Etymology of Kamboja

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Kamboja (or Kambuja) is the name of an ancient Indo-Iranian tribe who spoke a language in the Indo-European family of languages. They are believed to have been located originally in Pamirs and Badakshan in Central Asia. The Sanskrit name Kamboja is also sometimes found written as Kambuja, e.g. in Vedic texts like Paraskara Grhya Sutra (2.1.23).

The etymology of Kamboja (or "Kambuja") is unclear. There are several views regarding how the name may have originated.

Yaska (seventh century BCE) attempted to trace "Kamboja" by etymologyzing it as both Kambal.bhojah and Kamaniya.bhojah. According to Nirukuta (II/2), the Kambojas enjoy kambalah (blankets) i.e. they are Kambal.bhojah, and also they enjoy beautiful (kamaniya) things, hence they are 'kamaniya.bhojah'. Therefore they are called "Kambojas".

According to scholars like Dr. Moti Chandra, the Kamaniya.bhoja of Yasaka literally means Handsome Bhoja. The word Bhoja is an aspirated Sanskrit equivalent of Iranian Boja, and means 'king' (Dr. Pirat, Dr. K. Elst). This suggests that the Kambojas may have been so called because they were a very handsome race, or at least because their kings were very handsome. This view is abundantly reinforced by Valmiki Ramayana (1/55/2), as well as by several verses of the Mahabharata (MBH 7/23/43; 7/82/74; 8/56/113-114) etc., which strongly testify that the ancient Kambojas and their princes were very handsome.

According to another view, the name Kamboja is derived from expression Kam+Boja, where Kam implies "region" and Boja or Bhoja implies owner, lord or king, as above. Thus the Kambojas were the Owners, Kings or Lords of a cetain region or country called Kam (Dr. H. C. Seth). The element Kam is also reflected in the Kama valley lying between the Khyber Pass and Jalalabad; in place names like Kama-daka, Kamma-Shilman, Kama-bela of Kabol; the Kamdesh/Kambrom, Kamich, Kama and Kamu of the Kunar and Bashgul valleys; as also the vast expanses of region called Kazal-Kam and Kara-Kam lying on either side of the Oxus, north of Afghanistan. The Ptolemian names Kamoi and Komdei also refer to these territories. It is also important to note that ancient Kamboja was located precisely in, and contiguous to, these Kam localities.

Scholars like Casey suppose that Kambuja lineage of the ruling family of ancient Cambodia originated from their legendary patriarch figure called Svayambhuva Kambu. According to Casey, "Kambuja" is etymologically deived from Kambu+ja, where ja in Sanskrit is said to mean "son or descendant". Hence, Kambujas means "descendants of Kambu". On similar lines, some argue that the name of the Indo-Iranian Kambojas may have eponymously originated from some ancient patriarchal figure known as Kambo. The Kambu as a name of an Asura (Iranian) clan is attested in ancient Hindu texts like Markendeya Purana (8.1-6) and Devi Mahatam (5.28.1-12), where the Kambu (Kamboja) clan is portrayed "in clash with" the Indo-Aryans Language_and_ethnicity_of_Kambojas#Devi_Bhagawatam_.26_Markandeya_Purana_evidence. It is notable that King Ashoka's Rock Edicts (3rd century BCE) located in Peshawar also write Kamboy (i.e. Kambo) for Sanskrit Kamboj. It is also notable that the terms Kambo and Kambu were used in medieval Muslim writings for the Kamboj population of greater Panjab.

Prof Skalmowski has suggested that the name Kamboja or Kambujiya is an adjectival form from a compound like *kamp + auj-ias- (cf. Sanskrit kampate "he trembles", Avestan *auj, as in aojvah, "stronger than"), meaning "unshaken, stronger than trembling, undaunted, intrepid (intrepidus)" ( ''See ref: Birth of the Persian Empire : The Idea of Iran, Volume I (Idea of Iran), 2005, p 21, Pierre Briant, John Curtis, Albert de Jong, Frantz Grenet, Daniel Potts, Shapur Shabazi, Vesta Sarkhoush Curtis, and Sarah Stewart)

According to Dr Wilson, part of the name Kamboja (i.e Kambi) is in the Cambistholi of Arrian: the last two syllables, no doubt, represent the Sanscrit Sthala, 'place,' 'district;' and the word denotes the dwellers in the Kamba or Kambis country: so Kamboja may be explained as those born in Kamba or Kambas (Ref: Vishnu Purana, p 194, fn 146, Dr H. H Wilson). [link]. In the like manner, the name Kambavati or Kambhavati or Khambavati (-vati means residence, pura) has also been connected with the Kambojas. In English, the name Kambavati or Kambhavati appears as Cambay.

A more acceptable, and similar view is that the name of the tribe and their country had originated eponymously from their illustrious ancient warrior king called Kamboja. This legendary Kamboja warrior had won the prized Daivi Khadga or (Divine Sword) from the celebrated king Kuvalashava of Kosala (MBH 12/166/77). The sword legend of the Mahabharata points to very remote antiquity, since the same king Kuvalashava who is a contemporary of this Kamboja, has been placed at the twelfth generation after Swayambhuva Manu of Hindu traditions (Ancient Indian Historical Traditions, pp. 114 ff., Dr. P. E. Pargiter). It is now accepted that the royal name Kambujiya (or Kamboujiya) is the Iranian version of Sanskrit Kamboja and Greek Cambyses, and it was a very popular name among ancient Iranians. It is probable that the legendary warrior Kamboja referenced in Shantiparava (Mahabharata) was some earlier Kambujiya from the royal line of ancient Iranian Achaemenids, who had given his name to his clan.

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