Dinamika Identitas Muslim Khmer Pendidikan Islam dan Modernisasi di Kamboja Pasca 1990
Keywords:
Cambodia, Islamic Education, Ethnic Identity, Khmer Muslims, ModernizationAbstract
The presence of ethnic Khmer Muslims in Cambodia represents one of the most intriguing manifestations of the relationship between religion, ethnicity, and modernity in Southeast Asia. The purpose of this study is to synthesize developments in local Islamic traditions, educational reform, and post-1990 modernization to reveal how Khmer Muslims negotiate their dual identities as Khmer and Muslim in a predominantly Buddhist country. This study uses a comprehensive literature review approach to understand the dynamics of identity, education, and modernization of the ethnic Khmer Muslim community in Cambodia. The findings indicate that this community maintains distinctive cultural markers such as language, ritual adaptations, and local governance while reinterpreting Islamic law through indigenous idioms. Islamic education has evolved from mosque-based learning to integrated schools that combine national and religious curricula, reflecting both transnational influences and local innovations. Post-1990 modernization has introduced competing reformist and traditionalist tendencies, including the rise of the Salafi movement, but local pragmatism and communal negotiation continue to shape a unique form of Islam in Cambodia. These processes illustrate an adaptive synthesis of faith and culture, where modernity is localized rather than imported. This study contributes to a broader understanding of Muslim minority resilience and plural expressions of Islam in Southeast Asia, emphasizing that religious transformation in Cambodia was driven by the active participation of the community, not external homogenization.
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