Chuon Nath facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Chuon Nath |
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 Nath in 1961 |
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| Born | 13 March 1883 in Kong Pisei, Kampong Speu, French Cambodia |
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| Died | 25 September 1969 (aged 86) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia |
| Nationality | Cambodian |
| Education | Royal Khmer University |
| Writings | Khmer Dictionary Nokor Reach Pongsavotar Khmer |
Chuon Nath (born March 11, 1883 – died September 25, 1969) was a very important Cambodian monk. He was known as the Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia, which is the highest leader of Buddhist monks in the country.
He worked hard to protect and improve the Khmer language. One of his biggest achievements was creating the first modern Khmer dictionary. He also helped preserve Cambodian identity by writing the national anthem, "Nokor Reach". His full honorary title was Samdech Sangha Rāja Jhotañāno Chuon Nath.
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Early Life and Learning
Chuon Nath was born in Kampong Speu Province to a family of farmers. When he was 12 years old, he went to live and study at a temple. This was a common practice for Cambodian boys at that time.
He became a young monk, called a novice monk, in 1897. Then, in 1904, at the age of 21, he became a fully ordained monk.
In 1913, Chuon Nath took an important exam for monks in the Pali language. He got the highest score among everyone who took the test that year. Two years later, he passed another exam. He then became a professor at a special Buddhist high school in Phnom Penh.
In 1922, he and another monk, Huot Tat, were invited to study Sanskrit in Hanoi. They learned at a famous French school that focused on Asian studies.
Protecting the Khmer Language
Chuon Nath led a movement to update Cambodian Buddhism. This movement focused on studying the Pali language, which is important for Buddhist texts. It also helped to strengthen the idea of Cambodian identity and culture.
He brought many new ideas to the Buddhist community in Cambodia.
- He encouraged printing holy texts instead of writing them by hand on palm leaves.
- He wanted monks to be experts in Pali and Sanskrit languages.
- He believed in teaching Buddhist rules to both monks and regular people.
- He also worked to make Buddhist studies more modern.
Chuon Nath also helped translate all the Buddhist Pali texts into the Khmer language. He was also in charge of creating the first modern Khmer language dictionary.
At that time, French rulers wanted to replace the Khmer language with French. Many Cambodian scholars, including Chuon Nath, fought to protect their language. He spent his life working to keep the Khmer language strong. He knew a lot about the language and was very skilled in many languages.
Chuon Nath wanted to create new Khmer words from old Pali and Sanskrit words. This idea was called "Khmerization." For example, when trains first came to Cambodia, there was no Khmer word for them. Chuon Nath combined the Sanskrit and Pali word Ayomoyo (meaning "made of metal") with Yana (meaning "vehicle"). This created the Khmer word for train: Ayaksmeyana.
Not everyone agreed with Chuon Nath's "Khmerization." Some scholars preferred to use French words and just write them using the Khmer alphabet. But Chuon Nath's ideas won in the end. He was part of the group that started working on the Khmer dictionary in 1915. He is known as the founder of the dictionary because he made sure the first edition was printed in 1938. In 1967, he was given the special title of doctor.
Another important thing Chuon Nath did for Cambodia was creating the national anthem, "Nokor Reach". He wrote both the music and the words for it. The anthem shows the motto of Cambodia: "Nation, Religion, King." It also celebrates the great history of the Khmer nation.
See also
- Preah Maha Ghosananda
Images for kids
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Nath in 1961
Bibliography
- Harris, Ian (2005). Cambodian Buddhism: History and Practice (10 ed.). Honolulu, Hawaii: University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 0824827651. http://www.ahandfulofleaves.org/documents/Cambodian%20Buddhism,%20History%20And%20Practice_Harris.pdf.
- Trinh Hoanh, “Biography of Samdech Preah Sanghareach Gana Mahanikay Chuon Nat,” trans. Phlong Pisith, in Bulletin of the Students of the Department of Archaeology, no. 3 (July 2004): 18. 112.
- Harris, Ian (1999). "Chapter 3. Buddhism in Extremis: The Case of Cambodia". In Harris, Ian. Buddhism and Politics in Twentieth Century Asia. London: Pinter. ISBN 0826451780. https://books.google.com/books?id=0rwiLKm3LGUC&pg=PA54.
- Buddhasāsanapaṇḍity (1970) (Issue 7 of Série de culture et civilisation khmères). Biography of Samdech Preah Sanghareach Chuon-Nath, the Chief of Mahanikava Order. Phnom Penh, Cambodia: Institut bouddhique.
