The Kinnari in Thai literature originates from India, but was modified to fit in with the Thai way of thinking. The Thai Kinnari is depicted as a young woman wearing an angel-like costume. The lower part of the body is similar to a bird, and should enable her to fly between the human and the mystical worlds.
The most famous Kinnari in Thailand is the figure known as Manora (derived from Manohara), a heroine in one of the stories collected in "Pannas Jataka" a Pali tome written by a Chiangmai Buddhist monk and sage around AD 1450–1470. This is supposed to be a collection of 50 stories of the past lives of the Buddha, known to Buddhists as the Jataka. The specific tale about Manora the Kinnaree was called Sudhana Jataka, after Prince Sudhana, the bodhisattva who was also the hero of the story and the husband of Manora.
It has been speculated that the stories of Manora/Manohara told in Southeast Asia might related to the stories of the Weaver Girl and the Cowherd, popular in China, Japan and Korea.
The story inspired a dance called Manorah Buchayan, which is one of the most esoteric among the high classical dances of Thailand, as well as the "Norah" dance of southern Thailand.