Social organisation of the Khmer people
The Khmer society was heirachical. Everyone had their place, they were either looked up to or looked down on depending on perspective. The social systems were based on the kings and the temple. They regarded their ruler as god-king.
The village temple heavily influenced political and economical decisions. The local aristocracy managed land and resources through the temple. They collected most of the produce from the land and acted as storehouse, these decisions reflect the aristocracy’s actions. |
RoyaltySimilar to the rulers of Egypt the Angkor Wat empire thought highly of their rulers and thought of themselves as ‘gods’ or ‘kings’ and these ‘god-kings’ were a source of all legal and religious power. Their subjects looked up to them.
peasantsThe peasants were the farmers and workers that worked for aristocrats or temples. The general population worked for the temples/aristocrats as farmers.
Their clothing was simple, barefoot with a cloth wrapped around their waist. Women could wear jewellery such as golden rings and bracelets, if they were particularly beautiful they might be sent to work/serve the king or royal family. |
Nobility and wealthyThe nobility and military served the king, they had to swear an oath of loyalty to the king. They were punished severely if this oath was broken.
When they served wine it’d be be in a pewter pot for the wealthy. (ordinary people would use a clay jar) In a wealthy houses gold and silver had a variety of uses(decoration as well as practical uses). They would decorate houses with pelts of tiger, leopards and deers etc. Cloths nets are used to keep mosquitoes out at night, the king’s cloths nets were made of fine silk and gold. |
Significant religious individuals/priests/brahimsIn Angkor, priesthood was hereditary; they had to inherit the title. Preist/brahims were a elite class. They lived in luxury and were separated from the common people. The reason they were influential was because they were associated with the temple and the king. Brahim were settled before the Angkor empire they kept their position until Theravada buddhism spread throughout the khmer area.
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sources
Social Organization
Secondary source Author: Maggy Saldais, Richard Smith, Teny Teyler, Camel Young Source: humanities textbook This is a secondary source as it was not present at the time of the event and has gathered information from primary sources to create information gathered from different details to accredit the text. The reason it was created was to inform the public about the Angkor Wat Empire and how it was organized (socially). It uses primary sources as its own source, but it is considered secondary, as it might contain biased opinion or difference as it was not present at the event. |