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Nouman Ali Khan

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Nouman Ali Khan
Khan in 2023
Personal life
Born1978 (age 46–47)
East Berlin, East Germany
NationalityAmerican
EraContemporary
Known for
OccupationSpeaker, teacher
Religious life
ReligionIslam
Founder ofBayyinah institute
Nouman Ali Khan
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2009–present
GenreIslamic
Subscribers2.63 million[1]
Views292 million[1]
Associated actsMuslim Speakers
Silver Play Button100,000 subscribers
Gold Play Button1,000,000 subscribers
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 September 2017, allegations of misconduct were made public against Khan involving inappropriate relationships with female followers. The allegations became public through a Facebook post by Omer M. Mozaffar, a Chicago-based Muslim chaplain brought in to mediate between Khan and scholars,[8] who alleged that Khan had "confessed inappropriate interactions with various women, violating agreed-upon bounds of Islamic law."[9][10] A panel of four Muslim clerics investigated and produced a written summary alleging Khan used his position to pursue "secret sham marriages" with female admirers.[11]

Screenshots of alleged text conversations between Khan and women circulated on social media. Khan acknowledged being in contact with women but said all conversations were "between consenting adults" and were not "inappropriate," explaining he was seeking to remarry after being divorced.[9] Khan disputed Mozaffar's claims and called the allegations an attempt to damage his reputation.[9][10]

A second panel of six Muslim clerics and academics issued a statement affirming that Khan "has engaged in conduct unbecoming of any believer, much less someone who teaches about the Holy Qur'an."[11] Khan's attorney disputed the allegations, calling them "unfounded and clearly driven by a damaging motive."[11] The controversy contributed to broader discussions within American Muslim communities about accountability and oversight of religious leadership, highlighting the lack of formal mechanisms in many Islamic institutions for investigating misconduct allegations.[12]

In 2018, Khan was named in a report by Facing Abuse in Community Environments regarding his handling of sexual misconduct allegations against imam Zia Ul-Haq Sheikh at the Islamic Center of Irving, where Khan served as board president. According to the report, when a woman reported that Sheikh had sexually abused her after years of counseling, Khan "advised her to seek mental health services and also discouraged her from sharing what she experienced because it would harm Sheikh's reputation as a respected religious leader and family man." Khan stepped down from the board shortly after Sheikh's resignation.[13]

Publications

Publications By Nouman Ali Khan
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

  1. ^ a b "About Bayyinah Institute". YouTube.
  2. ^ a b "The Muslim 500: Nouman Ali Khan". Retrieved 2015-06-17.
  3. ^ Flaccus, Gillian (2013-09-21). "Demand for U.S.-Born Imams Up in American Mosques". Archived from the original on 2017-07-31.
  4. ^ "Nouman Ali Khan – Being Muslim in Ireland – Life, Faith & Business – Remarkable Stories #1". 15 November 2023.
  5. ^ 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.
  6. ^ a b http://www.arabnews.com/news/445647 Sameen Tahir Khan, "Nouman Khan: The one-man Qur’an movement", Arab News, 22 March 2013.
  7. ^ "The Muslim Link – September 13, 2013 by the Muslim Link – Issuu". 12 September 2013. Archived from the original on 2025-03-03.
  8. ^ Allam, Hannah (October 1, 2017). "Nouman Ali Khan Scandal Is A Rare Window Into Muslim Communities' Struggle With Misconduct Claims". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
  9. ^ a b c "Nouman Ali Khan urges for 'theatre-free environment' to investigate allegations against him". Dawn. 24 September 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  10. ^ a b Sohail, Rahima (23 September 2017). "Pakistani-American preacher alleged to have inappropriate relations with women". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
  11. ^ a b c Allam, Hannah (20 December 2017). "Inside The 'Spiritual Abuse' Allegations Against A Celebrity Preacher". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  12. ^ "Muslim-Americans Face Challenges When Confronting Leader's Misconduct". National Public Radio. 1 January 2018. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  13. ^ Bawab, Nashwa (October 19, 2018). "Former Imam of Irving Mosque Accused of Sexual Misconduct". Dallas Observer. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
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