Anyone wanting to figure out the Middle East must get a grip with Lebanon first. Dithering between East and West, this teensy-weensy nation, despite of a bloody history and so much of tragedy (blame it on the complex and corrupt politics of this region) has always managed to wow anyone who had had the gut to cut through all that gore and explore its charms. Boasting of so much diversity in so little space — from flashy cities to frenetic beauty and from an infectious culture to glamorous nightlife, this exuberant land of divine food, breathtaking ruins and achingly attractive scenery has also been home to a spade of rich and famous men who have thrown the rule book aside to write their own destiny. Be it fashion moguls like Elie Saab and Zuhail Murad, world’s richest man Carlos Slim Helu, legendary rocker Frank Zappa or world-famous author Gibran Kahlil Gibran, you will be surprised to learn the kind of extraordinary men the land has borne. Delve deep into the inspiring lives of these Lebanese men in the biographies below. Their timeline, trivia, and other facts captured will make for an invigorating read, indeed.
This ranking is based on an algorithm that combines various factors, including the votes of our users and search trends on the internet.
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Birthdate: August 21, 1967
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Serj Tankian is an Armenian-American record producer, singer, and songwriter. Tankian is credited with co-founding the popular band System of a Down. Renowned for his wide vocal range and unusual delivery, Serj Tankian is widely considered one of the best heavy metal vocalists of all time. Also a political activist, Tankian co-founded Axis of Justice, a non-profit organization.
Birthdate: January 6, 1883
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Bsharri, Lebanon
Died: April 10, 1931
Lebanese author and poet Khalil Gibran is best remembered for his bestselling works The Prophet and Broken Wings. One of the leaders of the Mahjar movement of Arabic literature, he specialized in incorporating mythological and mystical symbols in his works and was inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche and William Blake.
Birthdate: 1960 AD
Birthplace: Amioun, Lebanon
Lebanese-American scholar and statistician Nassim Nicholas Taleb is known for his work on risk management through uncertainty and probability. His five-volume essay Incerto included his bestselling book The Black Swan. Named to Forbes’s Most Influential Management Gurus list, he is the co-editor-in-chief of the academic journal Risk and Decision Analysis.
Celebrities Born On My Birthday?
Birthdate: March 9, 1954
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Guajará-Mirim, State of Rondônia, Brazil
Carlos Ghosn is a French–Lebanese–Brazilian businessman who served as the CEO of Michelin North America. He also served as the chairman and CEO of Nissan and Renault. In 1999, he saved Nissan from near bankruptcy and turned around its fortune. In 2018, he was arrested in Japan for misusing Nissan's assets. He dramatically escaped from the custody is currently an internationally wanted fugitive.
Birthdate: November 16, 1973
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Businessman Marcus Lemonis was born in Beirut, amidst a civil war, and was adopted by an American couple. He is now the CEO and chairman of enterprises such as Camping World and Good Sam Enterprises. He also gained fame for his appearance on the CNBC reality show The Profit.
Birthdate: 0000 AD
Birthplace: Lagos
Michael Boulos has mostly been in the news for dating Donald Trump’s younger daughter, Tiffany Trump. The Lebanese-French heir of businessman Massad Boulos is now the associate director of his Nigeria-based family business, SCOA Nigeria; the director of Fadoul Group; and the business development manager of Royalton Investment.
Birthdate: July 16, 1981
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Tripoli, Lebanon
Swedish singer Maher Zain had moved to Sweden from Lebanon with his family at 8. A qualified aeronautical engineer, he is now known for his fusion of Eastern and Western music and for the religious overtones in his songs. He has also worked with UNHCR to support Syrian refugees.
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Birthdate: August 31, 1960
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Bourj Hammoud
Birthdate: June 21, 1983
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Birthdate: April 29, 1973
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Birthdate: July 4, 1964
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Beirut
Lebanese designer Elie Saab had started dressing up his sisters in scraps at age 10. Known for his ornate bridal couture, combining Western silhouettes and Middle-Eastern embellishments, he was the first non-Italian in the governing body of the Milan Fashion Week. He also ventured into interior design in Dubai.
Birthdate: April 22, 1929
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Hampstead, London, England
Died: January 11, 2019
Recipient of Fields Medal and Abel Prize, British-Lebanese mathematician Michael Atiyah emerged as a leading figure in the UK mathematics during the latter half of the 20th century. He specialised in geometry and made remarkable contributions in the fields of geometry, theoretical physics, topology and global analysis, and is best known for proving the Atiyah–Singer index theorem with Isadore Singer.
Birthdate: November 1, 1944
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Sidon, Lebanon
Died: February 14, 2005
Former Lebanese prime minister Rafic Hariri gained immense wealth through his construction business and became the world’s fourth-richest politician. His charitable initiatives included education projects in Lebanon. The unrest after his assassination in a car bomb explosion eventually led to the withdrawal of Syrian forces from Lebanon.
Birthdate: July 1, 1976
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Birthdate: August 18, 1983
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
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Ardem Patapoutian(Known for his work in characterizing the PIEZO1, PIEZO2, and TRPM8 receptors that detect pressure, menthol, and temperature)
Birthdate: October 2, 1967
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Birthdate: August 6, 1932
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Died: December 3, 1999
Edmond Safra was a Lebanese Brazilian banker. His father was a prominent banker, and he began his career working at his father’s bank. He was hardworking, ambitious, and street-smart and started earning millions while still in his teens. He was also a major philanthropist. He died in an arson that attracted wide media interest.
Birthdate: June 7, 1962
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Beirut
Birthdate: November 5, 1980
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Ibrahim Maalouf is a French-Lebanese composer and jazz trumpeter. In addition to his many studio albums, Maalouf is also known for his contribution as a composer for many movie soundtracks and symphonic orchestras. In 2014, he was honored at the French Music Awards with the prestigious Best World Music Artist award.
Birthdate: February 25, 1949
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Birthdate: September 1, 1938
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Died: December 10, 2020
Joseph Safra was a Swiss-based Lebanese Brazilian banker and businessman. A billionaire, he ran the Brazilian banking and investment empire, Safra Group, and was the chairman of all Safra companies. At the time of his death in 2020, he was the richest person in Brazil. He was married to a Greek-born woman named Vicky and had four children.
Birthdate: April 18, 1970
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Son of former Lebanese prime minister Rafic al-Hariri, Saad Hariri joined politics after his father was assassinated. After being educated in France and Saudi Arabia, Saad took over his father’s construction business and expanded into the telecom sector. The Future Movement member has also been Lebanon’s prime minister twice.
Birthdate: September 15, 1974
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Zahlé
Birthdate: January 1, 1956
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Antelias, Lebanon
Birthdate: February 19, 1928
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Died: June 28, 2010
Birthdate: April 3, 1900
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Deir el Qamar, Ottoman Empire, Lebanon
Died: August 7, 1987
Birthdate: January 28, 1938
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Bo
Birthdate: September 22, 1956
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Kleiat, Lebanon
Died: January 24, 2002
Birthdate: May 13, 1945
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Beirut
Birthdate: September 23, 1865
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Lebanon
Died: August 22, 1935
Birthdate: April 18, 1979
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Beirut
Lebanese-Canadian musician Karl Wolf soared to fame with his cover version of Toto's Africa. Born to musician parents in Beirut, he moved to Sharjah and then to Montreal with his family. His hits include tracks such as Butterflies and collaborations such as Yalla Habibi. He is also part of the collective BAE.
Birthdate: January 12, 1936
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Beirut
Birthdate: August 6, 1572
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Baakleen, Lebanon
Died: April 13, 1635
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Kamal Jumblatt(Former politician who founded the Progressive Socialist Party)
Birthdate: December 6, 1917
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Moukhtara, Lebanon
Died: March 16, 1977
Birthdate: November 28, 1970
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Beirut
Birthdate: June 4, 1928
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Qom, Iran
Musa al-Sadr was an Iranian-born Lebanese scholar and political leader. He founded the Amal Movement, a political party associated with the Shia sect. He was born into an influential family tracing to Musa Ibn Jaafar, the seventh Shia Imam. At the peak of his popularity, he was considered a towering figure in Shia politics. He went missing in August 1978.
Birthdate: November 21, 1948
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Amsheet
Birthdate: August 7, 1949
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Beirut
Walid Jumblatt is a Lebanese Druze politician who has been serving as the leader of the popular Progressive Socialist Party for many years now. A former militia commander, Walid Jumblatt also played a key role in the Syrian Civil War. Since the late-1970s, Walid Jumblatt has been the subject of photography like many other political leaders around the world.
Birthdate: 1894 AD
Birthplace: Sidon, Lebanon
Died: July 17, 1951
Birthdate: December 7, 1962
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Tair Debbé, Lebanon
Died: February 12, 2008
Birthdate: October 25, 1952
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Beirut
Birthdate: May 4, 1923
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Antelias
Died: June 21, 1986
Assi Rahbani, part of the Lebanese composer duo The Rahbani Brothers, which also had his brother Mansour Rahbani, previously worked with Near East Radio. He later mostly composed music for his singer wife Nouhad Haddad, better known as Fairuz. The husband-wife duo also appeared in movies such as The Exile.
Birthdate: June 15, 1910
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Zgharta, Lebanon
Died: July 23, 1992
Birthdate: November 1, 1921
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Lebanon
Died: October 11, 2013
Birthdate: January 2, 1767
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Gazir, Iran
Died: 1850 AD
Birthdate: March 1, 1904
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Dhour El Choueir, Lebanon
Died: July 8, 1949
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Gebran Tueni(Politician and the former editor and publisher of daily paper An Nahar)
Birthdate: September 17, 1957
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Achrafieh, Beirut, Lebanon
Died: December 12, 2005
Birthdate: June 10, 1950
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Amsheet
Lebanese composer, singer, and oud player Marcel Khalife gained international fame with songs such as Rita and the Rifle. Devoted to the Palestinian cause, he is inspired by the Communist Party and the poems of Mahmoud Darwish. His humanitarian efforts made him the 2005 UNESCO Artist for Peace.
Birthdate: 1906 AD
Died: December 28, 1987
Birthdate: 1140 AD
Birthplace: Tripoli, Lebanon
Died: August 31, 1187