The Pearic people of Cambodia are an ethnic minority living in western Cambodia/southeastern Thailand. They belong to the Pearic language family, which include different tribes by different names: Samré, Samray, Chong-Samré, Chong, Chung, Suoy, and Sa'och (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearic_peoples). What most people don't know, is that these tribes have played a prominent role in Cambodian history.
Pearic people according to Zhou Daguan, savages and slaves:
The Chinese government official Zou Daguan wrote a detailed report concerning the Angkorean kingdom in the late 13th century, which is published as a book, titled; A Record of Cambodia. In this book there are many references to the Pearic people. In the section about slaves, it is reported that the slaves are savages from the mountains (Cardamom mountains). Some households own up to 100 slaves. In the section about savages, it is reported that there are two types of savages, one that knows how to deal with people and one that moves from place to place in the mountains, taking their family with them and and carrying a clay pot on their head as they walk. On land that is closer by, there are some who grow cardamom and kapok and weave cloth for a living. The people were labeled as being known as the 'people with tails'. A derogatory term still used nowadays for Pearic people is 'Sa'och', while the Sa'och refer to themselves as 'Chung'.
Pearic people according to the Royal Chronicle of Ayutthaya (Leuang Prasoet), warriors and kings:
Michael Vickery, one of the leading historians on Cambodian history, has written a close examination of the available sources about Cambodian history in the 15th and 16th century, titled: Cambodia and Its Neighbours in the 15th century (http://www.ari.nus.edu.sg/wps/wps04_027.pdf). This paper contains many references to sources that imply that the Pearic people were an important group. The Leuang Prasoet is the most important one.
It starts with the Cambodian king Yat, who apparently was a Khmer king, descended from an Ayutthayan king that ruled Angkor until 1431. when he was exiled to Caturmukh (ancient name of Phnom Penh). Yat raised armies among the 'barrg' (Pearic people). Apparently, he married into this tribe and was succeeded by his Pearic son, and respectively, his Pearic grandson.
The Pearic people are mentioned again when it is said that Yat "organized the Khmer, Chong, and Pear" (Pearic groups) as military forces in 1443. Then it is said that the Thai king in return sent his son to "go put down the barrg" in 1444. Much of the activity of the king Yat unfolded around the place called 'Pasanti', which was Pearic territory, located in western Cambodia.
The next reference is to two Pearic persons (could have been officials, astrologers, monks, or magicians), whom were brought to Ayutthaya involuntarily after the conquest of Angkor in 1431. Instead of betraying Ankor, they were killed planning an insurrection in Ayutthaya.
Then in 1593, it is written that a Cambodian prince Ram, who may have had Pearic ethnicity, was dispelled by a Khmer 'Jon' (Pearic group). who raised armies among the Khmer, Jon, 'Lava', 'Kahrien', and 'forest people' (Pearic groups) and went across Cambodia to fight against the sons of the Cambodian prince Ram.
Pearic people according to the legend of the cucumber king.
There are two legends concerning the succession of the Cambodian throne by a cucumber gardener, who according to the story, killed the last Angkorean king by accident and succeeded him. The first legend is described in the Royal Cambodian Chronicles (https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neay_Trasac_Paem_Chay), that describes the Angkorean king ordering his cucumber gardener Trasac Paem to grow his exceptional tasty cucumbers, and providing him with a spear to guard it with his life. One night as the king craves the sweet cucumbers, he enters the garden, only to be killed by the gardener who mistakes him as an intruder. The royal elephant is then presented with the task to point out a successor, in which he seeks out the gardener and bows down before him. The gardener Trasac Paem is then appointed as the new king.
The second legend is a folk language, describing a Samré (Pearic group) named Pou being the cucumber gardener and killing and then succeeding the king. Mocked for his (ethnic) status, he resides in the temple 'Banteay Samré' and kills all of the officials. The temple 'Banteay Samré' (which means citadel of the Samré), located in Kradal, is said to carry its name from this event (http://www.theangkorguide.com/cgi-bin/M ... ysamre.htm). The Samré inhabitants of Pradak are said to be the descendants of the time of succession of Pou.
Unknown tribe places coffins in mountains, following the fall of Angkor in the 15th century
A group of explorers had stumbled upon 'odd' coffins with human remains, located in remote areas in the Cardamom mountain (. It seems to be a sacred ritual performed by a distinguished, unidentified, tribe, who instead of Buddhists who cremated their bodies, let the remains to be devoured by nature (http://phys.org/news/2013-06-cambodian- ... perts.html). Interestingly, some of the jars that were found, were of Siamese origin, and reveals a trade connection with the Siamese. The ritual seems to have been a reaction to the conquest of the Khmer empire by the Thai Ayutthayan kingdom, in 1431, which coincides with the carbon dating performed on the artifacts. I have no doubt in my mind that these were Pearic people, fleeing the kingdom after the (first) conquest of Ayutthaya. For instance, the Sa'och (Pearic tribe) are known to still bury their descendants, unlike their Khmer compatriots.
Pearic people responsible for the fall of Angkor, becoming part of the royal court?
The folk legend of the cucumber gardener at first glance seems to be completely fictional. The legend was already used by the Burmese related to a king in the tenth century. But together with the folk legend and the name of the Angkorean temple, could it point in the direction of truth?
The historical documents indicate that Pearic officials were brought to Ayutthaya after the conquest of Angkor in 1431, in which they were killed when they tried to organize a rebellion. The fact that high ranked officials could be of Pearic ethnicity, indicates that the Pearic people have emancipated greatly since the end of the 13th century, when the Pearic people are portrayed as being of the lowest class in Angkor according to Zou Daguan's report. Also, the Cambodian king Yat married into the Pearic community in western Cambodia, and the majority of his army consisted of Pearic people. From being slaves at the times of Angkor in 1296, they were later part of the royal court and among the highest class of people when it was conquered by the Ayutthayan king (who originated from Suphan Buri) in 1431.
What we know about the 14th century, is that there is a complete break away from some important Angkorean traditions. For instance, the last inscription of Angkor Wat mentions the succession of the king Jayavarman Paramesvera (https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jayavarma ... %C3%A7vara). Apparently, according to the inscriptions, he was a devout Hindu, opposed to his three predecessors, who were Buddhists, and also all three related to each other. From his reign forward there are no inscriptions in Old Khmer and Sanskrit, and the first inscriptions to appear in Cambodia centuries later, are written in Middle Khmer, which was immensely different from Old Khmer, which had stayed similar for over 700 years before (Sanskrit centuries longer). Old Khmer and Sanskrit disappeared from Cambodia completely, never to return, while they were continued to be used by the rulers in modern day Thailand. The Varman-suffix also disappeared from the royal title, with Cambodian kings not named with this suffix by any of the available historical sources, after the last king with this title, Jayavarman Paramesvera. All evidence points to a new aristocracy taking over the old one, which was in place for more than a thousand years since the beginning of the kingdom of Funan. Could this new aristocracy be related to Pearic people? It would explain the legend of the cucumber king, which may have been used as a pejorative mythical story, to metaphorically describe a revolt of the Pearic people, who in turn managed to climb the socioeconomic ladder in a new regime.
Syem/Xian (Hsien) is western Angkor/eastern Thailand, not Siam, and speculatively Pearic language territory
The term Syem used by the Khmer rulers, and Xian/Hsien by the Chinese, is always thought to have been an ethnolinguistic term to designate the Thai people (Syem=Siam=Thai rulers of Sukhotai/Ayutthaya). The name is found in two 12th century Angkorean inscriptions and as an ethnin one 11th century Cham inscription, and was used by Zou Daguan in his report. There is now a growing consensus that this term is in fact a geographical designation. According to the historians Michael Vickery and Chris Baker, it seems that Xian was used for a coastal power in the beginning, and later on as the hinterland power Ayutthaya. The rulers of this early Xian, were supposedly related to Angkorean royalty, evidently from their Khmer title 'Kamraten', and located in what was a part of greater Angkor. According to Zou Daguan, Xian was southwest of Angkor, was a rebellious district that waged wars with Angkor and had the land of Angkor completely laid in waste during his visit, and that the people were not able to understand Khmer. Especially the last remark, implies that the people of Xian could not have been Mon or Thai, since they both lived in areas were the lingua franca was Khmer. If Xian was near the Eastern Gulf coast, the people might have spoken a Pearic-type language. Xian's exact location remains a mystery, but could very well be one of the ninety-six Angkorean Khmer sites in eastern Thailand. The mercenaries, depicted in the bas-relief that was associated with the inscription mentioning the mercenaries being 'Syem Kuk', might in fact been a depiction of Pearic tribal troops, instead of Thai Siamese troops, which was commonly accepted. With Ayutthaya being excluded from being the designated term, one might wonder what the name of the province of Siem Reap really means. Maybe 'Reap' is a Pearic word? 'Siem' is maybe the name of a western Khmer polity, with a presence of Pearic inhabitants/servants?
Emancipation of the Pearic people
The Pearic people are still considered to be second class citizens of the Cambodian kingdom. The Pearic people are probably not aware of their rich history and important role of keeping Cambodia out of the hands of foreign rulers, and are most likely also unaware of the Cambodian kings having Pearic ancestry. They were an important military force, and important allies in the struggle of power. Even in the 1830's, Pearic Sa'och defended Kompong Som against Thai invaders, in which the Thais deported some of them to Kanchanaburi province, where they still reside. In the eyes of Cambodians, the Pearic people should be viewed as heroes and allies. Contrary to that, many of the Pearic people favor identification with the Khmer, and tend to forget and deny their Pearic ancestry, as it is frowned upon. The term Sa'och is a clear heritage of this patronizing view.
Pearic People of Cambodia; Slaves, Warriors, and Kings
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