Sri Suriyothai

Who was Sri Suriyothai?

Somdet Phra Sri Suriyothai was a royal consort during the 16th century Ayutthaya period of Siam. She is famous for having given up her life in the defense of her husband, King Maha Chakkraphat in a battle during the Burmese-Siamese War of 1548.

Somdet Phra is her queenly rank; Sri pronounced and often transcribed Si, is an honorific. Her given name Suriyothai สุริโยทัย means "dawn". It is a compound of Suriya, from Sanskrit surya सूर्य "sun"; plus Uthai from udaya उदय "rising", a cognate of Aurora and Ushas.