The title of sheikh is often held by royalty in the Middle East, but it can mean so much more. In Arabic, the term sheikh means man of old age, and it’s a title that is not easily earned. Only the most revered and respected Muslims can earn this honorable title, and that generally means that a sheikh is a male over the age of 40. However, women can earn the title shaykhah or sheikha.

Daughters and wives of sheikhs can often hold this title. Muslims who earn the term sheikh have often diligently studied the religion of Islam, are well versed in the teaching of the Qur’an and live according to Sunnah, which is the way of life designated to Muslims by Muhammad. A person can be designated a sheikh if that person has completed undergraduate university studies in Islamic studies and is also trained to give lectures.

Islam is the second largest religion in the world, surpassed only by Christianity, and it’s also the fastest growing. Islam is most widely followed in Asia. Over 1 billion people in Asia recognize themselves as Muslim; most of these people live in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Indonesia. There are over 500 million Muslims in Africa and the Middle East.

Because of the large oil reserves and the number of wealthy families in the Middle East, some Sheikhs in the region are extremely wealthy – some Sheikhs in the Middle East are ranked as some of the world’s richest billionaires. In most of the Arab nations, members of the Gulf Royal Houses use the terms sheikh and sheikha, so many royals make the list of richest sheikhs.

Because the wealth of some royal families in the Arab peninsula is so secretly guarded it is possible that some of the world’s richest sheikhs are even richer than estimated, but with information available publicly, these are the richest sheikhs in the world.

Due to the cultural impact of Arab civilization, and especially through the spread of Islam, the word has gained currency as a religious term or general honorific in many other parts of the world as well, notably in Muslim cultures in Africa and Asia.

11) Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani – Net worth: $1.2 billion

Qatar

Source of wealth: Al Faisal Holding

Born in Doha, Qatar in 1948. Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani had started with modest start-up capital in the 1960s as a small local trading company. Al Thani started selling car parts in Doha at age 16. He became the sole distributor of Bridgestone tires in the 1960s. Today it owns more than 20 hotels around the world, including the St. Regis in Washington, D.C. and Miami, and the W Hotel in London. Al Faisal Holding also has a majority stake in publicly-traded Aamal, which owns real estate in Qatar and sells medical supplies and pharmaceuticals.

Sheikh Faisal pioneered the establishment of a heritage venue “Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum”, with the objective of reviving public interest and appreciation of local culture, a venue which perpetuated his vision. This window to the beauty and splendor of the past of Qatar, and the Islamic world has been opened for people from all walks of life to view and experience.

10) Kutayba Alghanim – Net worth: $1.3 billion

Kuwait

Source of wealth: Alghanim Industries

Kutayba Alghanim’s father, Yusuf Alghanim, and grandfather, Ahmed Alghanim, set the foundation for the success of Alghanim Industries.

His grandfather, Ahmed Alghanim, initially specialized as a pearl merchant. Ahmed built and grew a successful pearl-diving business, employing divers to help harvest oysters. As demand for this product grew – Ahmed’s pearls were considered some of the finest in Kuwait — he expanded his fleet of dhows, the traditional Kuwaiti sailing vessel, to keep pace.
Kutayba grew up in Kuwait where he spent most of his childhood. He spent part of his education in the United Kingdom, where he attended Gordonstoun in Scotland. In the late 60s, Kutayba attended the University of California at Berkeley.
After completing his studies at Berkeley, Kutayba returned to Kuwait in 1970, eager to apply his newly gained knowledge — particularly ideas on contemporary business culture and best practices.
His first experience was an entrepreneurial venture in high-end furniture retailing. Kutayba financed the business personally and launched a store called “Al-Dar”. A distinguishing feature of Al-Dar was the unprecedented emphasis on customer service. Al-Dar raised the bar for quality products and service in Kuwait and set new standards for the region.
Based on this success, Yusuf Alghanim asked his son Kutayba to help with an urgent liquidity crisis facing the family business. The company was in a dire situation which was escalating rapidly to a potential disaster. Rising to the challenge, Kutayba used unconventional approaches to secure lines of credit and additional financing that not only solved the immediate liquidity crisis, but also helped grow sales significantly. These accomplishments convinced Yusuf to appoint his young son, Kutayba, as Managing Director of Yusuf A. Alghanim & Sons W.L.L. in 1971. With his father’s blessing, Kutayba renamed the company from Yusuf A. Alghanim & Sons W.L.L. to Alghanim Industries and over time, added new divisions to diversify the business and expanded in new geographic areas often by striking new deals with a number of leading international brands.
Alghanim sells GM and Ford cars in Kuwait, owns a consumer electronics retailer and Wendys restaurants in the Middle East, among other businesses. Kutayba and his brother Bassam have fought over the division of assets they inherited and have turned to a Swiss arbitration court to settle.

9) Hussain Sajwani – Net worth: $1.4 billion

6) Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani – Net worth: $2.1 or $1.2 billion

Emir of Qatar

Source of wealth: Qatar Investment Authority

Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad was born on 3 June 1980 in Doha, Qatar. He is the fourth son of previous Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani. Sheikh Tamim was educated at Great Britain’s Sherborne School (International College) in Dorset, and at Harrow School, where he sat his A-Levels in 1997. He then attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, graduating in 1998. As of 2018, Tamim is the youngest reigning monarch among the GCC countries and the youngest current sovereign worldwide.

He was the first ruler, in a succession of three Qatari rulers from the Al Thani family, to ascend to power without resorting to a coup.

The Al Thanis can be traced back to Mudar bin Nizar, who settled at Gebrin oasis in southern Najd (present-day Saudi Arabia) before he moved to Qatar. They settled in Qatar around the 1720s. Their first settlement in Qatar was in the southern town of Sikak, and from there they moved north-west to Zubarah and Al Ruwais. They settled in Doha in the 19th century.