Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn was born Her Royal Highness Princess Sirindhorn Debaratanasuda on 2 April 1955 to His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, King Rama IX, and Her Majesty Queen Sirikit of Thailand. Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn enrolled in Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University, with focus on history, Thai and oriental languages. Although Her Royal Highness often had to accompany Their Majesties the King and Queen on royal up-country visits, she has put more effort into her study and class assignments. In addition, she regarded the university experiences as invaluable for it gave her knowledge while at the same time provided her great opportunity to get to know people from all walks of life.

Her full ceremonial title is Somdech Phra Debaratanarajasuda Chao Fa Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Rathasimagunakornpiyajat Sayamboromrajakumari, which was bestowed upon her on 5 December 1977. Thais commonly refer to her by reducing such title to "Phra Thep", meaning "princess angel". Her title in Thai is the female equivalent of the title once held by her brother, King Maha Vajiralongkorn. The Thai constitution was altered in 1974 to allow for female succession, thus making her eligible for the throne. For his contributions to Literature & Education he was awarded with the Padma Bhushan in 2017.