Famous people from Tunisia
Here is a list of famous people from Tunisia. Curious if anybody from Tunisia made it our most famous people in the world list? Read the aformentioned article in order to find out.
Hannibal
Politician
Hannibal, son of Hamilcar Barca was a Punic Carthaginian military commander, generally considered one of the greatest military commanders in history. His father, Hamilcar Barca, was the leading Carthaginian commander during the First Punic War, his younger brothers were Mago and Hasdrubal, and he was brother-in-law to Hasdrubal the Fair. Hannibal lived during a period of great tension in the Mediterranean, when the Roman Republic established its supremacy over other great powers such as Carthage, the Hellenistic kingdoms of Macedon, Syracuse, and the Seleucid empire. One of his most famous achievements was at the outbreak of the Second Punic War, when he marched an army, which included war elephants, from Iberia over the Pyrenees and the Alps into northern Italy. In his first few years in Italy, he won three dramatic victories—Trebia, Trasimene, and Cannae, in which he distinguished himself for his ability to determine his and his opponent's strengths and weaknesses, and to play the battle to his strengths and the enemy's weaknesses—and won over many allies of Rome. Hannibal occupied much of Italy for 15 years, but a Roman counter-invasion of North Africa forced him to return to Carthage, where he was decisively defeated by Scipio Africanus at the Battle of Zama. Scipio had studied Hannibal's tactics and brilliantly devised some of his own, and finally defeated Rome's nemesis at Zama, having previously driven Hasdrubal, Hannibal's brother, out of the Iberian Peninsula.
Tertullian
Author
Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicised as Tertullian, was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He is the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of Latin Christian literature. He also was a notable early Christian apologist and a polemicist against heresy. Tertullian has been called "the father of Latin Christianity" and "the founder of Western theology." Though conservative, he did originate and advance new theology to the early Church. He is perhaps most famous for being the oldest extant Latin writer to use the term Trinity, and giving the oldest extant formal exposition of a Trinitarian theology. Other Latin formulations that first appear in his work are "three Persons, one Substance" as the Latin "tres Personae, una Substantia". He wrote his trinitarian formula after becoming a Montanist. However, unlike many Church fathers, he was never canonized by the Catholic Church, as several of his later teachings directly contradicted the actions and teachings of the apostles.
Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
Politician
Zine El Abidine Ben Ali is a Tunisian political figure who was the second President of Tunisia from 1987 to 2011. Ben Ali was appointed Prime Minister in October 1987, and he assumed the Presidency on 7 November 1987 in a bloodless coup d'état that ousted President Habib Bourguiba, who was declared incompetent. Ben Ali was subsequently reelected with enormous majorities, each time exceeding 90% of the vote; the final reelection was on 25 October 2009. On 14 January 2011, following a month of protests against his rule, he was forced to flee to Saudi Arabia along with his wife Leïla Ben Ali and their three children. The interim Tunisian government asked for Interpol to issue an international arrest warrant, charging him for money laundering and drugs trafficking. A Tunisian court sentenced Ben Ali and his wife in absentia to 35 years in prison on 20 June 2011 on charges of theft and unlawful possession of cash and jewellery. In June 2012, a Tunisian court sentenced him in absentia to life imprisonment for inciting violence and murder and another life sentence by a military court on April 2013 for violent repression of protests in Sfax.
Cyprian
Deceased Person
Cyprian was bishop of Carthage and an important Early Christian writer, many of whose Latin works are extant. He was born around the beginning of the 3rd century in North Africa, perhaps at Carthage, where he received a classical education. After converting to Christianity, he became a bishop in 249 and eventually died a martyr at Carthage.
Abdellatif Kechiche
Film Director
Abdellatif Kechiche is a Tunisian-French actor, film director and screenwriter. He made his directorial debut in 2000 with La Faute à Voltaire, aka Poetical Refugee, which he also wrote.
Terence
Playwright
Publius Terentius Afer, better known in English as Terence, was a playwright of the Roman Republic, of North African descent. His comedies were performed for the first time around 170–160 BC. Terentius Lucanus, a Roman senator, brought Terence to Rome as a slave, educated him and later on, impressed by his abilities, freed him. Terence apparently died young, probably in Greece or on his way back to Rome. All of the six plays Terence wrote have survived. One famous quotation by Terence reads: "Homo sum, humani nihil a me alienum puto", or "I am a human being, I consider nothing that is human alien to me." This appeared in his play Heauton Timorumenos.
Habib Bourguiba
Politician
Habib Bourguiba was a Tunisian statesman, the Founder and the first President of the Republic of Tunisia from July 25, 1957 to 7 November 1987.
Marc Gicquel
Tennis Player
Marc Gicquel is a professional male tennis player from France.
Mohamed Bouazizi
Man
Tarek al-Tayeb Mohamed Bouazizi was a Tunisian street vendor who set himself on fire on 17 December 2010, in protest of the confiscation of his wares and the harassment and humiliation that he reported was inflicted on him by a municipal official and her aides. His act became a catalyst for the Tunisian Revolution and the wider Arab Spring, inciting demonstrations and riots throughout Tunisia in protest of social and political issues in the country. The public's anger and violence intensified following Bouazizi's death, leading then-President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to step down on 14 January 2011, after 23 years in power. The success of the Tunisian protests inspired protests in several other Arab countries, plus several non-Arab countries. The protests included several men who emulated Bouazizi's act of self-immolation, in an attempt to bring an end to their own autocratic governments. Those men and Bouazizi were hailed by Arab commentators as "heroic martyrs of a new Middle Eastern revolution." In 2011, Bouazizi was posthumously awarded the Sakharov Prize jointly along with four others for his and their contributions to "historic changes in the Arab world". The Tunisian government honored him with a postage stamp. The Times of the United Kingdom named Bouazizi as person of the year 2011.
Oussama Mellouli
Swimmer
Oussama "Ous" Mellouli is a Tunisian swimmer who competes in the freestyle and medley events. He is a three-time Olympic medalist, is an African record holder, and trains with the USC Trojans team based at the University of Southern California, where he went to school and swam collegiately. Oussama Mellouli became the 1500 m freestyle World champion at the 2009 World Aquatics Championships with a winning time of 14:37.28, then the second best performance of all time. Mellouli is the gold medalist in the 1500 freestyle at the 2008 Olympics, the bronze medalist in the 1500 freestyle at the 2012 Olympics, and the gold medalist in the 10 km marathon swim at the 2012 Olympics. Mellouli tested positive in a 2006 drug test, after which his performances in the 2007 World Championships were nullified.
Saber Khelifa
Soccer
Saber Khelifa is a Tunisian international footballer who plays professionally for French side Marseille, as a winger and striker
Bertrand Delanoë
Politician
Bertrand Delanoë is a French politician, and has been the mayor of Paris since 2001. He is member of the Socialist Party.
Max Azria
Fashion Designer
Max Azria is a French fashion designer, who founded the contemporary women's clothing brand BCBG Max Azria. Azria is also the designer, chairman and CEO of BCBG Max Azria Group, a global fashion house that encompasses over 20 brands. He is based in Los Angeles.
Hamilcar Barca
Military Person
Hamilcar Barca or Barcas was a Carthaginian general and statesman of Cyrene origin, leader of the Barcid family, and father of Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago. He was also father-in-law to Hasdrubal the Fair. The name Hamilcar was a common name for Carthaginian men. The name Brq means "thunderbolt" in the Punic language and is thus equivalent to the epithet or cognomen Keraunos, common among many contemporary Greek commanders. The word remains in Arabic and Hebrew with the same meaning. Hamilcar commanded the Carthaginian land forces in Sicily from 247 BC to 241 BC, during the latter stages of the First Punic War. He kept his army intact and led a successful guerrilla war against the Romans in Sicily. Hamilcar retired to Africa after the peace treaty in 241 BC, following the defeat of Carthage. When the Mercenary War burst out in 240 BC, Hamilcar was recalled to command and was instrumental in concluding that conflict successfully. Hamilcar commanded the Carthaginian expedition to Spain in 237 BC, and for eight years expanded the territory of Carthage in Spain before dying in battle in 228 BC. He may have been responsible for creating the strategy which his son Hannibal implemented in the Second Punic War to bring the Roman Republic close to defeat.
Azzedine Alaia
Fashion Designer
Azzedine Alaïa is a Tunisian-born couturier and shoe designer, particularly successful since the 1980s.
Dany Brillant
Singer
Daniel Cohen-Biran better known as Dany Brillant is a Tunisian-Jewish-French vocalist. Born in Tunis, his parents immigrated to France while he was a newborn infant. They settled in Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois near Paris. His uncle Nathan, was a famous luth player and interpreter of oriental music. At 12, Dany Brilliant's family moved to Paris and at 14 his grandfather gave him a guitar. He started performing at various events, including important debut at cabaret "Aux Trois Mailletz" where he got his artistic name. His adopted the name Brillant comes after Jacques Boni, the owner of the cabaret invited him to stage by saying: "Dany! Sois brillant!". In June 2005, Brillant appeared on Les stars chantent leurs idoles, on France 2, alongside stars such as Julio Iglesias and Il Divo.
Moncef Marzouki
Politician
Moncef Marzouki is interim President of Tunisia. Through his career he has been a human rights activist, physician and politician. On 12 December 2011, he was elected President of Tunisia by the Constituent Assembly.
Hasdrubal
Military Person
Hasdrubal II was Hamilcar Barca's second son and a Carthaginian general in the Second Punic War. He was the brother of the much more famous Hannibal.
Mohamed Brahmi
Politician
Mohamed Brahmi was a Tunisian politician. Brahmi was the founder and former leader of the People's Movement, which, under his leadership, won two seats in the constituent election in 2011.
Amina
Pop Artist
Amina Annabi is a French-Tunisian singer-songwriter and actress, most famous for finishing second in the tied 1991 Eurovision Song Contest, held in Rome. Amina finished second after a countback, scoring equal 146 points alongside Carola from Sweden.
Nicola Pietrangeli
Tennis Tournament Champion
Nicola "Nicky" Pietrangeli is a former tennis player from Italy. He is considered by many to be Italy's greatest-ever tennis champion.
Malek Jaziri
Tennis Player
Malek Jaziri is a professional Tunisian tennis player. Jaziri reached his highest individual ranking on the ATP Tour on June 11, 2012, when he became world number 69. He appeared in the qualifying draw at the 2010 Australian Open, losing in the first round to Michał Przysiężny of Poland. He primarily plays on the Futures circuit and the Challenger circuit. Jaziri qualified for the 2011 US Open, defeating Brian Dabul, Michael Ryderstedt, and Guillaume Rufin in the qualifying draw. This is the first time that Jaziri has played in the main draw of a major. In the first round, Jaziri defeated World No. 159 Thiemo de Bakker in four sets. Jaziri lost to World No. 8 Mardy Fish 6–2 6–2 6–4 in the second round. In 2012, he kicked off his year at the ATP 250 event in Doha and pushed the then World No6 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to three sets in the first round, eventually losing 6–7, 7–6, 1–6. He fell in the first round of qualifying at the Australian Open to Tim Smyczek. He then reached three Challenger finals in Quimper, Kyoto and Pingguo to break into the top-100 for the first time. In his clay season, he made the semi-finals in the Barletta Challenger and played his first Roland Garros main draw, winning his first round 6–3, 7–5, 7–6 over German Philipp Petzschner before losing a tight second round 6–7, 6–3, 1–6, 6–3, 5–7 to Spanish world No23 Marcel Granollers.
Latifa
Arab Artist
Latifa Bint Alayah Al Arfaoui, better known as Latifa, is an Arab pop singer, Latifa standing for gentle in Arabic.
Anouar Brahem
Musical Artist
Anouar Brahem is an oud player and composer. He is widely acclaimed as an innovator in his field. Performing primarily for a jazz audience, he fuses Arab classical music, folk music and jazz and has been recording since at least 1991, after becoming prominent in his own country in the late 1980s.
Rashid al-Ghannushi
Politician
Rachid al-Ghannouchi, whose name is also transliterated as Rached al-Ghannouchi or Rashid al-Ghannushi and whose birth-name has been stated to be Rashid Khriji, is a Tunisian politician, born in 1941, who co-founded the En-Nahda Movement, currently the largest party in Tunisia. He has been called the party's "intellectual leader". He is one of the world’s leading Islamic thinkers, writing on Islam and modernity, democracy and secularism, relations between East and West, human rights and civil society and his writings have had an influence on political and religious thought across the Arab and Muslim worlds. He was named as one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in the World in 2012 and Foreign Policy’s Top 100 Global Thinkers and was awarded the Chatham House Prize 2012 by Prince Andrew, Duke of York, for "the successful compromises each achieved during Tunisia's democratic transition".
F.R. David
Euro disco Artist
F. R. David is a Tunisian-born French singer.
Dhafer Youssef
Jazz fusion Artist
Dhafer Youssef is a composer, singer and oud player. He developed an interest in jazz at an early age and clandestinely listened to it during his education at a Qur'anic school. He later left Tunisia to start a jazz career and has lived in Europe since 1990, usually in Paris or Vienna. He also works in avant garde and world music where he has been nominated for awards. He has released four albums of his own and also did notable work with Sardinian trumpeter Paolo Fresu and the Norwegian guitarist Eivind Aarset. He indicates an affinity for the music of India and Nordic music. He was a guest artist on the Norwegian jazz artist Bugge Wesseltoft's album FiLM iNG. Youssef has also performed with Uri Caine, Jon Hassell, Markus Stockhausen, Nguyên Lê and the Cuban pianist Omar Sosa. In 2001 he recorded Electric Sufi with the ex-Sugar Hill Gang and Tackhead rhythm section of Will Calhoun and Doug Wimbish.
Youssef Msakni
Soccer Midfielder
Youssef Msakni is a Tunisian professional footballer who plays for Qatar Stars League club Lekhwiya SC.
Hamadi Jebali
Politician
Hamadi Jebali is a Tunisian engineer, Islamist politician and journalist who was Prime Minister of Tunisia from December 2011 to March 2013. He is the Secretary-General of the Ennahda Movement, a moderate Islamist party in Tunisia.
Carlos Marcello
Man
Carlos "The Little Man" Marcello was a Italian-American mafioso who became the boss of the New Orleans crime family during the 1940s and held this position for the next 30 years.
Leïla Ben Ali
Politician
Leïla Ben Ali, is the wife of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the former president of the Tunisian Republic. She was the president of the defunct Arab Women Organization and chair of the Basma Association, a charitable organization working to secure employment for the disabled. In July 2010, Mrs. Ben Ali founded the extinct SAIDA, to improve care for cancer patients in Tunisia. During the Tunisian revolution in 2010/11, she fled with her husband and three children into exile in Saudi Arabia. During her time as First Lady of Tunisia, she is believed of having enriched herself and her family through gross corruption and embezzlement of state money to finance a lavish lifestyle, factors which contributed to the protests against the regime of Ben Ali at the end of 2010. She is currently wanted by Interpol on behest of the Tunisian judiciary for high treason and money laundering.
Marcel Dadi
Guitarist
Marcel Dadi was a Tunisian-born Jewish French guitarist known for his finger-picking style which faithfully recreated the instrumental styles of American guitarists such as Chet Atkins, Merle Travis and Jerry Reed. He became a personal friend of country star Chet Atkins. Born in Sousse, Dadi released several LPs and some instructional videos before his early death. His recordings featured a mix of compositions by his American heroes and original compositions of his own in a similar style. A feature of his early LPs was that they included a tablature booklet, allowing guitarists to learn the tunes for themselves. Dadi often recorded tunes dedicated to his friends, such as "Roger Chesterfield," dedicated to Roger C. Field with whom he first went to Nashville in 1975 to visit Chet Atkins. Dadi died when N93119, the Boeing 747 on TWA Flight 800, exploded off the coast of Long Island. He was returning from the United States to France after being honored at Nashville's Country Music Hall of Fame. He is buried in Jerusalem, Israel.
Oussama Darragi
Soccer Midfielder
Oussama Darragi is a professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or a playmaker. He currently plays for Ligue 1 side Espérance Sportive de Tunis and the Tunisian national football team.
Pope Victor I
Religious Leader
Pope Victor I was bishop of Rome or pope; the dates of his tenure are uncertain, but one source states he became pope in 189 and gives the year of his death as 199. He was the first bishop of Rome born in the Roman Province of Africa—probably in Leptis Magna. He was later canonized. His feast day is celebrated on 28 July as "St Victor I, Pope and Martyr". The primary sources vary over the dates assigned to Victor’s episcopate, but indicate it included the last decade of the second century. Eusebius puts his accession in the tenth year of Commodius, which is accepted by Lipsius as the correct date. Jerome’s version of the Chronicle puts his accession in the reign of Pertinax, or the first year of Septimius Severus, while the Armenian version puts it in the seventh year of Commodus. The Liber Pontificalis dates his accession to the consulate of Commodius and Glabrio, while the Liberian Catalogue, a surviving copy of the source the Liber Pontificalis drew its information for its chronology, is damaged at this point Concerning the duration of his episcopate, Eusebius, in his History, does not state directly the duration of his episcopate, but the Armenian version of Eusebius' Chronicle gives it as twelve years. The Liberian Catalogue gives his episcopate a length of nine years two months and ten days, while the Liber Pontificalis states it was ten years and the same number of months and days; the Felician Catalogue something over ten. Finally, Eusebius in his History states Zephyrinus succeeded him "about the ninth year of Severus", while the Liber Pontificalis dates it to the consulate of Laternus and Rufinus. Lipsius, considering Victor in connection with his successors, concludes that he held office between nine and ten years, and therefore gives as his dates 189–198 or 199.
Julia of Corsica
Deceased Person
Saint Julia of Corsica, also known as Saint Julia of Carthage, and more rarely Saint Julia of Nonza, was a virgin martyr who is venerated as a Christian saint. The date of her death is most probably on or after AD 439. She, along with Saint Devota, are the patron saints of Corsica in the Catholic Church. Saint Julia was declared a patroness of Corsica by the Church on August 5, 1809; Saint Devota, on March 14, 1820. Both were martyred in pre-Christian Corsica under Roman rule. Julia's feast day is May 22 in the Roman liturgical calendar. Saint Julia is included in most summary lives of the saints. The details of those lives vary, but a few basic accounts emerge, portraying biographical data and events that are not reconcilable. Various theories accounting for the differences have been proposed. The quintessential icon of Saint Julia derives from the testimony of Victor Vitensis, contemporaneous Bishop of Africa. It is supported by physical evidence: the relics, a small collection of human bone fragments, which are where historical events subsequent to the story say they ought to be, at the former Church of Santa Giulia in Brescia, Italy, now part of the city museum.
Beji Caid el Sebsi
Politician
Beji Caid el Sebsi is a Tunisian lawyer and politician. From 27 February 2011 to 24 December 2011, he was the Prime Minister of Tunisia.
Hend Sabri
Actor
Hend Sabry is a Tunisian actress. Recently she starred as "'Ola" in the comedic Arab television drama "'Ayza Atgawiz." She played the main protagonist in the series in which her character is obsessed with getting married and goes through dozens of prospective fiances until in the end she doesn't get married. In 2010 she was appointed an ambassador against hunger by the UN World Food Programme. The business magazine Arabian Business listed her among the '100 most powerful Arab women' in 2013.
Hatem Trabelsi
Soccer
Hatem Trabelsi is a former Tunisian footballer. A right-sided defender or midfielder, he has played for CS Sfaxien, Ajax Amsterdam, Manchester City and Al-Hilal Riyadh. He has represented the Tunisian national team in three World Cups, gaining a total of 66 caps before retiring from international football in 2006.
Roberto Blanco
Musical Artist
Roberto Blanco, was born 7 June 1937 in Tunis, Tunisia. Of Afro-Cuban origin, Blanco is a German-speaking Schlager singer and actor.
Sandra Milo
Actor
Sandra Milo is an Italian actress. She is perhaps best known for her roles in Federico Fellini's 8½ and Juliet of the Spirits, winning a Silver Ribbon best supporting actress award for each film.
Silvan Shalom
Politician
Silvan Shalom is an Israeli politician who currently serves as a member of the Knesset for Likud and Minister for Regional Development, Minister for the Development of the Negev and Galilee and Minister of Energy and Water. He previously served as the country's Foreign Minister, Finance Minister, Science Minister and Vice Prime Minister.
Karim Haggui
Soccer
Karim Haggui is a Tunisian football defender. He currently plays for VfB Stuttgart.
Salah Mejri
Basketball player
Salah Al-Mejri is a Tunisian professional basketball player for Real Madrid of the Spanish League. He plays at the center position, and is 7 ft 1.5 in tall.
Mohamed Ghannouchi
Politician
Mohamed Ghannouchi is the former Prime Minister of Tunisia and was self-proclaimed acting President of the country for a few hours starting 14 January 2011, under Article 56 of the Constitution of Tunisia. Regarded as a technocrat, Ghannouchi has been a long-standing figure in the Tunisian government; he was Minister of Finance from 1989 to 1992, Minister of International Cooperation from 1992 to 1999, and Prime Minister of Tunisia from 1999 to 2011, making him the longest serving prime minister since the proclamation of independence, surpassing his predecessor Hamed Karoui.
Aymen Abdennour
Soccer
Aymen Abdennour is a Tunisian footballer who currently plays for French club Toulouse in Ligue 1.
Issam Jemâa
Soccer
Issam Jemâa is a Tunisian footballer. He plays as a striker for Kuwaiti Premier League club Kuwait SC. He started his footballing career for Espérance Sportive de Tunis, and was later signed by French side Lens. Also a Tunisian international since 2005, he is the top goal scorer in all history of the Tunisian national team.
Michel Boujenah
Actor
Michel Boujenah is a French actor, comedian, film director and screenwriter.
Aemilianus
Monarch
Aemilianus, also known as Aemilian, was Roman Emperor for three months in 253. Commander of the Moesian troops, he obtained an important victory against the invading Goths and was, for this reason, acclaimed Emperor by his army. He then moved quickly to Italy, where he defeated Emperor Trebonianus Gallus, only to be killed by his own men when another general, Valerian, proclaimed himself Emperor and moved against Aemilian with a larger army.
Hinda Hicks
Pop Artist
Hinda Hicks is a Tunisian born singer, with British nationality having moved to West Sussex as a child.
Ali Laarayedh
Politician
Ali Laarayedh is a Tunisian politician who has been Prime Minister of Tunisia since 2013. Previously he served in the government as the Minister of the Interior from 2011 to 2013. Following the resignation of Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali, Laarayedh was designated as Prime Minister in February 2013. He is a member of the Ennahda Movement.
Yassine Chikhaoui
Soccer Midfielder
Yassine Chikhaoui is a Tunisian footballer who currently plays as a winger for FC Zürich.
Claude Bartolone
Politician
Claude Bartolone is a French politician. He has served as President of the National Assembly of France since June 2012. A Socialist, he has been elected to the National Assembly, representing the Seine-Saint-Denis department, since 1981. He served in the government as Minister for the City from 1998 to 2002, and he has been President of the General Council of Seine-Saint-Denis since 2008. He is a member of the SRC parliamentary coalition.
Élie Kakou
Actor
Élie Kakou was a French actor and humorist, born in Nabeul, Tunisia.
Tarak Ben Ammar
Businessperson
Tarak Ben Ammar is an international movie producer and distributor, He is famous for his interest in artistic movies, especially when they are related to Mediterranean culture or require North African locations. His producing credits include the Franco Zeffirelli film adaptation of La Traviata and Claude Chabrol's Death Rite. On 19 May 2010, he announced a "strategic relationship" with the Weinstein Company. Ben Ammar became well known in France at the beginning of 2004 when he decided to distribute The Passion of The Christ after everybody else declined. He appeared on television talk shows, defending the movie. He is also known as the advisor of international investor Prince Al Waleed Bin Talal Bin Abdul Aziz, and French businessman Vincent Bolloré. He was raised in the Muslim religion. Ben Ammar currently lives in France, with two of his three sons, Neil and Tarak Jr., and his daughter Sonia. The children currently attend the American School of Paris. He was formerly a manager of Michael Jackson's HIStory World Tour.
Aboul-Qacem Echebbi
Author
Aboul-Qacem Echebbi was a Tunisian poet. He is probably best known for writing the final two verses of the current National Anthem of Tunisia, Humat al-Hima, that was written originally by the Egyptian poet Mustafa Sadik el-Rafii. Echebbi was born in Tozeur, Tunisia, on 24 February 1909, the son of a judge. He obtained his attatoui diploma in 1928. In 1930, he obtained a law diploma from the University of Ez-Zitouna. The same year, he married and subsequently had two sons, Mohamed Sadok, who became a colonel in the Tunisian army, and Jelal, who later became an engineer. He was very interested in modern literature in particular, and translated romantic literature, as well as old Arab literature. His poetic talent manifested itself at an early age and this poetry covered numerous topics, from the description of nature to patriotism. His poems appeared in the most prestigious Tunisian and Middle-Eastern reviews. His poem To the tyrants of the world became a popular slogan chant during the 2011 Tunisian and subsequently Egyptian demonstrations. Echebbi died on 9 October 1934 at the Habib-Thameur Hospital in Tunis, Tunisia following a long history of cardiac disorders. His portrait is on the current 30 DT note.
Loris Azzaro
Fashion Designer
Loris Azzaro was a French fashion designer. He was born in Tunisia of Sicilian parents and went to Paris to set up his cloth and perfume lines in 1962. By 1968 his business was a huge success. He was well known for making glamorous party dresses for the elite of French society. Often his creations featured ornate beading and daring cut outs. He was also known to use brightly colored chains woven onto shirts to make intricate chainmail dresses and tops. Over the course of his long career he dressed numerous celebrities including Dalida, Sophia Loren, Raquel Welch, Marisa Berenson, Claudia Cardinale, Isabelle Adjani, Kate Winslet and Nicole Kidman. Azzaro's collections are always named alphabetically by season. The first season's collection featured clothing all given names starting with an A, the next with B names and so on. Azzaro admitted that he would sometimes skip a letter like Q, X or Z because it was too hard to find names for those letters. Azzaro released a wide range of products including women's and men's clothing lines and accessories as well as a wide range of fragrances. in 1975 he created his first fragrance for women, "Couture", which became his signature scent. Over time Azzaro became known for his fragrances as much as his clothing. His favourite colour was blue as he quoted: "The blue colour is the colour that suits me". His inspirations came from the surroundings of his country of birth, Tunisia: "I let myself get carried by the atmosphere of the country of my childhood with its spiced odors, its colors, its flowers and its perfumes. It is the country where I really become myself, the country where my preferred color is everywhere, azure of the sea and the sky.”
Mohammed Gammoudi
Olympic athlete
Mohammed Tlili ben Abdallah, also known as Mohamed Gammoudi, is a former Tunisian athlete, and winner of 5000 metres at the 1968 Summer Olympics. Born in Sidi Aïch, in Tunisia, Mohammed Gammoudi was one of the pioneers of the African long distance running revolution that changed the face of the sport in the final decades of the 20th century.
Philippe Séguin
Politician
Philippe Séguin was a French political figure who was President of the National Assembly from 1993 to 1997 and President of the Cour des Comptes of France from 2004 to 2010. He entered the Court of Financial Auditors in 1970, but he began a political career in the Neo-Gaullist party RPR. In 1978, he was elected to the National Assembly as a deputy for the Vosges département. He was Mayor of Epinal between 1983 and 1997. Representing the social tradition of the Gaullism, he was Minister of Social Affairs in Jacques Chirac's cabinet, from 1986 to 1988. After Chirac's defeat at the 1988 presidential election, he allied with Charles Pasqua and criticized the abandonment of Gaullist doctrine by the RPR executive. He accused Alain Juppé and Édouard Balladur of wanting an alignment on liberal and pro-European policies. In 1992, he played a leading role in the No campaign against the Maastricht Treaty. On the eve of the vote he opposed President François Mitterrand in a televised debate. As president of the National Assembly from 1993 to 1997, he supported the winning candidacy of Jacques Chirac at the 1995 presidential election. He inspired the theme of Chirac's campaign which was named "the social fracture".
Ali Benhadj
Politician
Ali Benhadj was the Vice-President of the Islamic Salvation Front. Born in 1956 in Tunis to parents of Mauritanian origin from the wilaya of Adrar in Algeria, Belhadj became a teacher of Arabic and an Islamist activist in the 1970s. In 1989, after the Algerian Constitution was changed to allow multiparty democracy, he helped found the Islamic Salvation Front, an Islamic party which won the only ever free elections in Algeria since its independence. During this period, he was a preacher at the famous Al-Sunna mosque in Bab el-Oued, a popular district in Algiers. In 1991, soon after FIS had finished a strike and massive demonstrations in Algiers, he, along with FIS president Abassi Madani, was arrested and jailed on charges of threatening state security. In late 1991, FIS won the first round of parliamentary elections, which were then called off by the military, who banned FIS; Belhadj remained in jail throughout most of the Algerian Civil War that followed, and was released only after serving a 12-year sentence in 2003 under the condition of abstaining from all political activity. Belhadj is in possession of a certain charismatic talent, his speech is more poetic than rational.
Albert Memmi
Novelist
Albert Memmi is a French writer and essayist of Tunisian-Jewish origin.
Radhi Jaïdi
Soccer
Radhi Ben Abdelmajid Jaïdi is a retired Tunisian footballer. He played as a centre back.
Zoubeir Baya
Soccer Midfielder
Zoubeir Baya is a football player with a distinguished career as one of Tunisia's most accomplished soccer exports. Baya, an attacking midfielder, displayed considerable skill and enterprise on the international scene and provided the North African nation with vast international experience. Twice named Tunisian Footballer of the Year, Baya suited up for his country at the 1998 World Cup in France and at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. He was also a key member of Tunisian sides that competed at the 1998, 2000 and 2002 African Nations Cup finals. He made his international swansong at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, retiring shortly afterwards. Baya began his soccer career at Etoile de Sahel, helping the Tunisian club win the African Cup Winners' Cup. He made his debut for Tunisia on 4 September 1994 against Guinea-Bissau where he scored his first international goal. Over the past eight years, he has become an integral player for his country, earning 81 caps and scoring 18 goals for his country. His hard work at Etoile de Sahel did not go unnoticed, as 2. Bundesliga club SC Freiburg signed him to a contract in 1997. In four seasons in Germany, Baya established himself as a star player and a regular starter, scoring 21 goals.
Hamida Djandoubi
Deceased Person
Hamida Djandoubi was the last person to be guillotined in France, at Baumettes Prison in Marseille. He was a Tunisian immigrant who had been convicted of the torture and murder of 21-year-old Elisabeth Bousquet, his former girlfriend, in Marseille. Marcel Chevalier served as chief executioner.
Selima Sfar
Tennis Player
Selima Sfar is a Tunisian female professional tennis player. She turned professional in 1999 and has been ranked as high as 75th in the world. She has experienced most of her success in ITF tournaments, winning eleven singles tournaments and twenty doubles tournaments. As of March 22, 2010, she is 314th in the WTA singles & 112th in the WTA doubles rankings.
Loco Dice
Record producer
Loco Dice is a German DJ and electronic music producer born and based in Düsseldorf. His family is from Tunisia, Loco Dice started his career as Hip-Hop DJ and rapper, playing support slots to performers like Usher, Ice Cube, Jamiroquai, Snoop Dogg and R. Kelly. He has released records on labels such as Ovum, M-nus, Cadenza, Cocoon and Four Twenty. He also compiled and mixed "Time Warp 07", a double CD featuring various minimal tracks. Loco Dice also collaborated with the cosmetics brand uslu airlines with whom he co-created a nail polish coming with a special music mix.
Habiba Ghribi
Olympic Track and field Athlete
Habiba Ghribi is a Tunisian middle- and long-distance runner who specialises in the 3000 metres steeplechase. She is the Tunisian record holder in the event, having run 9:08.37 for second place at the 2012 Summer Olympics giving her country its first Olympic medal by a woman. Ghribi competed at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships a number of times but found greater success on the track, winning a steeplechase silver at the 2006 African Championships in Athletics and a bronze in the 1500 metres at the 2009 Mediterranean Games. She represented Tunisia at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, finishing thirteenth in the first ever women's Olympic steeplechase race. She was voted the Best Sportswoman of 2009 by the Arabic daily newspaper Assahafa.
Amine Chermiti
Soccer
Mohamed Amine Chermiti is a Tunisian footballer who plays as a striker for FC Zürich.
Poorna Jagannathan
Actor
Poorna Jagannathan is an American actress and producer who plays Saya Katdare on USA's Royal Pains. She came to prominence after starring in the Bollywood film Delhi Belly opposite Imran Khan.
Claude Challe
Musical Artist
Claude Challe is a French DJ and club owner, the creator of the Buddha Bar restaurant/clubs and music compilations. Challe moved to France at age three. He attended Rabbinical school as a young man. At the age of 19, he opened a hair salon in Paris, and became known as "the man with the golden scissors". Challe then abandoned the salon and lived as an expatriate on the island of Sardinia, in a hippie commune. He subsequently traveled to India, Nepal and Indonesia. He uses Buddha statues for the interior design of his bar and restaurant. Challe returned to France and was introduced to New Age music by the likes of Andreas Vollenweider and Ennio Morricone. He became involved in Parisian nightlife. He managed a series of French clubs, including Le Prive, Le Centre Ville in Les Halles, Les Bains-Douches, El Divino in Ibiza, and Buddha Bar. The restaurant/club became a popular destination and led to Challe's Buddha Bar mix compilations. Challe produced the "Reveillon de Mondes", attended by 50,000 people, and held at Vincennes, in conjunction with Radio Nova. Challe produces his music and others' on his Chall'o Music label. He has said, "I consider the art of DJ-ing to be the passion of [my] life. When I'm DJ-ing, I give myself to the people. When I play, I'm in the music."
Wissem Hmam
Professional Team Handball Player
Wissem Hmam is a Tunisian handball player. He retired from the Tunisian national handball team after the 2012 Olympics. Hmam was ranked as the top scorer in the 2005 World Championship, scoring a total of 81 goals and helping Tunisia reach the semifinals in the 2005 World Men's Handball Championship in Tunis.
Zekra
Arab Artist
Thekra Mohammed Abdullah Al Dali, better known as Thekra was a Tunisian singer. The word "Thekra" is Arabic for a memory or memorial.
Clodius Albinus
Politician
Clodius Albinus was a Roman usurper proclaimed emperor by the legions in Britain and Hispania upon the murder of Pertinax in 193.
Mohamed Hdidane
Olympic Basketball Player
Mohamed Hdidane is a Tunisian professional basketball player.
Pierre Lévy
Author
Pierre Lévy is a French philosopher, cultural theorist and media scholar who specializes in the understanding of the cultural and cognitive implications of digital technologies and the phenomenon of human collective intelligence. He introduced the collective intelligence concept in his 1994 book L'intelligence collective: Pour une anthropologie du cyberspace. Lévy's 1995 book, Qu'est-ce que le virtuel? develops philosopher Gilles Deleuze's conception of "the virtual" as a dimension of reality that subsists with the actual but is irreducible to it. In 2001, he wrote the book Cyberculture. Pierre Lévy currently teaches at the communication department of the University of Ottawa, where he holds a Canada Research Chair in Collective Intelligence. Lévy is fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and received several awards and academic distinctions.
Ghassan bin Jiddo
Journalist
Ghassan bin Jiddo, a veteran Tunisian / Lebanese journalist, activist and the director of Beirut-based pan-Arab satellite television channel, Al Mayadeen. He has been recognized in the popular press as an influential Arab personality.
Hasdrubal the Fair
Man
Hasdrubal the Fair was a Carthaginian military leader and politician, governor in Iberia after Hamilcar Barca's death.
Khaled Korbi
Soccer Midfielder
Khaled Korbi is a Tunisian professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder. He currently plays for Espérance in Tunis.
Ziad Jaziri
Soccer
Ziad Jaziri is a Tunisian football striker. He has 64 caps and 14 goals for the national team, and was called up to the 2006 World Cup. He was also in the 2002 World Cup squad. In addition, Jaziri was on the winning Tunisian team at the 2004 African Cup of Nations. He scored the first goal for Tunisia in the 2006 World Cup against Saudi Arabia on June 14, 2006. On July 14, 2011, he was arrested with former International and Ajax Player Hatem Trabelsi and Club Africain Player Oussema Sallemi for questioning in a drug possession, consumption and traficking affair.
Abdelwahab Meddeb
Author
Abdelwahab Meddeb is an award-winning French-language poet, novelist, essayist, translator, editor, Islamic scholar, cultural critic, political commentator, radio producer, public intellectual and professor of comparative literature at the University of Paris X-Nanterre.
Ali Zitouni
Soccer Midfielder
Ali Zitouni is a Tunisian footballer who currently plays for Turkish side Kartal S.K..
Pierre Lellouche
Politician
Pierre Lellouche is a French politician and a member of the Union for a Popular Movement party. He was Secretary of State for Foreign Trade under the Minister of Economy, Finance and Industry, Christine Lagarde. He was also the President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly from November 2004 to 17 November 2006. He was elected deputy of Sarcelles in 1993, and retained his seat at the National Assembly until 2002. He has been director of the Nuclear Threat Initiative and a member of the Trilateral Commission. He is of Jewish origin.
Jean Vuarnet
Professional Alpine Skier
Jean Vuarnet is a former ski racer from France.
Victor Perez
Professional Boxer
Victor "Young" Perez was a Tunisian Jewish boxer, who became the World Flyweight Champion in 1931 and 1932. He was born to Khmaïssa Perez a household goods salesman and Khaïlou René Perez. He was raised along with his four siblings in Dar-El Berdgana, the Jewish quarter of Tunis. He started training as a boxer at age 14 along with his older brother Benjamin “Kid” Perez to emulate his idol Battling Siki, a boxing champion from Senegal. Perez had a brief relationship with French-Italian actress Mireille Balin of Monaco. Perez was denounced to the Occupation authorities and arrested in Paris on September 21, 1943 and detained in the Drancy internment camp before being transported to Auschwitz where he was assigned to the Monowitz subcamp to serve as a slave laborer for I.G. Farben at the Buna-Werke. He was killed on January 22, 1945 on the death march from Monowitz to Gleiwitz.
Luca Ronconi
Opera Director
Luca Ronconi is an Italian actor, theater director, and opera director.
Achille Zavatta
Clown
Achille Zavatta was a French clown, artist and circus operator. Achille Zavatta was born in La Goulette, Tunisia, the son of Federico Zavatta, a circus owner. He started performing in his family's circus show at the age of three, forming with his brothers Michel and Rolph, the Zavatta Trio. He was the interval act at the 1962 Eurovision Song Contest in Luxemburg. To this day the Zavatta Circus tours France and surrounding countries, these performances include live tiger acts, which means the circus cannot tour Britain under the Animal Welfare Act. The circus is rated as a top show in France. He became famous for his skills as a pantomime. He committed suicide in 1993 in Ouzouer des Champs, Loiret and was interred in the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.
Ammar Jemal
Soccer
Ammar Jemal is a Tunisian footballer. He currently plays for Saudi Professional League side Al-Fateh on loan from Club Africain.
Adel Sellimi
Soccer
Adel Sellimi was born on 16 November 1972 in the Bab Jedid district of Tunis. As a child, he drew inspiration from the 1978 World Cup team who became the first African nation to win a World Cup match. At the age of 10, he joined his first club, Club Africain of Tunis, and he stayed there for the next 14 years, picking up two Tunisian league titles and one Tunisia Cup along the way. His quick pace, strength on the ball and creativity earned him a call-up to the national team, and he earned his first cap in September 1993, during a match against Germany. Following a promising performance he carved out a virtually permanent place for himself in the country's national team for the next eleven years. Tunisians grew to appreciate his discretion in life outside of football as a modest and determined professional. On the pitch, he singularly distinguished himself at international level during the 1996 African Cup of Nations finals in South Africa as one of the best players of the tournament. Sellimi became a household name throughout the country, a skillful and talented bright spark who carried the team to the final of the tournament for the second time in their history. Sellimi struck twice in the semi-final against Zambia, and was widely considered one of the best players in the tournament.
Mohamed Hechmi Hamdi
Businessperson
Mohamed Hechmi Hamdi, also spelled Mohammed al Hachimi Al-Hamidi, Hechmi Haamdi, or Hachmi Hamdi is a Tunisian journalist, media entrepreneur and politician, who lives in London. He is the founder and leader of the Popular Petition party. Mohamed Hechmi Hamdi was born in Sidi Bouzid. He has studied Arabic language and literature at the Tunis University, graduating with a B.A. in 1985. He added a masters programme in Arab literature, history and contemporary Islamic studies at the University of London, which he completed in 1990. From the same school he obtained his doctorate in the field of contemporary Islamic studies in 1996. After contributing articles to different newspapers and journals, including the London-based Arabic daily Asharq Al-Awsat, he founded his own weekly Al-Mustakilla in 1993, the quarterly magazine "The Diplomat" in 1996, Al-Mustakilla satellite TV channel in 1999, and a second TV channel, called "Democracy", in 2005. From the early 1980s until his resignation in 1992, Hechmi Hamdi was a member of the Tunisian Islamist Ennahda Movement. Later, he was alleged, but denied, to have developed close ties to President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and his party, RCD. In March 2011, after the Tunisian revolution, he founded the Popular Petition for Freedom, Justice and Development, which he promoted from his Al-Mustakilla TV channel and announced his candidature for the presidential elections.
Fouad Mebazaa
Politician
Fouad Mebazaa is a Tunisian politician who was President of Tunisia from 15 January 2011 to 13 December 2011. He was active in Neo Destour prior to Tunisian independence, served as Minister of Youth and Sports, Minister of Public Health, and Minister of Culture and Information, and has been President of the Chamber of Deputies of Tunisia since 1997.
Pierre Darmon
Tennis Tournament Champion
Pierre Darmon is a former French tennis player. In 1963, he reached his highest singles ranking of World No. 8. He was also ranked in the top 10 worldwide in 1958 and 1964.
Karim Saidi
Soccer
Karim Saïdi is a Tunisian football player who currently plays for Belgian club Lierse SK.
Ali Boumnijel
Soccer Goalkeeper
Ali Boumnijel is a Tunisian football goalkeeper. The Tunisian international began his career in FC Gueugnon in France, however without playing any games. His first game as a professional footballer came on October 20, 1991 for AS Nancy in a 1:3 loss to AJ Auxerre. Afterwards he returned to his previous team, where he played five seasons, until changing to SC Bastia. He played for Bastia for six years, and then one season at FC Rouen. In 2004, he moved back to Tunisia to play for Club Africain. In the national team he debuted on November 27, 1991 against Côte d'Ivoire. Having established himself as a competitive goalkeeper he went on to play for Tunisia in the 1998 FIFA World Cup, 2002 FIFA World Cup and 2006 FIFA World Cup . Boumnijel was Tunisia's first choice goalkeeper, and played at the 2004 African Nations Cup where the Tunisia team won. Aged 40, he was the oldest player at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Boumnijel has been praised for his great leadership and goalkeeping skills during the World Cup.