The Khmer language, the national language of Cambodia, is a member of the Mon-Khmer family of languages spoken over vast area of mainland South-East Asia.
Is Khmer and Thai the same?
Khmer comes from a different language family from Thai and Lao, but it borrowed heavily from Sanskrit for technical terms, and then Thai and Lao borrowed technical terms from Khmer, therefore those terms are in common between the three languages.
What is the difference between Khmer and Cambodian?
“Cambodia” is the English version of Kampuchea, the official name of the country. “Khmer” (pronounced khmey, at least here in Phnom Penh) is the name the people call themselves by – the country is Kampuchea, the people are Khmer. But no sensible person, Khmer or other, would object if you called them Cambodian.
How difficult is Khmer?
Khmer is a truly difficult language for Westerners to learn, harder than Mandarin to speak, and harder than anything other than Chinese or Japanese to read. There are several difficulties. First, many of the vowel sounds are unlike anything in a European language and are only subtly different from one another.
What is the hardest language to learn?
The Hardest Languages To Learn For English Speakers
- Mandarin Chinese. Interestingly, the hardest language to learn is also the most widely spoken native language in the world. …
- Arabic. …
- Polish. …
- Russian. …
- Turkish. …
- Danish.
What language is similar to Khmer?
More distant relatives to Khmer are the Munda languages (of India), Khasi languages (India), Palaungic languages, Khmuic languages, Pakanic languages, Vietic languages (including Vietnamese), Katuic languages, Nicobarese languages (Nicobar Islands), Aslian languages, and Monic languages (including Mon).
What is the religion of Cambodia?
The constitution states Buddhism is the state religion, and it is promoted by the government through holiday observances, religious training, Buddhist instruction in public schools, and financial support to Buddhist institutions.