Chronicles of the Kings of Burma have attributed that King Anawrahta (r. 1044–77) initiated its construction during 1059–1060. According to legend, Anawrahta selected the site for building this pagoda by sending a white elephant mounted with a frontal bone relic of the Buddha to roam freely with the declaration that wherever the elephant stopped would be the site for building the pagoda. The elephant finally stopped over a dune which was chosen as the site for erecting the pagoda, and hence the name Shwezigon pagoda meaning "golden pagoda on a dune" in Burmese. Pagoda means "stupa" or "zedi."