Photo: David Shankbone / CC BY 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Iman's career feels to me like a quiet argument about what a model can be. A Mogadishu-born student who studied at the University of Nairobi, she arrived in fashion with a mind already formed, and the great designers, from Versace to Saint Laurent, treated her not as a mannequin but as a muse. What I admire most is what came after the runway: entrepreneurship, an autobiography, sustained philanthropy. She turned visibility into infrastructure for women who looked like her and came from where she came from. Few figures connect Somalia, Nairobi, and the heart of Western fashion in one elegant line; she does it with unforced authority.
Overview
Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid (Somali: Iimaan Maxamed Cabdulmajiid; born Zara Mohamed Abdulmajid, 25 July 1955), known mononymously as Iman, is a Somali-American model and actress. A muse of the designers Gianni Versace, Thierry Mugler, Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, and Yves Saint Laurent, she is also noted for her philanthropic work.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Iman
- Name (Japanese)
- イマン・アブドゥルマジド
- Reading
- いまん・あぶどぅるまじど
- Born
- July 25, 1955 (age 70)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Leo / Goat
- Origin
- Mogadishu, Banaadir, Somalia
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- 174 cm
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- actor / model / entrepreneur / autobiographer / film actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- University of Nairobi
Awards & achievements
- 2017 OkayAfrica 100 Women
- 2006 Great Immigrants Award
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Actor — see all → · Model — see all →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-11
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.