Ancient Kingdom of Funan

Questions and Answers

Malayo-Polynesian languages

It started in the 4th century BCE

It was a powerful trading state

A collection of city-states Signup and view all the answers

A transcription from a local language into Chinese Signup and view all the answers

Funan Signup and view all the answers

To represent the Eastern Wu dynasty Signup and view all the answers

Mountain Kingdom Signup and view all the answers

There is no consensus among scholars Signup and view all the answers

It is shortly after the fall of Funan Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Ancient Indianized state located in mainland Southeast Asia, centered on the Mekong Delta
Existed from the 1st to 6th century CE
Name "Funan" given by Chinese cartographers, geographers, and writers

"Funan" not found in any local texts from the period
Scholars debate the origin and meaning of the word "Funan"
Possibility that "Funan" transcribes a word related to Khmer "vnaṃ" or "phnoṃ", meaning "mountain"

Funanese people's ethno-linguistic nature debated among specialists
Hypotheses include Mon-Khmer, Austronesian, or multi-ethnic society
Michael Vickery suggests population was Khmer
Studies indicate inhabitants may have spoken Malayo-Polynesian languages, like neighboring Champa

Established in the 1st century CE, but human settlement in the region may have begun as far back as the 4th century BCE
Funan considered a powerful trading state, with evidence of Roman, Chinese, and Indian goods at Óc Eo
Excavations at Óc Eo and Angkor Borei reveal important settlements
System of canals linked Óc Eo to a port on the coast and to Angkor Borei