Chinese have always been in Cambodia first (for hundreds of years). So the Sihanoukville of 20 years ago should pretty much be same as it is now, because the Chinese influence has always been there? It is not.

A great example of cultural preservation is Japan.

Japanese women cultivate the cute, slim, short look. Look at a kimono, think Japanese woman.

Yes, societies are evolve. But it would be nice if Khmer hang on to their cultural uniqueness instead of changing to whatever is the latest fad.

newkidontheblock wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 12:06 am Chinese have always been in Cambodia first (for hundreds of years). So the Sihanoukville of 20 years ago should pretty much be same as it is now, because the Chinese influence has always been there? It is not.

A great example of cultural preservation is Japan.

Japanese women cultivate the cute, slim, short look. Look at a kimono, think Japanese woman.

Yes, societies are evolve. But it would be nice if Khmer hang on to their cultural uniqueness instead of changing to whatever is the latest fad.

Japan is both totally isolated and at the same time, one of the most copycat cultures on Earth. In Japan there are thousands and thousands of musicians who can play Western jazz and classical music, for example. In China there've been Western-emulative classical musicians only since the last 30 years...

The people ruling Japan consciously undertook to send their young people to study engineering in Germany as far back as 1885... That's how they learned how to build cameras, watches, etc ...long long before Korea or China...

At the same time the official political program of Japan remains backwards and xenophobic because foreigners are not allowed to naturalize. Japan will evaporate unless they import a lot of immigrants from somewhere pretty quick...

Just because they can wear a kimono... That makes them unique? Every culture has costumes and festivals and language that is unique.

Cambodians and Thais and Laotians have been copying each other for ages ...Look at the latest manifestation of their small-minded parochialism: the argument over "who invented" kick-boxing. Is it Kun Khmer or Muay Thai? Who knows? Who cares. It really doesn't matter ...

Actually the romanization of Vietnamese was started by the Portugese. The French refined it and made it mandatory.