During the France colonization, it was unfortunate that the Kingdom of Cambodia failed to have the independence and freedom to rule their country. It was even more serious that the French had grabbed Kampuchea Krom from our beloved native country to Vietnam in 1949. In that time, there were some archaeological Sites, especially at the famous international seaport in 2000 years ago called Okeo Seaport.



In the same way, under the mechanisms of Vietnamization, Thailandization, and Laosization, some Khmer names of locations throughout Kampuchea Krom’s delta gradually changed from Cambodian language to Vietnamese language. And they were written with reference to the newcomers’ pronunciation, which is nonsense from the original race. This case has led Khmer word “Okeo” to become Uk Ev used formally according to the other prints. It is fifty years ago that the word using has still made a problem with wrong spelling up to now. With this opportunity, we request to adjust those words since the unknown above the original name of the former seaport of Nokor Phnom causes misunderstanding of the Khmer Civilization’s root in this region. Most recently, it is misunderstood that the nation who builds the Kingdom of Funan or Nokor Phnom is not Khmer race while Khmer are regarded as the Malay-Polynesian origin. Therefore, all the artistic objects that were found in Nokor Phnom are all about the pre-Khmer Art. Through this philosophy, it is just the art of other nations, but not the ownership of Khmer ancestors. More importantly, it should be noticed that Khmer people are in Austro-Asiatic or Mon-Khmer race that has Hemoglobin E and Mon-Khmer language. This is what different from Malay-Polynesian in the Java Island and Philippines, but it does not mean that Filipinos are the first dwellers of Indochina peninsula where is the native Malay-Polynesian country. The deltas in Kampuchea Krom where there is abundance of natural resources have the canal irrigation systems such as rivers, creeks, canals, streams, and tributaries flowing into the natural-resource rich ocean: mines, gems, precious stones, fish, and all plants, which lead to the economic development in the Nokor Phnom period. Consequently, the naming of all regions was implemented with reference to the real geography or the deeply religious belief.






Where there are Cambodian people, there are Khmer names except for some regions or residences whose names are Sanskrit or Pali. We would like to learn more about the importance of those regions’ name related to the history only if we broadly knew the original cultural context. The name of Okeo is the result of the two word combination, O and Keo. Therefore, Okeo is the stream which has the valuable Keo Kong (Keo Kong is a Khmer word, which its meaning is a precious objects). More significantly, we will clearly see the word “Okeo”, which is still popular from the ancient period to the present; moreover, if we deeply study, it is definite that Kampuchea Krom Community is still keeping this word in its original meaning even though this region has become one part of Vietnam presently .







The fundamental factors indentifying the history of Khmer Nation in Okeo are language and the ancient objects, social achievement, which Khmer ancestors have preserved in the pre-historic and history Site. What does the word “Oc Eo” mean in Vietnamese language? According to our study, the word “Oc Eo” is nonsense in Vietnamese language as well as in Khmer language presently. Naturally, the word “O-Ceo or O-Keo” is derived from the Khmer word which the French have read and written in the wrong spelling through Vietnamese’s pronunciation, Oc-Eo. Commonly,

These reasons led us to know that all nations have frequently named some regions like villages, districts, rivers, streams, and tributaries where they made or where the events occurred by using their own language which had clearly-known meaning in those regions. The foundation of Khmer culture in Kampuchea Krom, as well as the other regions occurred in the pre-Induisation Period, which already had its identity. And these criteria was regarded as Khmer identity, which was kept existence by the Khmer Community in the





mountainous regions and the plains. The past definitely refers to all socio-cultural achievements which there are tangible and intangible culture such as language and belief. Okeo means the stream or canal where there are a plenty of precious gold, silver, and jewelries which are what people want and need in a society. With regard to Mr. Zoc Sedes, Okeo is a name of the big wonderful international seaport in the Kingdom of Nokor Phnom where Khmer people have been doing business with foreigners. And in the earlier period, the trade activities were performed actively in those regions so-called the most valuable gold, silver, diamond, or jewelries in the world. Because of the sacrarium with the wide extent and the highest progress in the ancient period, this ancient seaport situated near Phnom Bathei Piseth was given the high value and paid homage. Before the scientific excavation in 1942, Mr. Malerior is never supposed that this location has been the former seaport which has marked the prosperous cultural proof. In fact, the location of seaport, which was named as Khmer language, had constructed not far from the gulf; it was a place where stored the goods for import and export besides the seaport U Tong or U Thong in present-day Thailand’s Suphan Buri province. On top of this, there were various races in those regions daily coming to do business with Khmer through using currency. Therefore, in the ancient period it could be said that Okeo was the crowed area where the international business was done, representing the prosperity and progress in Kampuchea Krom’s delta. No one has reached this region to pay homage to the power of God on Phnom Bathei, where there are several sites of ruined ancient temples with some pieces of inscriptions. Based on Kampuchea Krom Khmer densely living in Moat Chrouk or Ang Yang, Okeo was Preah Thong and Neang Neak’s native land. Thus, the word “Okeo” which Khmer people have ever called and have been calling is really closely related to the ancient sites; through the Khmer history they are apparently similar to the gem-made site or the place




where the jewelers use the artificial beads to make all precious jewelries for sale like some sites in Thailand presently. More importantly, through our point of view, we believe that Okeo means the stream having the precious jewelries, and it means Rusisseau aux gemmes in French language; what we have just recognized is the originate meaning of this word. Additionally, in the ancient time, Khmer named this word with reference to the preference and the passion of precious objects such as diamond, gold, and silver through the definitely popular tradition. It meant that we absolutely agreed with what the French Specialist had raised the meaning of the word “Okeo” which he had properly translated from Khmer. To have kept Khmer’s general memory lasting forever, we concluded that the word “Okeo” was a symbol of Khmer’s gold period in the past, with regard to the French specialist’s study. And through this study, it was also certified that Khmer territories extended to the major part of land in Southeast Asia.


Lastly, the historians, the cultural researchers, and Khmer civilization researchers can not evaluate or conclude Okeo appropriately on the condition that they don’t know clearly about its real meaning because Khmer and foreign authors frequently had skipped over the meaning of this word. In the same way, we think that we should not use the word “Uc Eo” any longer because it is the wrong word and we should use the word “Okeo” instead, related to Khmer culture and Khmer civilization not under other pressures obstructing the historic study of the Kingdom of Cambodia in the ancient period, except the history in Kampuchea Krom’s delta (M. Tranet).

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