From a pile of stones to a national symbol: Preah Vihear Temple and Norodom Sihanouk’s politics of postcolonial nation

Existing studies of the Cambodia-Thailand conflict over the Khmer temple of Preah Vihear tend to regard the temple as nationally significant to both countries. However, little is known about how the border temple complex has emerged from obscurity to symbolize the nation in Cambodian nationalist discourse. Therefore, this article seeks to examine the stakeholders, contexts, and specific political situations implicated in the emergence of the ancient temple as a site of national significance. It links the temple’s rise to national prominence in Cambodia to the broader context of Prince Norodom Sihanouk’s politics of postcolonial nation-building. I argue that Sihanouk had a strong stake in the temple and the conflict over it with Thailand. His investment in the project of nationalism in relation to the temple was an important resource in pursuing his wider political objectives in building the post-independence Cambodian nation