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 |
| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Genre | Islamic |
| Subscribers | 2.63 million |
| Views | 292 million |
| 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.[1][2]
Khan was born in 1978, inEast Germany to a PakistaniPunjabi family and spent his preschool years in the formerEast Berlin.[3][4] He later lived inSaudi Arabia, where he attended the Pakistan Embassy School, before moving toNew York as a teenager, during which he struggled with his faith, briefly identified as an atheist, and eventually became religious.[5] He taught Arabic atNassau 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.[5][1] He was previously married to Sofia Sharieff.[6]
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,[7] who alleged that Khan had "confessed inappropriate interactions with various women, violating agreed-upon bounds of Islamic law."[8][9] Khan disputed Mozaffar's claims and called the allegations an attempt to damage his reputation.[8][9]
Screenshots of alleged text conversations between Khan and women circulated on social media.[10] A panel of four Muslim clerics investigated and produced a written summary alleging that Khan used his position to pursue "secret sham marriages" with female admirers.[10] A second panel of six Muslim clerics and academics issued a statement affirming that Khan had "engaged in conduct unbecoming of any believer, much less someone who teaches about the Holy Qur'an."[10]
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.[8] Khan's attorney disputed the allegations, calling them "unfounded and clearly driven by a damaging motive."[10] 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.[11]
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.[12]
| Title | Description | Date | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| Divine Speech: Exploring Quran As Literature | Bayyinah Publishing | 2016 | English |
| Revive Your Heart: Putting Life in Perspective | Kube PublishingISBN 978-0986275043 | 2017 | English |
| Bondhon | Guardian Publication; 1st edition, ASIN: B07KV37PVR | 2010 | Bengali |
| Arabic With Husna | Multiple volumesISBN 978-0986275043 | English | |
| Dirilt Kalbini | Timaş Yayınları (2017)ISBN 978-6050825992 | Turkish | |
| Revive Your Heart | Guardian Publication | 2019 | Bengali |
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