Founders of Cambodia’s earliest kingdom, Kaundinya I and Queen Soma embody the legendary union between an Indian Brahmin prince and a Naga princess that gave rise to Funan. Their marriage symbolizes the fusion of foreign and indigenous traditions and explains the central place of the naga serpent in Khmer royal symbolism. Modern statues of Preah Thong (Kaundinya) and Neang Neak (Soma), like this one in Sihanoukville, commemorate that foundational myth and its enduring role in Cambodian identity.
