Cambodia & Tradition: Ten things to know about the Khmer New Year
- Sotheavy Nou
- 5 days ago
- 5 min read
Cambodia's most popular festival is fast approaching. Mark your calendars for the Khmer New Year (NAK), which this year will take place from 14 to 16 April.
Khmer New Year is one of the biggest celebrations in Cambodia. Many families gather in the countryside to celebrate and honour their ancestors.
Ten things to remember when celebrating the Cambodian New Year
Celebrated all over the world
NAK, called ‘Choul Chnam Thmey’ in Khmer, is the traditional celebration of the solar New Year in Cambodia. This three-day celebration marks the end of the harvest season before the rainy season and begins on 13, 14 or 15 April, according to the ancient horoscope of ‘Maha Sangkran’. This New Year is also celebrated by other Buddhist countries such as India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Laos and Thailand.
The first day - ‘Maha Sangkran’
The first day of the Khmer New Year is called ‘Maha Sangkran’, which indicates a major movement of the position of the sun into a new zodiac sign. Traditionally, people go to temples to offer food to the monks in the morning and receive blessings. To attract good luck, the faithful wash their faces with holy water in the morning, their chests at midday and their feet in the evening before going to bed.
Traditional clothing
On the first day of the Khmer New Year, Cambodians wear new clothes to welcome the ‘angel’ of the new year, which arrives on that day. Traditionally, the ‘sampot’ or ‘sarong’ is a style of cloth wrapped around the lower body, popular with both men and women. The ‘Chang Pong’ is a cloth of any colour, worn over the shoulder by women.
The guardian angel of the new year
It is also the day when people celebrate the appearance of the new angel (‘Tevida’) of the new year. The choice of the new angel depends on the day and time of the first day of the new year, which changes according to the solar calendars. Preparations for the angel's favourite foods are usually laid out on a table and the faithful light incense when the angel rises at an auspicious moment.
There are different angels, each representing one of the seven days of the week. This year it is Thursday, so expect to see Keriny Tevy, adorned with a Mondea flower hidden behind his ear and an emerald around his neck. He loves beans and sesame and will arrive on an elephant carrying a harpoon and a rifle.
Second day: ‘Veareak Vanabat’
The second day of the Khmer New Year is an opportunity to engage in acts of charity, many do so by helping the poor and less fortunate, some may go with their families to monasteries to also pay tribute to their ancestors. On the evening of this day, many people will build a mountain of sand surrounded by four smaller mounds to represent Buddha and his disciples in order to honour their ancestors of yesteryear. The monks will bless them with happiness and peace.
Third day - ‘Leung Sakk’
On the third day of the New Year celebrations, the faithful will wash and clean the Buddha statues with scented water in a ritual called the ‘Pithi Srang Preah’ ceremony. The bathing of the Buddha images is a symbolic way of getting rid of the bad actions of the past year and is traditionally practised to bring luck to Cambodia in receiving the rain it needs for the year. It is also considered a good deed that will bring longevity, luck, happiness and prosperity in life. By washing their grandparents and parents, children can attract good luck for the rest of the year.
Songkran water fights
Although the blessing of water is rooted in cultural traditions, the ceremony has evolved into fun water fights for the younger generation. Siem Reap is known for organising Songkran celebrations, where everyone has fun with water fights and loud music.
These offerings of water and talcum powder can turn into fun street battles with water pistols, water balloons and buckets of water. Many participants cover themselves with white powder (talcum powder or flour) for fun and as a symbol of cleanliness.
Special foods
The Khmer New Year is also an opportunity to prepare unique dishes such as nems, ya-hon, Kralan (steamed rice cake mixed with beans, grated coconut and coconut milk, which is stuffed into a piece of bamboo and roasted), Lort Cha (noodles), Num Pang (baguette sandwiches) and Khmer Fish Amok (steamed curry).
One of the most popular dishes, Nom Ansom, is usually served as a sweet dessert made with sticky rice and banana, but it can also be served savoury with pork and a potato-like starch filling.
Evening dancing
Expect to see everyone celebrating with traditional and modern dances, often in a circle around a table or with a vase of flowers in the centre. As the sun sets and the day cools into night, the locals revel in the celebration of the new year dancing.
Traditional folk games
In the villages, people take part in traditional Khmer games, playing games such as Bas Angkunh ‘seed throwing’, Chaol Chhoung ‘scarf throwing’, Leak Kanséng ‘scarf hiding’ and dancing to traditional Khmer songs.
Leak Kanseng: this game is played by a group of young people sitting in a circle. A person holding a krama, which is twisted into a circle, walks around the circle singing. The person walking tries discreetly to place the cloth behind one of the children. Once chosen, the marked person must pick up the krama and tag their neighbour or run to find a place to sit. The song imitates a hen protecting her chicks from a crow. The hen must protect the chicks, while another person is the crow. While the two teams sing, the crow tries to catch as many chicks as possible by hiding behind the hen.
Donderm Sleok Cher: the players are divided into two groups and stand at a good distance from each other. A referee will call out the number of a member of each team. The two members will try to be the first to catch the tree branch in the middle.
Teanh Proat: a tug-of-war game in which teams of boys and girls compete by pulling on the rope.
Chol Chhoung: The Chhoung game is played by young Cambodians divided into two groups - one group of men and another of women. There are 10 or 20 people standing facing each other, about 8 or 10 metres apart. They take a Krama which is tied into a ball with knots, leaving a small tail.
This is called the Chhoung.
Each group takes turns to throw the Chhoung while singing and dancing, and the other group has to catch it and throw it back while also singing and dancing. If a member misses the Chhoung, they have to perform some kind of comedy act.
Comments