education began to revive in Cambodia and dozens of Cambodian students study abroad each year in France. French is also once again, a diplomatic language of Cambodia. Communities of returned refugees from France and Quebec as well as students who have studied in Francophone nations have also added to the French-speaking population of Cambodia.


Dialect characteristics

Cambodian French vocabulary has been influenced by Cambodian,
Cantonese Chinese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding ar ...
, and Teochew Chinese. Cambodian French is based on standard Parisian French but contains more differences from standard French than the dialects of Vietnam and Laos.


Media

French-language media is present in Cambodia, though less so than in Vietnam and Laos. The nation boasts a French-language newspaper, ''Cambodge Nouveau'' (and had another, '' Cambodge Soir'', until 2010), as well as French-language television channels.


Education

The following higher education institutions are members of the
Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie The ''Agence universitaire de la Francophonie'' (AUF; en, Association of Francophone Universities) is a global network of French-speaking higher-education and research institutions. Founded in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in 1961, as the ''Ass ...
: * Institut de Technologie du Cambodge * National Institute of Education *
Royal University of Agriculture The Royal University of Agriculture (RUA) is a leading public agricultural university in Cambodia. It is located in Dangkao Section, southwest Phnom Penh. The university is operated by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Hist ...
* Royal University of Fine Arts *
Royal University of Law and Economics The Royal University of Law and Economics (RULE) is one of the oldest higher educational institutions in Cambodia. RULE was established in 1949 as the National Institute of Law, Politics and Economics. In 2003, the institution was officially deem ...
*
Royal University of Phnom Penh The Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP; km, សាកលវិទ្យាល័យភូមិន្ទភ្នំពេញ; french: Université royale de Phnom Penh) is a national research university of Cambodia, located in the Phnom Pe ...


See also

*
French language in Vietnam French was the official language of Vietnam under French colonial rule during the 19th and early 20th centuries. After 1954, French fell into disuse in North Vietnam, and maintained a high status in South Vietnam. Since the Fall of Saigon in 1975, ...
*
French language in Laos French is spoken by a significant minority in Laos. Laos has the second largest Francophone community in Southeast Asia after Vietnam, with Cambodia coming in third. French is used as a diplomatic and commercial language and is also studied by ove ...
*
Francophonie Francophonie is the quality of speaking French. The term designates the ensemble of people, organisations and governments that share the use of French on a daily basis and as administrative language, teaching language or chosen language. The ...


References

{{Gallo-Romance languages and dialects
Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand ...
Languages of Cambodia French dialects Languages attested from the 19th century