celebrity facts Famous People Who Converted To Islam
Several famous rappers, actors and athletes have converted to Islam. Some famous converts to the Muslim faith were previously Christian, while others weren't very religious. Most famous converts to Islam changed their names when they adopted their new faith.
Who is the most famous person who converted to Islam? Mike Tyson tops our list. The former heavy-weight champion converted to Islam in the mid-1990s when he was serving time in prison in conjunction with a rape conviction. Another boxing legend, Muhammad Ali, also converted to Islam in the mid-1960s.
After touring the Middle East in 1989, Jermaine Jackson converted to Islam. He said, "A great ripple had taken place in my thought. I made failing attempts to console myself that nothing had happened, but I could not conceal this fact any longer from myself that at heart I had converted to Islam." In 1995, A Tribe Called Quest rapper, Q-Tip, professed his shahada and converted to Islam. Other famous celebrities who converted to Islam include Ice Cube, Dave Chappelle, and Malcolm X.
Are you surprised that so many famous people converted to the Muslim faith? Take a look at this list and get in on the conversation in the comments section.
Mike Tyson converted to Islam in the mid-1990s when he was serving time in prison in conjunction with a rape conviction.
SourceMichael Gerard "Mike" Tyson is an American retired professional boxer. Tyson is a former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and holds the record as the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF heavyweight titles at 20 years, 4 months, and 22 days old. Tyson won his first 19 professional bouts by knockout, 12 of them in the first round. He won the WBC title in 1986 after defeating Trevor Berbick by a TKO in the second round. In 1987, Tyson added the WBA and IBF titles after defeating James Smith and Tony Tucker. He was the first heavyweight boxer to simultaneously hold the WBA, WBC and IBF titles, and the only heavyweight to successively unify them. In 1988, Tyson became the ...more
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In the mid-1960s, Cassius Clay changed his name to Muhammad Ali after converting to Islam.
SourceMuhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, generally considered among the greatest heavyweights in the sport's history. A controversial and polarizing figure during his early career, Ali is today widely regarded for the skills he displayed in the ring plus the values he exemplified outside of it: religious freedom, racial justice and the triumph of principle over expedience. He is one of the most recognized sports figures of the past 100 years, crowned "Sportsman of the Century" by Sports Illustrated and "Sports Personality of the Century" by the BBC. Born Cassius Clay, he began training at 12 years old and at the age of 22 won the world heavyweight championship in 1964 from ...more
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Omar Sharif converted to Islam so he could marry Faten Hamama in 1955. At that time, he changed his name from his given name, Michel Chalhoub.
SourceOmar Sharif is an Egyptian actor. The assumed surname Sharif means "noble" in Arabic. His films include Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago and Funny Girl. He has been nominated for an Academy Award and has won three Golden Globe Awards. ...more
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Malcolm X converted to Islam while serving time in prison as a young man.
SourceMalcolm X, born Malcolm Little and also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, was an American Muslim minister and a human rights activist. To his admirers he was a courageous advocate for the rights of blacks, a man who indicted white America in the harshest terms for its crimes against black Americans; detractors accused him of preaching racism and violence. He has been called one of the greatest and most influential African Americans in history. Malcolm X was effectively orphaned early in life. His father was killed when he was six and his mother was placed in a mental hospital when he was thirteen, after which he lived in a series of foster homes. In 1946, at age 20, he went to prison for ...more
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