Tariq Ramadan was born in Geneva, Switzerland on 26 August 1962 to an Egyptian Muslim family.
He is the son of Said Ramadan and Wafa al-Banna, who was the eldest daughter of Hassan al Banna, who in 1928 founded the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.
Gamal al-Banna, the liberal Muslim reformer, was his great-uncle.
His father was a prominent figure in the Muslim Brotherhood and was exiled by Gamal Abdel Nasser from Egypt to Switzerland, where Ramadan was born.

Tariq Ramadan holds an M.A. in French literature and a Ph.D. in Arabic and Islamic studies at the University of Geneva.
He also wrote a Ph.D. dissertation on Friedrich Nietzsche, titled Nietzsche as a Historian of Philosophy.

In 1994, he addressed a French-speaking public audience, in Switzerland, with the help of Hassan Iquioussen and Malika Dif.

He taught at the Collège de Saussure, a high school in Lancy, Switzerland, and claims to have held a lectureship in Religion and Philosophy at the University of Fribourg from 1996 to 2003, something the University publicly denied in 2018.
He was appointed a professor at the University of Notre Dame in the United States in 2004 before his visa had been revoked by the Bush administration because of the Patriot Act.
In October 2005 he began teaching at St Antony's College, Oxford on a visiting fellowship.
In 2005 he was a senior research fellow at the Lokahi Foundation.

In 2007 he successfully applied for the professorship in Islamic studies at the University of Leiden.
This led to severe criticism from both academics as well as politicians who deemed Ramadan a 'radical Islamist' and a 'wolf in sheep's clothing' Ramadan later turned down the appointment, stating that the criticism on his appointment played no role in this decision.
He was also a guest professor of Identity and Citizenship at Erasmus University Rotterdam,
until August 2009 when both the City of Rotterdam and Erasmus University dismissed him from his positions as "integration adviser" and professor, stating that the program he hosted on Iran's Press TV, Islam & Life, was "irreconcilable" with his duties in Rotterdam.
Ramadan described this move as 'islamophobic' and 'politically charged'.
The Court of Rotterdam District ruled in 2012 in a civil law case that the Erasmus University acted "careless" by dismissing Ramadan on short notice.
The dismissal by the municipality of Rotterdam, however, was not careless according to the Court.

Beginning September 2009, Ramadan was appointed to the chair in Contemporary Islamic Studies at Oxford University.

Ramadan established the Mouvement des Musulmans Suisses (Movement of Swiss Muslims), which engages in various interfaith seminars.
He is an advisor to the EU on religious issues and was sought for advice by the EU on a commission on "Islam and Secularism".
In September 2005 he was invited to join a task force by the government of the United Kingdom.
He is also the founder and President of the European Muslim Network, a Brussels-based think-tank that gathers European Muslim intellectuals and activists.

As of 2009, Tariq Ramadan was persona non grata in Tunisia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Libya, and Syria, which he has said is because of his criticism of their "undemocratic regimes".
He is also considered persona non grata in Israel.
Tariq Ramadan was born in Geneva, Switzerland on 26 August 1962 to an Egyptian Muslim family. He is the son of Said Ramadan and Wafa al-Banna, who was the eldest daughter of Hassan al Banna, who in 1928 founded the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. Gamal al-Banna, the liberal Muslim reformer, was his great-uncle. His father was a prominent figure in the Muslim Brotherhood and was exiled by Gamal Abdel Nasser from Egypt to Switzerland, where Ramadan was born.
Tariq Ramadan holds an M.A. in French literature and a Ph.D. in Arabic and Islamic studies at the University of Geneva. He also wrote a Ph.D. dissertation on Friedrich Nietzsche, titled Nietzsche as a Historian of Philosophy.
In 1994, he addressed a French-speaking public audience, in Switzerland, with the help of Hassan Iquioussen and Malika Dif.
He taught at the Collège de Saussure, a high school in Lancy, Switzerland, and claims to have held a lectureship in Religion and Philosophy at the University of Fribourg from 1996 to 2003, something the University publicly denied in 2018. He was appointed a professor at the University of Notre Dame in the United States in 2004 before his visa had been revoked by the Bush administration because of the Patriot Act. In October 2005 he began teaching at St Antony's College, Oxford on a visiting fellowship. In 2005 he was a senior research fellow at the Lokahi Foundation.
In 2007 he successfully applied for the professorship in Islamic studies at the University of Leiden. This led to severe criticism from both academics as well as politicians who deemed Ramadan a 'radical Islamist' and a 'wolf in sheep's clothing' Ramadan later turned down the appointment, stating that the criticism on his appointment played no role in this decision. He was also a guest professor of Identity and Citizenship at Erasmus University Rotterdam,
until August 2009 when both the City of Rotterdam and Erasmus University dismissed him from his positions as "integration adviser" and professor, stating that the program he hosted on Iran's Press TV, Islam & Life, was "irreconcilable" with his duties in Rotterdam. Ramadan described this move as 'islamophobic' and 'politically charged'. The Court of Rotterdam District ruled in 2012 in a civil law case that the Erasmus University acted "careless" by dismissing Ramadan on short notice. The dismissal by the municipality of Rotterdam, however, was not careless according to the Court.
Beginning September 2009, Ramadan was appointed to the chair in Contemporary Islamic Studies at Oxford University.
Ramadan established the Mouvement des Musulmans Suisses (Movement of Swiss Muslims), which engages in various interfaith seminars. He is an advisor to the EU on religious issues and was sought for advice by the EU on a commission on "Islam and Secularism". In September 2005 he was invited to join a task force by the government of the United Kingdom. He is also the founder and President of the European Muslim Network, a Brussels-based think-tank that gathers European Muslim intellectuals and activists.
As of 2009, Tariq Ramadan was persona non grata in Tunisia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Libya, and Syria, which he has said is because of his criticism of their "undemocratic regimes". He is also considered persona non grata in Israel.
Tariq Ramadan