ABSTRACT
To be Cambodian is to “own” Cambodian culture: Buddhism, the Khmer language, Khmer arts, and the ability to pass this culture on to one’s children who, thus, become Cambodian. However, to be Cambodian in the United States means that one has left Cambodia. This means becoming a refugee and, in having become a refugee, creating one’s “Cambodianness” par excellence. In the first instance, Cambodians liken themselves to each other. In the second, Cambodians contrast themselves to “others”: they stand out in relief, all the more clearly defined as Cambodians against a backdrop of difference. Yet, this newfound “Cambodianness” is coated with the heavy veneer of “refugee.” Thus, our definition of Cambodian in the United States becomes thicker and thicker.
