Preah Vihea Temple

World Heritage Site Inscription Details
Location: N 14 23 18 E 104 41 2
Inscription Year: 2008
Type of Site: Cultural


Preah Vihear was laid out on a north-south axis.

The temple of Preah Vihear is written as Prasat Preah Vihear in Khmer. Prasat is a word meaning "temple" or "edifice" in Khmer. The word "Preah" in Khmer means sacred. "Vihear" means "shrine" or "abode", and comes from the Sanskrit word "vihara". So we could translated Preah as "Sacred Abode".

Much of the temple was actually built during the reigns of Suryavarman I (1002-1050) and Suryavarman II (1113-1150), the main builder of Angkor Wat.

Preah Vihear is located on a cliff in the Dangrek Mountains which marks the border between Thailand and Cambodia. As a result, it has been part of either Cambodia or Thailand. The dispute can be traced as early at 1904, when the Siamese and French colonial authorities then ruling Cambodia demarcate the border of Siam and Cambodia. The border followed the watershed line of the Dangrek mountain range, which places almost the whole temple complex within Thailand. However, the resulting map drawn by French officers in 1907 deviated from the watershed, placing the temple on Cambodia's side of the border.

In 1957, following the withdrawal of the French from Cambodia, Thailand sent troops to occupy the temple, drawing protest from Cambodia, and in 1959 calling on the International Court of Justice to rule that the temple and its surrounding lay are indeed within Cambodian territory. Because of Preah Vihear - and that controversial map of 1907 - relations between Thailand and Cambodia soured. The International Court of Justice on 15 June, 1962 ruled that the temple belonged to Cambodia. It pointed that out for five decades the Siamese/Thai authorities did not object in any international forums of the map's depiction of the location of Preah Vihear. Also, they did not object when in 1930, a French colonial official received Prince Damrong, a Siamese scholar and government figure, at the temple. Moreover, Thailand had benefited in other ways from the border treaty. Therefore, through such acts, Thailand had demonstrated its acceptance of the 1907 map, and that Preah Vihear belongs to Cambodia.

Thailand reacted angrily to the ruling, pointing fingers to the jury. There was mass protests in the country. In demonstration of their displeasure at having to give up Preah Vihear, the Thai soldiers dug up and removed the flag pole bearing the Thai flag as it is still flying, rather than lowering it at the site. Cambodia formally took over Preah Vihear in January, 1963, in a ceremony attended by some 1,000 people who had to make the arduous climb from the Cambodian side. The then young and fit Prince Sihanouk negotiated the climb in less than an hour. At the ceremony, he made a gesture of conciliation to Thailand, allowing Thais to visit the temple without visa, and allowing Thailand to keep any antiquities it may have taken from the site.

The declaration by the World Heritage Committee in inscribing Preah Vihear as a World Heritage Site in 2008 was met with protests once again from Thailand, which argued that it should be a joint effort. The two countries eventually reached an agreement that Cambodia should propose the site for inscription, with the active support of Thailand. However, the opposition parties in Thailand attacked Thailand's support. Caving in to political pressure, Thailand withdrew its formal support for the listing of Preah Vihear. Cambodia proceeded with the application, despite protests from Thai officials, and on 7 July, 2008, the Temple of Preah Vihear was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.


Written by Viseth