Ramkhamhaeng the Great (c.1239 - 1317, aka. Pho Khun Ramkhamhaeng; Thai: พ่อขุนรามคำแหงมหาราช) was the third king of the Phra Ruang dynasty, ruling the Sukhothai kingdom (a forerunner of the modern kingdom of Thailand) from 1277 to 1317, during its most prosperous era. He is credited with the firm establishment of Theravada Buddhism as the state religion of the kingdom. Ramkhamhaeng is traditionally credited with developing the Thai alphabet (Lai Sue Thai) from earlier Khmer, Mon and Burmese scripts, on the evidence of an inscription (the Ramkhamhaeng stele, see below) dated to 1283 or 1292 which bears the earliest known Thai writing. He is also still respected as the king who introduced the style of benevolent monarchy that remains today.