Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Reason Behind Changing His Name and Converting to Islam

Publish date: 2024-04-29

He is probably one of the best known names in basketball. As a six-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), he helped the Los Angeles Lakers win a lot of titles and become one of the best teams in the NBA. He was also an NBA All-Star record 19 times. As a drama, ‘Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty’ shows this part of LA Lakers history.

In the series, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a big part of it, and his role in the team’s success is very well explained. However, the show only touches on Abdul-past Jabbar’s and leaves a lot up to the audience to figure out. There is more about Abdul-decision Jabbar’s to become a Muslim and change his birth name to something that is associated with the Lakers’ “Showtime Era” in the fifth episode of the show. If you want to know why these decisions were made, here is everything you need to know!

What Is The Reason Behind Changing His Name And Converting To Islam?: Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr was born on April 16, 1947, in Harlem, New York. He is the father of NBA star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. They are Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Sr. and Cora Lillian. He is the son of them both. This is how it worked: His father was a transit cop and a jazz musician. His mother worked as a price checker in the price of department store goods at the mall. During high school, Ferdinand became interested in basketball. He was tall for his age and was taller than most people his age. Afterwards, Ferdinand went to UCLA and played for its basketball team. He set a lot of records at his high school. When he went to college, he set the stage for becoming a star. It was while he was at school that Ferdinand decided to become Muslim and changed his name from Ferdinand Abdul-Jabbar to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

It was in 1971, when Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr was 24 years old. He changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and he became a Muslim (which means the noble one, servant of the Almighty). Many people have said Abdul-decision Jabbar’s to change both his religion and name was a very important spiritual one. However, Abdul-Jabbar finally talked about why he made the decision he did in a piece he wrote for Al Jazeera America.

Abdul-Jabbar started to feel uncomfortable and unhappy because he was becoming more well-known. It was during his junior year that Abdul-Jabbar read Malcolm X’s autobiography and started to think about how Malcolm X could help him be better. He said that Malcolm X thought that Christianity was the foundation of white culture, which led to the slavery of African Americans, which in turn led to racism in society. Islam, on the other hand, helped Malcolm X find out who he really was and fight against injustice. After being inspired by Malcolm X, Abdul-Jabbar started studying the Quran, which led to him becoming a Muslim under the guidance of Hammas Abdul-Khaalis, who was also a Muslim.

His family name, “Alcindor,” came from a French planter in the West Indies. Many of his ancestors worked for him. He didn’t think it was right to keep the name of his family’s slave master. It was Abdul-way Jabbar’s of saying that he didn’t want anything in his life that was connected to his family and people being slaves. So, he changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. In the end, Abdul-decision Jabbar’s to become a Muslim came down to his desire for spiritual growth. Abdul-Jabbar changed his name to show how much he cares about Islam and how proud he is of his ethnic background.

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