Hnin U Yaing

Hnin U Yaing (Burmese: နှင်းဥရိုင်, pronounced: [n̥ɪ́ɴ ʔṵ jàiɴ]; c. 1260s – 1320s) was a princess of Hanthawaddy Kingdom who was the sister of two kings, Wareru and Hkun Law, and the mother of two kings Saw O and Saw Zein. She was also a paternal great-grandmother of Razadarit, considered the greatest Hanthawaddy king. She and her husband Min Bala played king maker in 1310 when they overthrew her brother Hkun Law, and placed their eldest son Saw O on the throne.

The future queen mother was born near Thaton to commoner parents, a Shan father and a Mon mother. She had at least three elder brothers, Wareru, Hkun Law and Yan Maw Hla. As the youngest sister of Wareru and Hkun Law, who were both born in the 1250s, she was likely born in the late 1250s or early 1260s. She died during the reign of her son Saw O, 1310-1324.

According to the legend, Hnin U Yaing in her youth was a dashing beauty. In 1281, her brother Wareru reportedly used her good looks to seize the governorship of Martaban. Wareru asked Hnin U Yaing to strategically choose her bathing place in a river spot where the governor would see her. The governor fell for Hnin U Yaing, and asked to marry her. At the wedding ceremony, Wareru killed the governor, and became the lord of Martaban.