kingdom · Mainland Southeast Asia
Kingdom of Waithali
Origins
Rakhine chronicles say the capital moved from Dhanyawadi to Waithali, a new city a short distance to the south, around 370 under King Mahataing Chandra. Its walled site near Kyauktaw has been excavated, and the Anandachandra inscription of the early 8th century lists the kings of the dynasty.
Rule and society
Waithali's rulers, known as the Chandra dynasty, used Sanskrit and Indian royal styles and issued silver coins bearing the conch and the trident-like srivatsa symbol. The kingdom traded across the Bay of Bengal and patronised Buddhism, with Mahayana and Hindu elements. The Anandachandra inscription records the king's donations to monks and Brahmins.
Decline and legacy
The chronicles say Waithali declined in the 8th and 9th centuries, and in 818 power passed to a new line in the Lemro valley, opening the Lemro period of the Kingdom of Arakan. Waithali's ruins, with their brick walls and a large seated Buddha, survive near Kyauktaw.
Few sources survive for this state; details are uncertain.
Lineage
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Kingdom of Waithali. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-waithali
- MLA
- “Kingdom of Waithali.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-waithali. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Kingdom of Waithali.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-waithali.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Kingdom of Waithali’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-waithali (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻