The Phra Kiew is an ornament worn as a decoration on the head or hair of a king’s child. It is the royal insignia of King Chulalongkorn because the name “Chulalongkorn” means a headdress or a coronet or Phra Kiew in Thai. Young members of the royal family would wear the Phra Kiew around their topknots during the Royal Topknot Shaving Ceremony.
Chulalongkorn University has always been aware that it is an educational institution created by the benevolence of the monarchs of the Chakri Dynasty. It has always given importance to the traditional Thai practice that shows respect to any symbol that represents the monarch. For this reason, since its adoption of the Phra Kiew or the Coronet as the University’s emblem, it has instilled in its personnel and students of all eras a sense of respect for the royal emblem whose use as the University emblem was graciously permitted.
