Place
Mekong Delta
The Mekong Delta is a region of southern Vietnam shaped by the Mekong (ទន្លេមេគង្គ) and Bassac River.[1] It is home to Khmer Krom (ខ្មែរក្រោម) communities.[2]
Rivers
The Bassac separates from the Mekong near Phnom Penh. The two rivers then reach the southern Vietnamese plain, where smaller channels branch from them toward the sea.[1] The delta forms part of the Lower Mekong River Basin.[1]
Khmer communities
Sóc Trăng, Trà Vinh and Kiên Giang are major areas of Khmer settlement.[3] The 2019 national survey counted 1,319,652 Khmer people across Vietnam, with 76.5 percent living in rural areas; these are national figures rather than a delta-only count.[3]
Pagodas and language
A 2026 ministry count put Khmer Theravada pagodas in the delta at more than 450.[4] Pagodas provide Khmer language (ភាសាខ្មែរ) and script teaching, preserve manuscripts and support performance traditions.[4] Summer language classes are offered free to schoolchildren in many Wats.[5] At Tà Mum Pagoda in An Giang, nearly 200 children attended in summer 2025.[5] Kh’Leang pagoda in Sóc Trăng houses the Southern Pali Secondary School.[6]
Festivals and performance
Khmer communities celebrate Chol Chnam Thmay, Sene Dolta and Ok Om Bok.[4][6] Recognized intangible heritage includes Dù Kê musical theatre, Rô Băm dance-drama and Ngũ Âm five-tone music.[4]
References 6
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Mekong River Commission, Geography (undated)
- ↑ Pacific Affairs (University of British Columbia), THE KHMER LANDS OF VIETNAM: Environment, Cosmology and Sovereignty | By Philip Taylor (undated)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 General Statistics Office of Viet Nam, Dac trung 53 dan toc thieu so 2019 (ban in) (undated)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Việt Nam News (VNA), Southern region steps up efforts to preserve Khmer cultural values (June 10, 2026)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Việt Nam News (VNA), Khmer pagodas in Mekong Delta offer free language classes in summer for children (August 6, 2025)
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 VietNamNet (source: VOV5), Kh’Leang pagoda, a national architectural heritage in Soc Trang (July 3, 2023)
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