The Kirirom National Park ( km, ឧទ្យានជាតិគិរីរម្យ), officially the Preah Suramarit-Kossamak Kirirom National Park ( km, ឧទ្យានជាតិព្រះសុរាម្រិត-កុសមៈ គិរីរម្យ), is a
national park
A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...
in
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 t ...
. It is located mostly in
Phnom Sruoch District,
Kampong Speu Province, while a smaller section is in neighboring
Koh Kong Province.
Legend
The meaning of ''"Kirirom"'' is "Happy Mountain". This name was given to the area by King
Monivong
Sisowath Monivong ( km, ស៊ីសុវត្ថិ មុនីវង្ស, ;Headly, Robert K.; Chhor, Kylin; Lim, Lam Kheng; Kheang, Lim Hak; Chun, Chen. 1977. ''Cambodian-English Dictionary''. Bureau of Special Research in Modern Langua ...
in the 1930s. The ancient name of the place was Phnom Vorvong Sorvong for the main two hills there were connected with the Cambodian popular legend about two heroic princely brothers,
Vorvong and Sorvong.
Description
The park extends over the eastern part of the
Cardamom Mountains
The Cardamom Mountains ( km, ជួរភ្នំក្រវាញ, ; th, ทิวเขาบรรทัด, ), or the Krâvanh Mountains, is a mountain range in the south west of Cambodia and Eastern Thailand. The majority of the range ...
.
It is located 112 km from
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh (; km, ភ្នំពេញ, ) is the capital and most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since the French protectorate of Cambodia and has grown to become the nation's primate city and its economic, indus ...
of
National Highway 4
Route 4, or Highway 4, may refer to several highways in the following countries:
International
* AH4, Asian Highway 4
* European route E04
* European route E004
* Cairo – Cape Town Highway
Albania
* SH-4 road in Albania from Durres to Kakav ...
on the road to
Sihanoukville.
Lying at 675m (2,215 ft) above sea level, Kirirom was Cambodia's first officially designated national park.
It contains many footpaths through the forests with a number of small
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
s and
waterfalls
A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf.
Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...
and was once used as a refuge by 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. ...
.
References
National parks of Cambodia
Protected areas established in 1993
Cardamom Mountains
Geography of Kampong Speu province
Geography of Koh Kong province
Tourist attractions in Kampong Speu province
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