Cān Bàn Kingdom

Cān Bàn Kingdom (Chinese: 参半国) was an ancient kingdom mentioned in the Chinese leishu, Cefu Yuangui, compiled during the Song dynasty (960–1279 CE). It was located more than a thousand li (500 kilometers) southwest of Zhenla.^[1]: 18 Some source says it was northwest of Land Zhenla^[2]: 27 (Sambhupura).^[3] The city faces the sea, and the land is wet. To the southwest, it bordered the Bái Tóu Kingdom (白头国).^[1]: 18 Cān Bàn sent tribute to the Chinese court once in 669 CE.^{[2]: 27, 35}

Cān Bàn Kingdom
6th – 10th century?
Proposed locations of ancient kingdoms in Menam and Mekong Valleys in the 7th century based on the details provided in the Chinese leishu, Cefu Yuangui, and others.
Government	Kingdom
Historical era	Post-classical era
Today part of	Thailand

After Zhenla annexed Funan in 627, Cān Bàn and another kingdom, Zhū Jiāng, which has been identified as Dvaravati,^[4] made royal intermarriages with Zhenla. They then fought several wars against Tou Yuan to the northwest,^[5] and successfully established it as the vassal of Dvaravati in 647.^{[6]: 269 [7]: 15–16} In the same period, Zhenla also waged wars with Línyì to the northeast.^[5] Through royal connections, Cān Bàn thereafter became a complete vassal of Zhenla.^{[2]: 27, 35}

No further information about the Cān Bàn Kingdom has been found, and its identification is uncertain. Several scholars place it to the northeast of the Cardamom Mountains, roughly near the present-day Battambang,^{[8]: 45–47} but this seems too close to Chenla, as the Chinese source indicates it is more than a thousand li (approximately 500 kilometers) away. Some said it was in the modern Prachinburi province of Thailand.