"Nokor Reach" (; – ) is the

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European ...

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

. It is based on a Cambodian folk tune and was written by

Chuon Nath Chuon Nath (; 11 March 1883 – 25 September 1969) was a Cambodian monk and the late ''Gana Mahanikaya'' Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia. Amongst his achievements is his effort in conservation of the Khmer language in the form of the Khmer dictio ...

History

"Nokor Reach" originated from a folk poetry usually performed with chapei in ancient era for storytelling and to disclose any recent events. The music of "Nokor Reach" was composed between 1938 and 1939 by Prince

Norodom Suramarit Norodom Suramarit (, ; 6 March 1896 – 3 April 1960) was King of Cambodia from 3 March 1955 until his death in 1960. He was the father of King Norodom Sihanouk and the grandfather of Cambodia's current king, Norodom Sihamoni. Suramarit w ...

during the reign of King

Sisowath Monivong Sisowath Monivong (, ;Headly, Robert K.; Chhor, Kylin; Lim, Lam Kheng; Kheang, Lim Hak; Chun, Chen. 1977. ''Cambodian-English Dictionary''. Bureau of Special Research in Modern Languages. The Catholic University of America Press. Washington, D ...

with help of J. Jekyll and François Perruchot, the Royal Palace's musical instructors. The lyrics were not finished until 20 July 1941 by Choun Nath, a few months after King

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 ...

's coronation. In the same year, it was adopted then reconfirmed in 1947 as a national anthem for the country. In 1970, the monarchy was abolished by the

Khmer Republic The Khmer Republic (, ; ) was a Cambodian state under the United States-backed military dictatorship of Marshal Lon Nol from 1970 to 1975. Its establishment was formally declared on 9 October 1970, following the 18 March 1970 coup d'état w ...

, thereby replacing the state's national anthem as well. After the communists' victory in 1975, former royalist symbols, including "Nokor Reach", were reinstated for a short while. The

Khmer Rouge The Khmer Rouge is the name that was popularly given to members of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK), and by extension to Democratic Kampuchea, which ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979. The name was coined in the 1960s by Norodom Sihano ...

then replaced it with "

Dap Prampi Mesa Chokchey "Dap Prampi Mesa Moha Chokchey" (, UNGEGN: ''Dap Prampi Mesa Moha Chouk Chey'') was the national anthem of Democratic Kampuchea from at least January 1976. Although the anthem may have been in use in the "liberated zone" much earlier, it was pro ...

" ("Glorious Seventeenth of April") in January 1976. After the royalist party

FUNCINPEC The National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful and Cooperative Cambodia, commonly referred to as FUNCINPEC, is a royalist political party in Cambodia. Founded in 1981 by Norodom Sihanouk, it began as a resistance movement again ...

defeated the former communists (

Cambodian People's Party The Cambodian People's Party (CPP; , UNGEGN: ) is a Cambodian political party which has ruled the country since 1979. Founded in 1951, it was originally known as the Kampuchean People's Revolutionary Party (KPRP). During the Cold War it allied ...

) in the 1993 elections, the royalist state anthem was restored.

Lyrics

"Nokor Reach" is a poem consisting of three verses and each verse consists of five lines. The first verse is considered to be official and is usually performed at most official settings.

Until the end of the French protectorate, a fourth verse praising the friendship between the Khmer and the French people was sung:

Notes

References

External links

Cambodia: "Nokor Reach" - Audio of the national anthem of Cambodia, with information and lyrics

Nokor Reach Instrumental VDO clip
on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

Nokor Reach with lyrics VDO clip
on

Cambodian National Anthem
- The page "Cambodian View" includes a page about the anthem, which includes a vocal version of the anthem. {{Authority control Cambodian songs National symbols of Cambodia National anthems Asian anthems Compositions in F major Compositions in G major

History

Lyrics

See also

Notes

References

External links