Cendol /ˈtʃɛndɒl/ is an iced sweet dessert that contains pandan-flavoured green rice flour jelly, coconut milk, and palm sugar syrup. It is popular in the Southeast Asian nations of Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Philippines, and Myanmar. Next to the green jelly, additional toppings might be added, including diced jackfruit, sweetened red azuki beans, or durian.

Earliest written records of the word cendol or tjendol (Dutch spelling) can be traced to dictionaries and books of the 19th century in the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia). One of the oldest known records of the word tjendol is listed in the 1866 Oost-Indisch kookboek or East Indies recipe book. This book includes a cendol recipe with the title Tjendol of Dawet which indicates that cendol and dawet were already used synonymously at that time. In the dictionary Supplement op het Maleisch-Nederduitsch Woordenboek (1869) by Jan Pijnappel (Gz.), tjendol is described as a kind of drink or watery paste made from sago, coconut milk, sugar and salt.

In Malaya, the word "chendol" was first mentioned in 1932 as one of the foodstuffs available in Kuala Lumpur as recorded in the Malay Concordance Project that collects Malay writings. There is a popular belief that the name "cendol" is related to, or originated from, the word jendol, in reference to the swollen green worm-like rice flour jelly; in Javanese, Sundanese, Indonesian, and Malay, jendol means "bump", "bulge", or "swollen". In most parts of Indonesia, cendol refers to the green rice flour jelly; while the concoction of that green rice flour jellies with coconut milk, shaved ice, areca palm sugar and sometimes diced jackfruit is called es cendol (in West Java) or dawet (in Central and East Java).

The Indonesian dictionary Kamus Besar describes "cendol" as a snack made from rice flour and other ingredients that are formed by filters, then mixed with palm sugar and coconut milk (for beverage). The Malay dictionary Kamus Dewan similarly defines it as a porridge-like drink with long strands made of rice flour in coconut milk and sugar syrup.

In Vietnam, this worm-like rice flour concoction is called bánh lọt or "secreted jellies". Bánh lọt is a common ingredient in a Vietnamese dessert drink called chè. In Thailand it is called lot chong (Thai: ลอดช่อง, pronounced [lɔ̂ːt t͡ɕʰɔ̂ŋ]) which can be translated as "gone through a hole", indicating the way it is made by pressing the warm dough through a sieve into a container of cold water. In Burma, it is known as mont let saung or မုန့်လက်ဆောင်း. In Cambodia, it is known as lot (លត /lɔːt/), bang-aem lot (បង្អែមលត /bɑŋʔaɛm lɔːt/), nom lot (នំលត /nɷm lɔːt/), and banh lot (បាញ់លត /baɲ lɔːt/). In Laos, it is called lod song (ລອດຊ່ອງ). The word lọt in Vietnamese language has cognate with Proto-Katuic reconstruction of *lɔɔt meaning "to pass, go by", whence the Pacoh language with luat.

The origin of cendol can be traced back to Java, Indonesia, where it is known as dawet. Its roots extend from the rural areas of Java, dating back to ancient times and continuing to the present day. The Javanese name of "dawet" was recorded in early 19th century Javanese manuscript of Serat Centhini, composed between 1814 and 1823 in Surakarta, Central Java. An Indonesian academic suggests that a dawet sweet drink may have been recorded in the Kresnayana manuscript, dated from Kediri Kingdom circa 12th century Java. In Java, dawet refer to the whole concoction of cendol green jellies, usually made from aren sago or rice flour, coconut milk and liquid gula jawa (palm sugar syrup). An Indonesian historian argues that sago or rice flour might have been used as sweet beverage ingredient in the rice agriculture society of ancient Java. Indeed, cendol jellies and its variations are rural agricultural product, still traditionally produced in Javanese villages. In Banjarnegara, Central Java, dawet is traditionally served without ice. Today, however additional ice cubes or shaved ice is commonly added into this dessert drink.

Cendol, however, has developed differently in different countries. In Java (Indonesia), cendol only refers to the green "pandan jelly served in coconut milk", where sometimes pandanus leaves or pieces of jackfruit may be added. Meanwhile, in West Sumatra (Indonesia), cendol (cindua) has two colors, green and red. Red cendol is made from sago palm flour and rice flour, then it is given food coloring from gambier sap. This is different to the cendol in Malaysia and Singapore where various ingredients such as sweetened red beans and sweet corn may be mixed in like an es campur.

Cendol is typically served with ice, and this may have developed when ice became readily available. It may have originated in Malayan port cities such as Malacca and Penang where British refrigerated ships' technology would provide the required ice.