Culture of Cambodia Throughout Cambodia's long history, religion
has been a major source of cultural inspiration. Over nearly two
millennia, Cambodians have developed a unique Khmer belief from
the syncreticism of indigenous animistic beliefs and the Indian
religions of Buddhism and Hinduism. Indian culture and
civilization, including its languages and arts reached mainland
Southeast Asia around the 1st century AD. It is generally
believed that seafaring merchants brought Indian customs and
culture to ports along the Gulf of Thailand and the Pacific en
route to trade with China. The Kingdom of Funan was most
probably the first Khmer state to benefit from this influx of
Indian ideas. The golden age of Cambodia was between the 9th and
14th century, during the Angkor period, during which it was a
powerful and prosperous empire that flourished and dominated
almost all of inland Southeast Asia. However, Angkor would
eventually collapse after much in-fighting between royalty and
constant warring with its increasing