The Most Famous

POLITICIANS from Kuwait

This page contains a list of the greatest Kuwaiti Politicians. The pantheon dataset contains 19,576 Politicians, 15 of which were born in Kuwait. This makes Kuwait the birth place of the 113th most number of Politicians behind Sudan, and Nicaragua.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Kuwaiti Politicians of all time. This list of famous Kuwaiti Politicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Kuwaiti Politicians.

1. Saud of Saudi Arabia (1902 - 1969)

With an HPI of 69.64, Saud of Saudi Arabia is the most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 65 different languages on wikipedia.

Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (Arabic: سعود بن عبد العزيز آل سعود; 15 January 1902 – 23 February 1969) was King of Saudi Arabia from 9 November 1953 until his abdication on 2 November 1964. During his reign, he served as Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia from 1953 to 1954 and from 1960 to 1962. Prior to his accession, Saud was the country's crown prince from 11 May 1933 to 9 November 1953. He was the second son of King Abdulaziz, the founder of Saudi Arabia. Saud was the second son of King Abdulaziz and Wadha bint Muhammad Al Orair. The death of Saud's elder brother, Prince Turki, in 1919 poised Saud to become his father's successor; King Abdulaziz appointed him as the crown prince of Saudi Arabia in 1933. Saud served as a commander in Abdulaziz's conquests that led to the establishment of Saudi Arabia in 1932. He was the viceroy of Nejd from 1926 to 1932, and he also represented his father in neighboring countries. He played a role in the financial reforms of Saudi Arabia, preparing the first state budget in 1948 and establishing the Saudi Central Bank in 1952. Saud also oversaw the country's infrastructural development. Upon his father's death in 1953, Saud ascended the throne and reorganized the government. He founded the convention that the king of Saudi Arabia presides over the Council of Ministers. Saud sought to maintain friendly relations with the United States, whilst also supporting other Arab countries in their conflicts against Israel. Under his reign, Saudi Arabia joined the Non-Aligned Movement in 1961. However, Saud's inability to counter the Saudi national debt brought him into a power struggle with his half-brother and crown prince, Faisal, culminating in the forced abdication of Saud and the proclamation of Faisal as king. Saud went into exile and made an unsuccessful attempt, supported by some of his sons, to take back the throne. He died in Athens, Greece, in 1969.

2. Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (1937 - 2023)

With an HPI of 68.53, Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is the 2nd most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 54 different languages.

Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (Arabic: نَوَّاف الأَحمَد الْجَابِر الصَّباح, romanized: Nawwāf al-ʾAḥmad al-Jābir aṣ-Ṣabāḥ; 25 June 1937 – 16 December 2023) was Emir of Kuwait from 2020 until his death in 2023. He was minister of interior (1978–1988, 2003–2006), minister of defense (1988–1991) and deputy prime minister (2020–2023). Nawaf was nominated as crown prince on 7 February 2006, during the reign of his half-brother Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. During his three-year rule as emir, he grappled with internal political disputes.

3. Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (1929 - 2020)

With an HPI of 66.95, Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is the 3rd most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 63 different languages.

Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (Arabic: الشيخ صباح الأحمد الجابر الصباح, romanized: ash-Shaykh Sabāh al-ʾAḥmad al-Jābir aṣ-Ṣabāḥ; 16 June 1929 – 29 September 2020) was the Emir of Kuwait from 24 January 2006 until his death in 2020. He was the fourth son of Sheikh Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.

4. Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (b. 1940)

With an HPI of 64.91, Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is the 4th most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 37 different languages.

Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (born 27 September 1940) is Emir of Kuwait, reigning since 2023. Mishal spent most of his career in Kuwait's security and intelligence apparatus. Prior to becoming Emir at age 83, he was the oldest crown prince in the world.

5. Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah (1926 - 2006)

With an HPI of 62.11, Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah is the 5th most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 40 different languages.

Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (29 June 1926 – 15 January 2006) (Arabic: الشيخ جابر الأحمد الجابر الصباح, romanized: ash-Shaykh Jābir al-ʾAḥmad al-Jābir aṣ-Ṣabāḥ) or Jaber III was Emir of Kuwait from 31 December 1977 until his death in 2006. The third monarch to rule Kuwait since its independence from Britain, Jaber had previously served as minister of finance and economy from 1962 to 1965 when he was appointed prime minister prior to becoming Kuwait's ruler. He was the 13th ruler in the family dynasty.

6. Saad Al-Salim Al-Sabah (1930 - 2008)

With an HPI of 59.75, Saad Al-Salim Al-Sabah is the 6th most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 29 different languages.

Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah (Arabic: سعد العبد الله السالم الصباح, romanized: Saʿad al-ʿAbdullāh as-Sālim as-Sabāh) (13 May 1930 – 13 May 2008) was the Emir of Kuwait from 15 January 2006, succeeding Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, until abdicating nine days later on 24 January. Prior to that he had been Prime Minister of Kuwait from 1978 to 2006. Saad was a general commander in the Military of Kuwait; in addition, the first to head the Kuwaiti Ministry of Interior until 16 February 1978 and the first military officer to head the Ministry of Defense since 1964.

7. Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (1885 - 1950)

With an HPI of 59.01, Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is the 7th most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Sheikh Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (1885 – 29 January 1950) (Arabic: الشيخ أحمد الجابر الصباح) was the tenth ruler of the Sheikhdom of Kuwait from 29 March 1921 until his death on 29 January 1950. He was the longest reigning ruler of Kuwait having reigned for a total 28 years and 305 days.

8. Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah (1895 - 1965)

With an HPI of 56.43, Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah is the 8th most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah (Arabic: الشيخ عبد الله الثالث السالم الصباح‎, 1895 – 24 November 1965) was the eleventh ruler of the Sheikhdom of Kuwait from 1950 to 1961 and the first Emir of the State of Kuwait after the country gained its independence from Great Britain on 19 June 1961.

9. Mubarak Al-Sabah (1837 - 1915)

With an HPI of 56.34, Mubarak Al-Sabah is the 9th most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Mubarak Al-Sabah (c. 1837 – 28 November 1915) (Arabic: الشيخ مبارك بن صباح الصباح) "the Great" (Arabic: مبارك الكبير), nicknamed "The lion of the peninsula" (Arabic: أسد الجزيرة), was the seventh ruler of the Sheikhdom of Kuwait, from 18 May 1896 until his death on 18 November 1915. Mubarak ascended the throne after assassinating his predecessor and half-brother, Muhammad Al-Sabah. Known for his significant role in shaping modern Kuwait, the constitution of the State of Kuwait mandates that the Emir of Kuwait must be a descendant of Mubarak from the ruling Al-Sabah family. Mubarak was the seventh ruler of the Al-Sabah dynasty. Mubarak was also the father of two rulers of Kuwait who succeeded him, Jaber and Salim, from which the Al-Jaber and Al-Salim in the Al-Sabah family branches originated respectively, and is the paternal ancestor of all successive rulers and prime ministers of Kuwait. Mubarak signed the Anglo-Kuwaiti Treaty with Great Britain on 23 November 1899, pledging himself and his successors not to receive foreign agents or representatives or to cede or sell territory without the approval of the British government; with this agreement, and the guarantee it represented to Kuwait and the Al-Sabah family, he is regarded as the founder of modern-day Kuwait. German explorer Hermann Burchardt photographed Mubarak in 1903, in what is now an iconic photograph.

10. Sabah I bin Jaber (1700 - 1776)

With an HPI of 55.90, Sabah I bin Jaber is the 10th most famous Kuwaiti Politician. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Sheikh Abu Salman Sabah I bin Jaber Al Sabah (Arabic: أبو سلمان صباح بن جابر الصباح الأول) (c. 1700–1762) was the first ruler of the Sheikhdom of Kuwait. He was chosen by his community for the position of sheikh.

People

Pantheon has 18 people classified as Kuwaiti politicians born between 1700 and 1966. Of these 18, 6 (33.33%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Kuwaiti politicians include Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Nasser Al-Sabah, and Alaa Hussein Ali. The most famous deceased Kuwaiti politicians include Saud of Saudi Arabia, Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, and Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. As of April 2024, 3 new Kuwaiti politicians have been added to Pantheon including Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Alaa Hussein Ali, and Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.