Ting mong

Ting mong (Khmer: ទីងមោង) is a decoy or mannequin popular in Khmer folklore, traditionally with a head and no body, but more recently in the shape of a human, similar in its shape to the scarecrow, but different in its function as its purpose is not to scare crows but to fight away evil spirits and plagues.

Those with a scary face and no body, can be traced back to the figure of Rahu, while others recall giants and demons of Khmer mythology.

[3] In the present day, superstitious farmers erect ting tong as floral-shirted scarecrows with a plastic pot for a head and armed with a stick.

In alternative tellings of this story, a disease spread throughout the provinces that year, associated with the dead cadres, and scarecrows were erected to banish it.

Since 2020, ting mong have gained in popularity as they helped to soothe the fear linked to the pandemic of coronavirus.