myint swe was born on 25 july 1912 in mandalay, british burma to a well-to-do family of ma ma lay () and san kyu (). his father san kyu was a well known physician in upper burma, and recipient of the prestigious atm ("ahmudan-kaung tazeit-ya min", အမှုထမ်းကောင်း တံဆိပ်ရ မင်း) title bestowed by the colonial government on top colonial era civil servants. the eldest of ten siblings, myint swe graduated from anglo-vernacular e.w. kelly high school, and enrolled at mandalay college in 1932.