The capital is Prey Veng town. With a population of 1. This densely populated agricultural region is located on the east bank of the Mekong. The name literally means "long forest" in khmer, but the last great forests have gradually disappeared there over 30 years to provide for agricultural land. However, with the advent of Chen-la, the hub of the kingdom moved farther west, to Koh Ker and Angkor and the region lost its importance.
In the 15th century, the Khmer emperors, under threat from the Siamese former name of people of current Thailand decided to resettle back to the east, to Oudong , Lovek then Phnom Penh. Prey Veng did not favor them as it was too close to another danger, namely the Annam. Nevertheless they formed an army at Ba Phnom in to defend against an invasion of Siam. Under the French protectorate, the colonial authorities saw potential of the region in terms of agriculture and fishing and its proximity to the French colony of Cochin China.
Mass deforestation took place, to create land for agriculture. In when the Khmer Rouge took power, the province experienced its first famine, until As the Vietnamese army advanced in January , the region regained its position and became one of the first areas of Cambodia liberated from the Khmer Rouge.
The province is bordered by those of Kampong Cham to the northwest, Tbong Khmum to the northeast, Kandal to the west, and Svay Rieng to the east and by Vietnam to the south.
It is crossed by two major rivers of the country, namely the Mekong and Tonle Bassac. This consists of The total population is , persons or 7. The average density The majority of the population is of Khmer origin and only 1. The province boasts of silt deposited in each flood, this makes the region conducive to agriculture and fishing.
