Some il.literate Th-ais still claim this beautiful Cambodian lady (Mi Soc) as their mo-ther! 🥲😆


Mi Soc (Neang Sok) was a ​“tall” Cambodian Royal Ballet dancer. She was the wife of Paul Le Faucheur, a French officer in Phnom Penh. Their daughter, Malis Le Faucheur, married Veang Thiounn [Chhoun], the Minister of the Palace, in 1884. 


[Communication by Ms. Yanine Pok, direct descendant of the latter mentioned marriage, to Royal Ballet dancer Sok Nalys on behalf of Angkor Database, June 2024. Ms Pok called Sok ​“Lok yāy”, ​“Esteemed Grandmother”.]


Thiounn Mumm, grandson of Veang Thiounn-Malis Le Faucheur, has confirmed this lineage to researcher Jean Jacques Donard before his passing in 2022. 


The most comprehensive study on this quite unique couple’s lineage was offered by Marie Aberdam in her 2019 PhD thesis, Élites cambodgiennes en situation coloniale, essai d’histoire sociale des réseaux de pouvoir dans l’administration cambodgienne sous le protectorat français (1860−1953), Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne; Centre d’Histoire de l’Asie Contemporaine).


Reference: https://angkordatabase.asia/books/lettre-le-cambodge