Nouman Ali Khan
Nouman Ali Khan | |
|---|---|
Khan in 2023 | |
| Personal life | |
| Born | 1978 (age 46–47) |
| Nationality | American |
| Era | Contemporary |
| Known for | |
| Occupation | Speaker, teacher |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Founder of | Bayyinah institute |
| Nouman Ali Khan | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube information | ||||||||||
| Channel | ||||||||||
| Years active | 2009–present | |||||||||
| Genre | Islamic | |||||||||
| Subscribers | 2.63 million[1] | |||||||||
| Views | 292 million[1] | |||||||||
| Associated acts | Muslim Speakers | |||||||||
| ||||||||||
Last updated: 3 July 2025 | ||||||||||
Nouman Ali Khan (born 1978) is an American Islamic preacher and the founder of the Bayyinah Institute for Arabic and Qur’anic Studies.[2][3]
Personal life
Khan was born in 1978, in East Germany to a Pakistani Punjabi family and spent his preschool years in the former East Berlin.[4][5] He later lived in Saudi Arabia, where he attended the Pakistan Embassy School, before moving to New York as a teenager, during which he struggled with his faith, briefly identified as an atheist, and eventually became religious.[6] He taught Arabic at Nassau Community College until 2006, after which he began working full-time on Bayyinah, through which he has taught over 10,000 students via seminars and programs.[6][2] He was previously married to Sofia Sharieff.[7]
Misconduct Allegations and Resignation from Board
In 2017, Khan was accused of engaging in inappropriate interactions with several women.[8][9][10] According to Lincoln Courier, the allegations included claims that he attempted to initiate sexual relationships under the pretense of secret marriages.[11] Khan responded by stating that the communications were between consenting adults, that he was seeking to remarry after his divorce, and that his family was aware of his interactions with prospective partners. He also claimed that the conversations had been misrepresented and taken out of context.[8] Women who spoke out against Khan reportedly faced significant backlash.[12]
An inquiry conducted by a group of six Muslim clerics and academics, led by Mohamed Magid, resulted in a statement alleging that Khan had "engaged in conduct unbecoming of any believer, much less someone who teaches about the Holy Quran." Sources with direct knowledge claimed that Khan had privately appealed to the group in an attempt to prevent the statement’s release.[13][14] In response, his attorney stated that Khan had not been provided with a written summary of the findings, denied allegations of asset concealment, and argued that Khan’s decision to maintain his privacy had allowed others to shape the public narrative.[13]
Separately, while serving as board president of the Islamic Center of Irving, Khan was named in a lawsuit alleging that he had dismissed a woman’s complaint of sexual misconduct against the center’s then-imam, Zia Ul-Haq Sheikh, advised her to seek mental health treatment, and discouraged her from pursuing the matter further. Sheikh later resigned, the woman was awarded $2.5 million, and Khan subsequently stepped down from the board.[15]
Publications
| Title | Description | Date | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| Divine Speech: Exploring Quran As Literature | Bayyinah Publishing in 2016 | 2016 | English |
| Revive Your Heart: Putting Life in Perspective | Kube Publishing ISBN 978-0986275043 | 2017 | English |
| Bondhon | Guardian Publication; 1st edition ASIN: B07KV37PVR | 2010 | Bengali |
| Arabic With Husna | Multiple Volumes ISBN 978-0986275043 | English | |
| Dirilt Kalbini | Timaş Yayınları (2017) ISBN 978-6050825992 | Turkish | |
| Revive Your Heart | Guardian Publication | 2019 | Bengali |
References
- ^ a b "About Bayyinah Institute". YouTube.
- ^ a b "The Muslim 500: Nouman Ali Khan". Retrieved 2015-06-17.
- ^ Flaccus, Gillian (2013-09-21). "Demand for U.S.-Born Imams Up in American Mosques". Archived from the original on 2017-07-31.
- ^ "Nouman Ali Khan – Being Muslim in Ireland – Life, Faith & Business – Remarkable Stories #1". 15 November 2023.
- ^ http://www.timeskuwait.com/Times_Nouman-Ali-Khan---The-Man--The-Mission-and-The-Media "Nouman Ali Khan – The Man, The Mission and The Media", The Times Kuwait, 17 February 2015.
- ^ a b http://www.arabnews.com/news/445647 Sameen Tahir Khan, "Nouman Khan: The one-man Qur’an movement", Arab News, 22 March 2013.
- ^ "The Muslim Link – September 13, 2013 by the Muslim Link – Issuu". 12 September 2013. Archived from the original on 2025-03-03.
- ^ a b "Nouman Ali Khan urges for 'theatre-free environment' to investigate allegations against him". Dawn. 24 September 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
- ^ Sohail, Rahima (23 September 2017). "Pakistani-American preacher alleged to have inappropriate relations with women". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ^ "The Perils of #MeToo as a Muslim". Dhaka Tribune. 28 September 2017. Archived from the original on 22 October 2019. Retrieved 24 December 2017.
- ^ Khan, Aysha (29 January 2020). "'A long time coming'". Lincoln Courier. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Allam, Hannah (29 September 2017). "Women Are Being Harassed For Speaking Out About Muslim Preacher's Misconduct Allegations". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ a b Allam, Hannah (20 December 2017). "Inside The 'Spiritual Abuse' Allegations Against A Celebrity Preacher". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
- ^ "Muslim-Americans Face Challenges When Confronting Leader's Misconduct". National Public Radio. 1 January 2018. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
- ^ Bawab, Nashwa (October 19, 2018). "Former Imam of Irving Mosque Accused of Sexual Misconduct". Dallas Observer. Retrieved July 2, 2025.