Norodom Buppha Devi ( ; 8 January 1943 – 18 November 2019) was a Cambodian

princess Princess is a title used by a female member of a regnant monarch's family or by a female ruler of a principality. The male equivalent is a prince (from Latin '' princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for ...

, dancer, director of the

Royal Ballet of Cambodia The Royal Ballet of Cambodia (, ''Robam Preah Reach Troap'', ) is a classical Khmer dance known for its intricate hand movements and elaborate costumes. Historically linked to the Khmer court, it has been performed at various royal ceremonie ...

, senator, and Minister of Culture and Fine Arts. She was the daughter of

Norodom Sihanouk Norodom Sihanouk (; 31 October 192215 October 2012) was a member of the House of Norodom, Cambodian royal house who led the country as Monarchy of Cambodia, King, List of heads of state of Cambodia, Chief of State and Prime Minister of Cambodi ...

and the late Neak Moneang

Phat Kanhol Phat Kanhol (; 1920 – 1 February 1970) was the first wife of Norodom Sihanouk, former King of Cambodia. She was the mother of Princess Norodom Buppha Devi (1943–2019) and Prince Norodom Ranariddh Norodom Ranariddh (; 2 January 1944 – ...

, the elder sister of Prince

Norodom Ranariddh Norodom Ranariddh (; 2 January 1944 – 28 November 2021, Romanization of Khmer#UNGEGN, UNGEGN: , Romanization of Khmer#ALA-LC Romanization Tables, ALA-LC: ) was a Cambodian politician and law academic. He was the second son of King Norodom S ...

, and a half-sibling of the current King of Cambodia,

Norodom Sihamoni Norodom Sihamoni (, ; 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 King Sihanouk and former Queen consort Norodom Monineath and ...

. Her official title was Her Royal Highness Samdech Reach Botrei Preah Ream Norodom Buppha Devi ().

Name

Buppha Devi derives from

Pali Pāli (, IAST: pāl̤i) is a Classical languages of India, classical Middle Indo-Aryan languages, Middle Indo-Aryan language of the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pali Canon, Pāli Can ...

words ''puppha'' (បុប្ផា), meaning flower, and ''

devi ''Devī'' (; ) is the Sanskrit word for 'goddess'; the masculine form is Deva (Hinduism), ''deva''. ''Devi'' and ''deva'' mean 'heavenly, divine, anything of excellence', and are also gender-specific terms for a deity in Hinduism. The concept ...

'' (ទេវី), meaning goddess. The name is also romanised as "Bopha Devi" or "Bophadevi".

Life and career

Buppha Devi finished her high school education at Lycée Preah Norodom in Phnom Penh. As a young princess, her grandmother, Queen

Sisowath Kossamak Sisowath Kossamak (, ; 9 April 1904 – 27 April 1975) was Queen of Cambodia from 1955 to 1960 as the wife of King Norodom Suramarit and reigning Queen of Cambodia from 1960 until the abolition of the monarchy in 1970. After her husband's dea ...

, chose her to become a dancer early in her life. At the age of 15, she became the premier dancer of the

. At the age of 18, she was granted the title of ''

prima ballerina A ballet dancer is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet. They rely on years of extensive training and proper technique to become a part of a professional ballet company. Ballet dancers ...

''.Milton Osborne, ''Sihanouk, Prince of Light, Prince of Darkness.'' Silkworm 1994 She then toured the world as the principal dancer of the Royal Ballet with Queen Kossamak, performing in public. In the past the ballet had been performed only before royalty to commemorate their dynastic ancestors and to honour the gods. For her dancing ability, her father Norodom Sihanouk cast her in his first feature-length film ''

Apsara Apsaras (, , Khmer language, Khmer: អប្សរា are a class of celestial beings in Hinduism, Hindu and Culture of Buddhism, Buddhist culture. They were originally a type of female spirit of the clouds and waters, but, later play ...

'' in 1966. Buppha Devi served as Deputy Minister of Culture and Fine Arts from 1991–1993, advisor to the Royal Government in charge of Culture and Fine Arts from 1993–1998, Vice President of the

Cambodian Red Cross The Cambodian Red Cross (CRC; , UNGEGN: , ALA-LC: ) is the largest humanitarian organization in Cambodia. Established on 18 February 1955, it is officially recognized by the Royal Government as the primary auxiliary to the public authorities i ...

from 1993–1997, President of the Cambodian-Chinese Association in the year 2000 and the Minister of Culture and Fine Arts from 1998–2004.

Personal life

Buppha Devi married her first husband in 1959 at the age of fifteen. Her four total marriages produced five children: 1) Norodom Norinractevong 2) Sisowath Monichivann * Princess Sisowath Moni Kossoma (born 1960) * Princess Sisowath Kalyan Tevi (born 1961) 3) Bruno Jacques Forsinetti * Keo Chansita Forsinetti (born 1965). She is now known as Norodom Chansita 4) Sisowath Chivanmonirak * Prince Sisowath Chivannariddh (born 1968) * Prince Sisowath Veakchiravuddh (born 1973)

References

External links

Biography of the Princess at Norodom Sihanouk's website
* This 1962 performance at the Royal Palace was filmed by the United States Information Service (USIS) with the permission of Queen Kossamak. {{DEFAULTSORT:Norodom, Buppha Devi Cambodian princesses 1943 births 2019 deaths Cambodian dancers Cambodian Theravada Buddhists Children of prime ministers of Cambodia House of Norodom People from Phnom Penh Prima ballerinas Daughters of kings

Name

Life and career

Personal life

See also

References

External links