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Chinthe ( (); (); ()) is the Burmese language word for 'Asiatic lion'. The Archaeological Department of Burma (1902). Report on Archaeological Work in Burma. Yangon, Burma: Superintendent, Government Printing. p. 22. of Chinthe is a highly stylized lion commonly depicted in Burmese iconography and architecture, especially as a pair of guardians flanking the entrances of Buddhist and kyaung (or Buddhist monasteries).
The Burmese leograph (1994). 9781566910026, Moon Publications. ISBN 9781566910026 is related to other stylized lions in the Asian region, including the sing (สิงห์) of Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and the simha (සිංහ) of Sri Lanka, where it is featured prominently on the Sri Lankan rupee. It is also related to East Asian leographs, such as the guardian lions of China, komainu of Japan, shisa of Okinawa and Snow Lion of Tibet.
The princess Suppadevi of Vanga Kingdom (present day Bengal) had a son named Sinhabahu through her marriage to a Asiatic lion, but later abandoned the lion who then became enraged and set out on a road of terror throughout the lands. The son then went out to slay this terrorizing lion. The son came back home to his mother stating he slew the lion, and then found out that he killed his own father. The son later constructed a statue of the lion as a guardian of a temple to atone for his sin.
Predating the use of coins for money, brass weights cast in the shape of iconic animals like the Chinthe were commonly used to measure standard quantities of staple items. Shwechinthe Birmans
In the Burmese zodiac, the lion sign is representative of Tuesday-born individuals.
The leograph is featured prominently on the successive post-independence State seals (including the current State Seal of Myanmar) and most paper denominations of the Myanma kyat, and its statues are found as guardian statues of most pagodas and temples.
Chinthe is also the nickname of the Canadian 435 Squadron, formed originally in 1944 in India. The badge of the RCAF 435th features a chinthe on a plinth.
The present-day brigade in the British Army is named the 77th Brigade in tribute to the 77th Indian Infantry Brigade, which was part of Wingates's Chindits. The formation badge of the revived 77th shows a stylised lion known as a Chinthe in reference to the Chindits.
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