Soma ( km, សោមា, ) was the ruler of the Kingdom of Funan and widely claimed as the first monarch of Cambodia (reigned c. 1st century). She was also the first female leader 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 ...

. She was the consort of Kaundinya I (also known as "Huntien" and "Preah Thong"). She is known as Soma (Indian), Liǔyè (Chinese), Liễu Diệp (Vietnamese) and Neang Neak (Khmer). Queen Soma and her husband, Kaundinya I, are known in Khmer legend as " Preah Thong (Kaundinya) and Neang Neak (Soma)". According to reports by two Chinese envoys, Kang Tai and Zhu Ying, the state of Funan was established by an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests ( purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers ( ...

merchant from ancient

Kalinga Kalinga may refer to: Geography, linguistics and/or ethnology * Kalinga (historical region), a historical region of India ** Kalinga (Mahabharata), an apocryphal kingdom mentioned in classical Indian literature ** Kalinga script, an ancient writin ...

named Kaundinya. As per the legends, an Indian merchant ship was attacked by the pirates led by Soma, daughter of the chieftain of the local

Nāga The Nagas (IAST: ''nāga''; Devanāgarī: नाग) are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...

clan. The merchants led by Kaundinya fought back and fended off the attackers but the ship had been damaged and was beached for repairs. The Indians were wary of a second attack but Princess Soma was impressed by Kaundinya's bravery and proposed marriage which was accepted. The union led to the foundation of the House that became the royal dynasty of Funan which would rule the region for many generations and the royal legitimacy was also acquired through the female line in the kingdom. This also explains the reason why the serpent (

) became an important part of Khmer iconography as is seen thousand years later when this historic mystical union remained an important part of the court ceremonies at Angkor during the era of the Khmer Empire. File:Statue of Preah Thong and Neang Neak.png, Queen Soma as depicted in a statue of

Preah Thong and Neang Neak Preah Thong Neang Neak statue symbolises the birth of Khmer land, culture, traditions and civilisation of Cambodia. The statue is 21 metres tall on a pedestal 6.34 metres high (27.34 metres in total) is the largest copper statue in Cambodia and It ...

Sihanoukville province Preah Sihanouk ( km, ព្រះសីហនុ, UNGEGN: , ALA-LC: ), also Sihanoukville, is a province (''khaet'') in southwest Cambodia on the Gulf of Thailand. The provincial capital, also called Sihanoukville, is a deep water port city ...

References

1st-century Cambodian monarchs 1st-century Hindus Cambodian Hindus 1st-century women rulers Ancient queens regnant Funan {{Cambodia-stub