Tboung Khmum
( km, ត្បូងឃ្មុំ ; meaning "Amber"), also spelled as Tbong Khmum, is a
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...
of
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 ...
located on the central lowlands of the
Mekong River
The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth longest river and the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annual ...
. It borders the provinces of
Kampong Cham to the west,
Kratié to the north,
Prey Veng to the south and shares an international border with
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 ...
to the east. Its capital and largest city is
Suong. The province's name consists of two words in Khmer, ''tboung'' (gem, precious jewel) and ''khmum'' (bee), which together mean "
amber
Amber is fossilized tree resin that has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Much valued from antiquity to the present as a gemstone, amber is made into a variety of decorative objects."Amber" (2004). In Ma ...
".
Tboung Khmum Province was formed when
Kampong Cham Province was split in two by a royal decree signed on 31 December 2013 by King
Norodom Sihamoni
Norodom Sihamoni ( km, នរោត្តម សីហមុនី, ; born 14 May 1953) is King of Cambodia. He became King on 14 October 2004, a week after the abdication of his father, Norodom Sihanouk. He is the eldest son of Norodom Sihano ...
on the recommendation of Prime Minister
Hun Sen
Hun Sen (; km, ហ៊ុន សែន, ; born 5 August 1952) is a Cambodian politician and former military commander who has served as the prime minister of Cambodia since 1985. He is the longest-serving head of government of Cambodia, and o ...
. The request by Hun Sen's government to split the province, which was ostensibly for the purpose of improving administrative efficiency in the large province, was made after his ruling
Cambodian People's Party
The Cambodian People's Party (CPP), UNGEGN: , ALA-LC: ; is a Cambodian political party which has ruled Cambodia since 1979.
Founded in 1951, it was originally known as the Kampuchean People's Revolutionary Party (KPRP)., UNGEGN: , ALA-LC: ; ...
(CPP) lost the province to the opposition in the July 2013 elections.
The CPP won only eight of the available 18
National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...
seats in Hun Sen's home province. The 10 districts that remain in Kampong Cham overwhelmingly voted for the opposition
Cambodia National Rescue Party
The Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP; km, គណបក្សសង្គ្រោះជាតិ ) was a major political party in Cambodia. It was founded in 2012 as a merger between the Sam Rainsy Party and Human Rights Party (Cambodia), Hum ...
, led by
Sam Rainsy
Sam Rainsy ( km, សម រង្ស៊ី, UNGEGN: , ALA-LC: ; ; born 10 March 1949) is a Cambodian activist, economist and politician who most recently served as the Leader of the Opposition. He is now the interim leader of the Cambodia Nation ...
, while five of the six districts cut out from Kampong Cham to form the Tboung Khmum Province were won solidly by the CPP.
The province has the highest percentage of
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
population in the country, at 11.8%.
[
]
Administration
The province is subdivided into 6 districts and 1 municipality, further divided into 64 communes.[
]
See also
* Bun Rany
Bun Rany ( km, ប៊ុន រ៉ានី; born, 15 December 1954) is the wife of long-time Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, First Lady of Cambodia. She has served as the vice president of the National Association of the Cambodian Red Cross ...
, wife of Hun Sen (born in Krouch Chhmar District now located in Tboung Khmum province)
* Champa
Champa (Cham: ꨌꩌꨛꨩ; km, ចាម្ប៉ា; vi, Chiêm Thành or ) were a collection of independent Cham polities that extended across the coast of what is contemporary central and southern Vietnam from approximately the 2nd cen ...
* Kampong Cham province
References
External links
{{Authority control
States and territories established in 2013
Provinces of Cambodia