Prince Amyn Muhammad Aga Khan (, ; born 12 September 1937) is a member of the

Noorani family The Noorani family is a term used to refer to the immediate family of the Imamate in Nizari doctrine, Imām of the Nizari Isma'ilism, Ismāʿīli Shia Islam, Shia Muslims, commonly known by the title of Aga Khan. The title of Highness, 'His Highn ...

. He is the only surviving son of Prince

Aly Khan Prince Aly Salomone Khan (13 June 1911 – 12 May 1960), known as Aly Khan, was an Ismaili sayyid, socialite and ambassador for Pakistan. He was the son of the Aga Khan III, and the father of Aga Khan IV. A socialite, racehorse owner and jock ...

and Princess Tajuddawlah Aga Khan (''née'' Joan Yarde-Buller) and the brother of

Aga Khan IV Prince Karim al-Husseini (13 December 1936 – 4 February 2025), known as the Aga Khan IV, was the 49th Imamah, imam of Imamate in Nizari doctrine, Nizari Isma'ilism from 1957 until his death in 2025. He inherited the Imamate in Nizari doctrine ...

, the 49th

Imam Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...

of the

Nizari Isma'ili Nizari Isma'ilism () are the largest segment of the Isma'ilism, Ismailis, who are the second-largest branch of Shia Islam after the Twelvers. Nizari teachings emphasise independent reasoning or ''ijtihad''; Pluralism (philosophy), pluralism— ...

sect of

Shia Islam Shia Islam is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political Succession to Muhammad, successor (caliph) and as the spiritual le ...

Early life and education

Prince Amyn was born on 12 September 1937 in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

. Like his elder brother, he attended the

Institut Le Rosey Institut Le Rosey (), commonly referred to as Le Rosey or simply Rosey, is a private school, private boarding school in Rolle, Switzerland. It was founded in 1880 by Paul-Émile Carnal on the site of the 14th-century Château du Rosey in the tow ...

and

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate education, undergraduate college of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Scienc ...

. He graduated from Harvard in 1960 with an A.B. ''magna cum laude'' in literature and economics. He further pursued graduate studies in comparative literature at Harvard, receiving an A.M. in comparative literature in 1963 whilst also studying at the

New England Conservatory The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. The conservatory is located on Huntington Avenue along Avenue of the Arts (Boston), the Avenue of the Arts near Boston Symphony Ha ...

. During his studies he was additionally engaged as a graduate instructor in French.

Professional and charitable activities

After completing his graduate studies he worked at the United Nations Secretariat for the

Department of Economic and Social Affairs The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) is part of the United Nations Secretariat and is responsible for the follow-up to major United Nations Summits and Conferences, as well as services to the United Nations Econ ...

from 1964 until 1968, after which time he took on leadership roles in a variety of Ismaili institutions. On 7 December 1974 he was invested as Chief Scout of the Ismaili Scouts Association in a ceremony in

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

. As of 2006, he was chairman of the executive committee of the

Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development SA is a Swiss for-profit entity and international development finance institution which invests in countries of East Africa, West Africa, Central Asia, and South Asia. It is based in Geneva, Switzerland. I ...

(AKFED) and of Tourism Promotion Services Ltd., parent company of the

Serena Hotels Tourism Promotion Services, doing business as Serena Hotels, is a hotel chain that operates hotels in East Africa, Southern Africa, and South Asia. The company is listed on the Nairobi Stock Exchange (NSE), where it trades under the symbol TPS. ...

chain and chairman of the Board of the Directors of the Aga Khan Museum. In December 2015, he was accredited as the Personal Representative of the Aga Khan to Bangladesh. He has variously been a member of the Acquisitions Committee of the

Louvre Museum The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

, Chairman of the Friends of the Domaine de Chantilly, a trustee of the

World Monuments Fund World Monuments Fund (WMF) is a private, international, non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of historic architecture and cultural heritage sites around the world through fieldwork, advocacy, grantmaking, education, and training ...

, and a director of the Silk Road Project. Prince Amin Aga Khan, brother of the spiritual leader of the Ismaili, who recently donated to Porto the painting "Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple", now guarded at the Soares dos Reis National Museum received the Medal of Honour of Porto City in a ceremony that took place on 9 July 2019. Prince Amin Aga Khan was awarded the city's Medal of Honour by the Mayor of the Porto Municipality, Rui Moreira who presided over a ceremony at the Casa do Roseiral, in the Gardens of the Palacio de Cristal. The medal was presented in honour of "a great patron of the arts." Prince Amyn Aga Khan represent the AKDN in the Governance of the Paris Peace Forum's Executive Committee and General Assembly as a Strategic Partner. The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) is a founding partner of the

Paris Peace Forum The Paris Peace Forum is a French non-profit organisation created in March 2018. The organisation hosts an annual gathering of world leaders and heads of international organisations, as well as leaders from civil society and private sectors and ...

, reinforcing its enduring collaboration with the French Republic and commitment to historic shared values of peace, human development and pluralism.

References

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Amyn Living people 1938 births New England Conservatory alumni Harvard College alumni . British Ismailis Noorani family Qajar dynasty Alumni of Institut Le Rosey Harvard University alumni British people of Iranian descent British people of Italian descent British expatriates in Switzerland People from Geneva 20th-century Muslim scholars of Islam 21st-century Muslim scholars of Islam People associated with the Louvre