Islam is the religion of a majority of the Cham (also called Khmer Islam) and Malay minorities in Cambodia. According to Po Dharma, there were 150,000 to 200,000 Muslims in Cambodia as late as 1975. Persecution under the Khmer Rouge eroded their numbers, however, and by the late 1980s they probably had not regained their former strength. In 2009, the Pew Research Center estimated that 1.6% of the population, or 236,000 people were Muslims. Like other Muslim Cham people, those in Cambodia are Sunni Muslims of the Shafi'i denomination and following the Maturidi doctrine. Po Dharma divides the Muslim Cham in Cambodia into a traditionalist branch and an orthodox branch. (see Islam in Vietnam) Demography In 2009, the Pew Research Center estimated that 1.6% of the population, or 236,000 people were Muslims. According to from general Population census results of the Kingdom of Cambodia 2019, there are around 311,045 Muslims in the country as of 2019. As of 2016, data from the Ministry also recorded 884 mosques scattered all throughout Cambodia. Background of Early Islam The Chams originated from the Kingdom of Champa. After Vietnam invaded and conquered Champa, Cambodia granted refuge to Cham Muslims escaping from Vietnamese conquest. According to some accounts the Chams first contact with Islam was with one of the fathers-in-law of Prophet Muhammad, who is Jahsh, the father of Zaynab bint Jahsh. It was in the wake of many Sahabas who arrived in Indo-China in 617-18 from Abyssinia by sea route. In 1642, King Ramathipadi I ascended the throne of Cambodia and converted to Islam, becoming the only Muslim ruler of Cambodia. After the massacre of Dutch VOC representatives and the expulsion of the VOC from Cambodia, popular discontentment from the majority Buddhist populace deposed him with the aid of the Nguyen lords in 1658, causing much instability in Cambodia in the years following his reign. Cham Muslims The Cham have their own mosques. In 1962 there were about 100 mosques in the country. At the end of the nineteenth century, the Muslims in Cambodia formed a unified community under the authority of four religious dignitaries—mupti, tuk kalih, raja kalik, and tvan pake. A council of notables in Cham villages consisted of one hakem and several katip, bilal, and labi. The four high dignitaries and the hakem were exempt from personal taxes, and they were invited to take part in major national ceremonies at the