Sheikh Ahmad (nobleman of Siam)

[1] However, this is disputed by his descendant Tej Bunnag, Thailand's Minister of Foreign Affairs, who claimed his ancestor hailed from a town called Guni in the Mazandaran/Astarabad region south of the Caspian Sea.

He was appointed Chao Kromma Tha Khwa ("Lord of the Right Pier"), which gave him authority over trade and resolving disputes involving foreigners other than the Chinese, and was made the first Chula Rajmontri (Shaykh al-Islām) of Siam's Muslim population.

[5] Shaykh Ahmad crushed and defeated Japanese merchants who attempted a coup against the Thai king in 1611.

[17] One of Ahmad's descendants, Bunnag, married a sister of Queen Amarindra, the consort of King Rama I of the Rattanakosin era.

His descendants, who took Bunnag as a surname, held powerful positions within the Thai government and cultural establishment from the 19th century to modern times.