Cambodians

Part of speech: noun, adjective

Definitions

1. The people who come from Cambodia, a country in Southeast Asia, or who share its Khmer heritage
2. Natives or citizens of the Southeast Asian nation of Cambodia, along with others of Khmer descent
3. Individuals born in or identifying with the Kingdom of Cambodia and its Khmer cultural traditions

Etymology: "Cambodians" is the plural of "Cambodian", which is a noun and adjective built on "Cambodia" plus the suffix "-n", the same ending found in words like "Christian" or "Italian" that marks a person or thing connected with a place. The country's name is the English form of "Cambodia", which in turn comes from the Khmer name for the nation, so the word as a whole is a simple place-name derivation rather than a word with a deep or surprising history. The plural simply applies the ordinary English "-s" ending to the singular "Cambodian", so the plural's meaning follows directly from the singular: people who come from Cambodia, or who share its Khmer heritage. The suffix pattern is the reason the word sounds like other nationality terms.