Sunthorn Phu

Who is Sunthorn Phu?

Sunthorn Phu is widely regarded as Thailand's greatest classical poet and is often called the 'Bard of Rattanakosin.' Active during the reigns of Rama II and Rama III, he served for a time as a royal court poet under King Rama II, though his life alternated between periods of royal favour, imprisonment and monkhood. He is celebrated as a master of the klon verse form, writing in a musical, accessible style that drew on everyday speech rather than the ornate court diction of earlier eras. His best-known work is the epic 'Phra Aphai Mani,' a sprawling fantasy poem of tens of thousands of lines featuring a flute-playing prince, a sea ogress and a mermaid. He also composed influential nirat travel poems and the didactic 'Suphasit Son Ying.' In 1986 UNESCO honoured him among its list of great world figures on the bicentenary of his birth, and his birthday, 26 June, is celebrated in Thailand as Sunthorn Phu Day.

Sources: UNESCO, list of anniversaries of eminent personalities (1986, bicentenary of Sunthorn Phu) · Encyclopaedia Britannica, entry 'Sunthon Phu'