Epistemology of the Past: Texts, History, and Intellectuals of Cambodia, 1855–1970. Theara Thun. 2026

Congratulations to

recipient of the 2026 AMSEAS Early Career Book Prize for Epistemology of the Past: Texts, History, and Intellectuals of Cambodia, 1855–1970. Presented by the Association of Mainland Southeast Asia Scholars, the prize recognizes the best first book on a Mainland Southeast Asian Studies topic by an early career scholar. Drawing on Khmer chronicle manuscripts, colonial-era texts, and archival sources, Epistemology of the Past reexamines how historical knowledge was created, contested, and transformed in Cambodia between 1855 and 1970. Praised by the prize committee for its archival rigor, conceptual sophistication, and broad scholarly significance, the book makes an important contribution to Cambodian studies, Southeast Asian intellectual history, and historiography.