Jayavarman II

Jayavarman II was a Khmer ruler traditionally credited with founding the Khmer Empire and establishing its sovereignty in 802.

Khmer Empire: A Southeast Asian empire that flourished from the ninth to fifteenth centuries, centered in present-day Cambodia. Jayavarman II is traditionally regarded as its founder.
Devaraja: A Khmer royal cult connecting kingship with divine authority, known from inscriptions and later accounts. The term is associated with the ceremony said to establish Jayavarman II’s sovereignty.
Phnom Kulen: A mountain range north of Angkor containing early Khmer archaeological remains and sacred sites. It is associated with Jayavarman II’s royal center and the 802 tradition.
Indravarman I: A Khmer king who ruled from 877 to 889 and sponsored major temples and hydraulic works at Roluos. His reign consolidated the royal center associated with Jayavarman II.
Angkorian chronology: The reconstruction of dates and reign sequences for the Khmer Empire’s Angkorian period. Dating early reigns depends on interpreting inscriptions and later historical accounts.
Hariharalaya: An early Khmer capital near present-day Roluos, east of Angkor. It was one of the centers associated with Jayavarman II’s rule.
Sanskrit inscriptions: Inscriptions written in Sanskrit, widely used for royal and religious purposes across South and Southeast Asia. Inscriptions provide evidence for Khmer kingship and the period around Jayavarman II.
Sdok Kak Thom inscription: An eleventh-century Khmer inscription recounting royal history and the origins of the Devaraja cult. Its later account is the principal source for the 802 sovereignty ceremony.
Yasovarman I: A Khmer king who founded Yasodharapura, the early city at Angkor, in the late ninth century. His new capital extended the political legacy attributed to Jayavarman II.
Old Khmer language: The historical language recorded in Khmer inscriptions from the pre-Angkorian and Angkorian periods. Its dated inscriptions offer evidence independent of later foundation narratives.

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