Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh (pop. 900,000), capital and river port of Cambodia, on the Tônlé Sap River, where it joins the Mekong. It is the country's administrative, commercial, communications and cultural center. Founded in the 14th century, it was first made Khmer capital in the 1430s. Phnom Penh was the focus of a massive civil war campaign in 1970–75 in which almost the entire population was evacuated and put to forced labor. In 1979 the city was conquered by a Vietnamese invasion.

See also: Kampuchea.