Gautama Buddha or Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम बुद्ध; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama), also called Sakyamuni[note 1], was a sage[2] from the ancient Shakya republic[3][note 2], on whose teachings Buddhism was founded.[10] He is also referred to as "the Buddha" or most commonly simply as "Buddha."