Dress and adornmentSoutheast AsiaBuddhist
Av pak
In its own language: អាវប៉ាក់
A Cambodian women's shirt in silk or cotton, embroidered or laced, for festivals
The av pak is a traditional Cambodian shirt with lace or embroidery, whose Khmer name means 'embroidery shirt'. It is sewn in silk or cotton, cut to sit close to the body, and worn by women for festivals and formal occasions, often with a sampot. White is chosen for pagoda visits, bright colours for festivals.
When is Av pak kept?
Av pak is kept on for festivals and formal occasions.
An av pak is a shirt made for women in Cambodia, decorated with lace or embroidery. The Khmer name translates as 'embroidery shirt'. It is sewn in silk or cotton and cut close to the body, with collars, sleeves and necklines that change from one garment to the next. Women wear it for festivals and formal occasions, often with a sampot, and white versions are kept for pagoda visits.
What it is
Av pak is the Khmer name for a shirt decorated with lace, embroidery or both, and it is usually translated as 'embroidery shirt'. The garment is made for women and belongs to Cambodian traditional dress. It is sewn in silk or cotton and normally cut to follow the shape of the body. Makers vary the collar, the sleeves and the neckline, so the shirt appears in many styles. Khmer people describe it as a classic piece that still looks modern, since the decoration draws on traditional Cambodian embroidery. It is usually completed with a sampot.
How it is worn
Women in Cambodia wear the av pak for festivals and for formal occasions. It is often paired with a sampot, the lower garment of Khmer dress, and two of these are named in the sources: the sampot hol and the sampot phamuong. Because the shirt is cut to fit closely, the cloth sits near the body, while the collar, the sleeves and the neckline may differ from one av pak to another. Colour changes with the occasion. Av paks are also displayed in the Central Market in Phnom Penh, alone and beside sampots.
Colour and occasion
Colour is part of how the av pak is worn. Some women choose a white one to visit a pagoda, which is a Buddhist temple, and put on purple, red or other bright colours for festivals instead. The same shirt therefore moves between a quiet religious visit and a loud celebration, and only the shade changes. Lace and embroidery stay either way, and the shirt is still worn with a sampot. White belongs to the pagoda, and the brighter cloth belongs to festival days. The occasion decides, not the cut.
A classic that looks new
Khmer people treat the av pak as a classic shirt that is also modern. Its decoration comes from Cambodian embroidery, so the look rests on traditional local needlework. Its shape, by contrast, is not fixed: the collar, the sleeves and the neckline follow different fashions, and the garment is cut to sit close to the body. The shirt is made in silk or cotton. That mix of old work and changing style keeps it in use when an occasion calls for dressing up, whether that occasion is a festival or a formal ceremony.
How Av pak is kept
Women in Cambodia take out an av pak for festivals and formal occasions. The shirt goes on with a sampot, often a sampot hol or a sampot phamuong, and it is cut to sit close to the body. Collars, sleeves and necklines differ between garments, so a wearer picks the style she prefers. Colour follows the day: white for a pagoda visit, purple, red or another bright shade for a festival. Lace, embroidery or both decorate the cloth, which is silk or cotton.
When and where
The av pak is not fixed to one date. Women wear it at festivals and on formal occasions through the year, and some wear a white one when they visit a pagoda. No particular festival day, month or weekday is named for the shirt in the sources, so it belongs to occasions rather than to a single point in the calendar.
The shirt belongs to Cambodia, where Khmer women wear it for celebrations and ceremonies. It is part of Khmer traditional dress, and it is displayed in the Central Market in Phnom Penh, shown alone and together with sampots. The sources describe it as a Cambodian garment and do not record it as a local custom in other countries.
What Av pak means
The name carries meaning by itself: av pak translates as 'embroidery shirt', so the garment is named for the work done on it. Colour carries meaning too. White is the restrained choice for the pagoda, while purple, red and other bright shades mark festival days. Because its decoration is traditional and its cut keeps changing, Khmer people hold the shirt to be both classic and modern. Wearing one is a way of dressing formally, with lace or embroidery on the cloth.
Questions people ask about Av pak
When is Av pak kept?
Av pak is kept on for festivals and formal occasions.
What is an av pak?
It is a traditional shirt from Cambodia, decorated with lace, embroidery or both. The Khmer name means 'embroidery shirt'. It is made for women, sewn in silk or cotton, and cut close to the body, with the collar, sleeves and neckline varying from one shirt to the next.
Where does it come from?
Cambodia. It belongs to Khmer traditional dress and its decoration draws on traditional Cambodian embroidery. Av paks are displayed in the Central Market in Phnom Penh, both on their own and beside sampots.
Who wears an av pak?
Women in Cambodia. It is described as a shirt for women, kept for festivals and formal occasions, and Khmer people regard it as a classic garment that still reads as modern because its styling keeps changing.
Is it only worn in bright colours?
No. White is the shade some women choose for a visit to a pagoda, while purple, red and other bright colours are chosen for festivals. Lace and embroidery appear whatever colour the cloth happens to be.
See also
SampotA length of cloth wrapped at the waist, the everyday and ceremonial dress of Cambodia
Apsara DanceA classical Cambodian court dance inspired by the stone carvings of Angkor
PretaOfferings and rites for spirits enduring deep hunger across Asian traditions.
Spirit houseA small roofed shrine on a pillar, kept in homes and villages across Southeast Asia to honour protective spirits.Good reading and sources
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Av pak", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). EveryParampara rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-09.
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