What drives a young Pakistani girl to risk everything for education rights? Here are key Malala Yousafzai facts that answer this question and show her personal development from a Pakistani education activist who survived a Taliban assassination attempt at age 15 to the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
In her bestselling book 'I Am Malala,' she shares her powerful journey as a global advocate for girls’ education, women's rights, and peaceful activism, inspiring millions worldwide. The autobiography reflects her unwavering spirit and highlights the importance of universal access to quality education.
To learn more about Malala Yousafzai and her incredible life path, visit the Headway library of book summaries. In addition to inspiring autobiographies, it also offers books that make you smarter and boost your self-growth.
In this article, you'll learn:
How Malala Yousafzai turned from a young girl advocating for education to the youngest Nobel laureate
What sparked Malala Yousafzai’s passion for education and women’s rights
How Malala’s activism shaped global conversations around education
How Malala overcame fear of death and anxiety after the Taliban attack
How Malala continues to inspire millions of people around the world today
Key facts about Malala Yousafzai
From standing up against the Taliban and recovering from brain damage after the terrorist attack to graduating University of Oxford and becoming the world's youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner — read the empowering story of Malala Yousafzai through 15 key facts about her journey.
Fact 1: Malala Yousafzai's autobiography became a global bestseller
‘I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood up for Education and Was Shot’ is an autobiography by Malala Yousafzai (born July 12, 1997, in Mingora, Pakistan), where she shares her unique experience as a young female human rights and education activist. The book sheds light on the challenges faced by people in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and other Islamic countries, where life is full of dangers due to active terrorist groups and corrupt political leaders.
The author appears to be a vivid, energetic, yet still imperfect person who has the support of her father to defy the cultural and political odds of her environment. Despite corruption and religious oppression, Malala enjoyed an adventurous childhood and learned foreign languages. She wished for all girls to receive a quality education and dream big, perhaps even becoming a prime minister like Benazir Bhutto.
After being shot by a Taliban gunman and moving with her family to England, Malala's life entered a new phase. Her impact grew as a symbol of defiance against terrorism, which she believes should be fought with education, not weapons.
Fact 2: Malala has received over 50 awards, including the Nobel Peace Prize
The list of awards and honors Malala has received continues to grow. Currently, she has more than 50. An incredibly diverse list includes the 2011 National Youth Peace Prize (the National Malala Peace Prize now), the 2013 International Children's Peace Prize, the 2013 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought that she received during the plenary session of the European Parliament, the 2015 Grammy For Best Children's Album, and dozens of others.
In 2014, the Pakistani activist was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and Liberty Medal from the National Constitution Center. Malala is the youngest person to be the United Nations Messenger of Peace, and she even has an asteroid named in her honor.
The activist has also been granted honorary Canadian citizenship and made it to the British TIME's "Most Influential People list," being also honored with the "2013 Pride of Britain" award.
Fact 3: Malala was born shortly after the Taliban gained power in Afghanistan
A year before Malala was born in the picturesque city of Mingora in the Swat District, the Taliban seized control over the Afghani people. Malala's father had never tried to soften the harsh truths when explaining to his daughter what the Talibs were truly after: absolute and undivided control over people's every move, especially women.
Ziauddin would assure the future education rights activist, who has been becoming more and more curious with age, that he would do everything in his power not to let the Taliban mess with his child's future:
"I will protect your freedom, Malala. Carry on with your dreams."
So she carried on, undeterred by the Taliban gunman who shot her for her "quality education for all" activism. The injury sent her into a medically induced coma; she was then forced to undergo long-term rehabilitation in Birmingham, UK. After recovery, Malala continued to work to see more Pakistani girls able to read, write, speak, and pursue their education freely.
Fact 4: Malala witnessed political corruption from an early age
Malala Yousafzai's father once told her and her brothers:
"If our politicians hadn't spent so much money on building an atomic bomb, we might have had enough for schools."
Malala has been observing corruption since her earliest years. Sometimes, provincial governors called wali would build new roads alongside the river in the Swat Valley. And yet, most politicians elected to the Provincial Assembly of Peshawar or the National Assembly tended to disappear right after being chosen.
All promises about schools, electricity, clean water, and other modern infrastructure would just evaporate. It motivates the young activist, who has undergone an assassination attempt for her efforts at the hands of Taliban extremists, to help children access education in Pakistan and worldwide.
Fact 5: Malala's favorite childhood game was "Mock Weddings"
One of Malala's favorite childhood games, especially on family trips during the Eid holidays, was mock weddings. The players would form two groups-families who would then pick a girl to betroth. The groups would tell a "bride" some traditional advice:
"Marriage is a part of life. Be kind to your mother-in-law and father-in-law, so they treat you well. Take care of your husband and be happy."
Then, they would give the girl away, adorn her with national-style jewelry, paint her nails with henna, and lighten her skin with soda and limestone.
Fact 6: Malala was afraid of ghost stories shared by her aunties
Many Pakistani villages had only oil lamps as a light source in the house. Looking at the reflection of the burning lamp flickering on the wall, the future Nobel Peace Prize winner would listen to her grandmother reciting tapey or Pashto couplets or her aunties telling ghost stories, as in such a setting, they would sound especially dramatic.
The ghosts were supposed to "encourage" children to fall asleep faster. The one Malala was scared of the most was a story about a twenty-fingered man called Shalgwatay. She says she didn't realize all girls and boys have twenty fingers combined.
Fact 7: At 13, Malala secretly reported for BBC to expose the Taliban
Encouraged by her family, Malala agreed to write a diary for BBC Urdu under the pen name Gul Makai, sharing her experiences as a seventh-grade Pakistani schoolgirl.
"On my way from school to home, I heard a man saying, 'I will kill you .' I hastened my pace, and after a while, I looked back if the man was still coming behind me. But to my utter relief, he was talking on his mobile and must have been threatening someone else over the phone."
The writer and the BBC journalists wanted to show how Taliban militants were "seeking to impose their austere interpretation of Sharia law," destroying hundreds of education facilities, especially targeting the girls' schools. In her book, Malala says:
"I am proud that our country was created as the world's first Muslim homeland, but we still don't agree on what this means."
Soon after the partition of British India in 1947, tensions escalated as Pakistan became an independent Muslim state and India became a Hindu-majority state. It was difficult to imagine "a bloodier beginning."
Those differences did not contribute to the unity of people in Pakistan and eventually paved the way for extremists like the Taliban. When writing for the BBC, Malala took these factors into account when describing the actions of the Taliban in Pakistan.
Fact 8: Malala reclaimed the legacy of her famous namesake
When she was a child, the grandfather of Malala would sometimes bring up his sad premonition about the Nobel prize winner's name meaning "grief-stricken." Malalai of Maiwand, the national heroine of Afghanistan she was named after, died while trying to help her fellow people win in the Second Anglo-Afghan War.
This story is truly bittersweet, as Malalai's efforts succeeded, but at the cost of her life. Malala's grandfather, not wanting her to face the same fate, would try to "lend" some happiness to her name, singing:
"Malala is of Maiwand, and she's the happiest person in the world."
Fact 9: Malala donated all her Nobel Peace Prize money to charity
Malala has become the Nobel Peace Prize winner alongside Kailash Satyarthi, an activist advocating the ending of child labor in India. Both of them are members of the Emergency Coalition for Global Education, a group once also supported by Nelson Mandela. The United Nations Special Envoy for Global Education Gordon Brown called Satyarthi and Yousafzai "world's greatest children's champions."
Upon receiving the award, Malala pledged all the money to the Malala Fund to support education initiatives, including teaching refugee girls English and modern digital tech skills.
Fact 10: Malala Day was declared by the United Nations to inspire global activism
On 12 July 2013, less than a year after the shooting, Malala delivered her first high-level public speech at the UN headquarters in New York. This day was declared "United Nations Malala Day," and it was called to inspire and unite young leaders around the world to get all children, especially young girls, into school.
Meanwhile, Malala stressed that "it is not her day," but "the day of every woman, every boy and every girl who have raised their voice for their rights." Former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, admitted that she took a powerful stance by translating a clear message:
"What the Taliban fears most – what terrorists fear most - is not guns, it is not weapons. When girls are reading books, when girls are educated, that is what the Taliban fears most."
Fact 11: Malala wrote 'Malala's Magic Pencil' for her young readers
In 2017, Little, Brown, and Company, as well as Puffin Books, published a picture book, 'Malala's Magic Pencil' written by Malala Yousafzai. It translates her message to a younger audience: you don't need a magic wand, aka magic pencil, to make a positive change, but your own efforts can make this world a better place for you and for other children.
Fact 12: Malala appeared on "Friends" reunion to celebrate family and joy
In 2021, HBO producers invited Malala and her friend Vee to participate in a special reunion episode of the popular American show "Friends." Malala accepted, citing the uplifting nature of the comedy series as a welcome escape after her intense advocacy work for girls’ education. In an interview with PEOPLE Every Day, the activist expressed her fondness for shows like "Friends" as a favorite form of reality escapism.
During their segment on the episode, Vee likened Malala's character to "Joey with a hint of Phoebe." Malala revealed that one of her cherished scenes is "the routine dance" of siblings Ross and Monica, which holds special significance due to her deep affection for her younger brothers. When she was congratulating her brother Khushal in an Instagram post, she jokingly posted:
"Wishing you all the best in what you do and remember the key to success for a brother is listening to your sister."
Fact 13: Malala dreams of becoming the Prime Minister of Pakistan
Being shot just when she was a 15-year-old for "promoting secularism," Malala was rushed to a military hospital in Peshawar and then Rawalpindi, being later transported to Birmingham, England.
For a while, it seemed she might repeat the fate of Benazir Bhutto, the first Pakistani female prime minister, who was killed in 2007 by those opposed to seeing women having a voice in a Muslim-majority country. However, unlike Benazir, Malala survived, became a Nobel laureate, and started the Malala Fund. She works to be up to the role of Prime Minister herself, admitting:
"Some people feel you can't dream that way; you must have a smaller dream. But sometimes it's good to dream bigger."
Indeed, imagine the day when the girl who passionately spoke out during a Pakistani TV interview asking, "How dare the Taliban take away my basic right to education?" is now leading her country's government!
Fact 14: Malala advocates for refugee girls through books and charity campaigns
In 2015, American director Davis Guggenheim made a documentary "He Named Me Malala." This documentary presents Malala as today's role model who inspires women, especially those who have had to become refugees, as she experienced it firsthand.
One of the examples of Malala's impact is Mazoun Almellehan, also known as "The Malala of Syria," who supports Syrian refugees. She is helping them get a chance for a brighter future by learning more "about the world around us."
Malala dedicated a 2019 Weidenfeld & Nicolson book that she wrote to the refugee cause. 'We Are Displaced: My Journey and Stories from Refugee Girls Around the World,' tells the stories of some of the 68.5 million individuals displaced worldwide, putting a real face on the statistics charts.
In Lebanon, which hosts millions of Syrian refugees and still feels the aftershock of the 2020 explosion in Beirut's port, the Malala Fund Champion Nayla Zreik Fahed tutors girls on digital solutions that may enhance the lives of vulnerable communities.
Fact 15: Malala was overlooked for the Nobel Prize in 2013, then won in 2014
In 2013, Malala stirred a massive international controversy about the "persistence of misogyny" and "warfare against women" on a global scale.
For many, it seemed ironic that an advocate of "education instead of weapons to beat terrorism" lost to those who actually produce weapons that might potentially "fight" the terrorists.
This situation made the meeting between Malala and the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize winner, the 44th American President Barack Obama, controversial as well, given how the U.S. leader was keen to use both weapons and practical education instead of humanities (championed by Malala) to eradicate terrorism. This polarization among Oslo winners led the public to question the Norway Committee's approach to choosing Nobel laureates.
Bonus Fact: Malala challenges traditional views on Islamic marriage
In 2021, Malala married Asser Malik, who holds a managing position at the Pakistan Cricket Board. They held a small Islamic ceremony in Birmingham, and Malala said that she had "found a best friend and companion" in Asser.
Through this, she continued her parents' initiative to challenge an extreme perception of Islamic marriage in which husbands do not consult wives and wives are meant for home and child care only.
Recently, Malala and Asser publicly supported Shaina Taub, the author of "Suffs," a musical that premiered on Broadway in April 2024. So far, it garnered six Tony Award nominations. The "Suffs" tells the story of the 1913 Women's Movement campaigning for their voting rights to be recognized in the Constitution.
It is resonant with the time when millions of Pakistani people, inspired by Malala's courage following her attack, signed a petition to make sure the National Assembly ratifies their "right to free and compulsory education" on an official level.
Find more inspiring biographies and books on activism on Headway
Looking for more inspiring life stories that challenge you to take action and make a difference? The Headway app is here to assist you.
If you're ready to feel motivated and learn to thrive under pressure, explore our selection of presidential biographies, including ‘Abe: Abraham Lincoln in His Times’ by David S. Reynolds and ‘A Thousand Days: John F. Kennedy in the White House' by Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.
Uncover how to push forward in the face of resistance and oppression with books on social activism like ‘On Tyranny’ by Timothy Snyder and ‘Notorious RBG’ by Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik. Those book summaries by Headway may strengthen your personality and inspire you to support Malala's cause to popularize the power of education.
FAQs
What is Malala Yousafzai known for?
Malala Yousafzai is known for her courage to speak out about restrictions on girls' education in Pakistan and later around the world. She was a target of the Taliban terrorist organization and miraculously survived. She recorded her story in her autobiography, "I Am Malala." She received many awards, and in 2014, Malala Yousafzai became the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Why is Malala Yousafzai famous?
Malala is famous for being the youngest Nobel laureate. Despite her youth, Malala Yousafzai has advocated for girls' education rights since she was 11. She bravely fought for the right to education in Pakistan and survived an assassination attempt because of her activism. Through her actions, she has demonstrated that children and young people can play a significant role in improving their own circumstances.
What did Malala Yousafzai fight for?
Malala Yousafzai has fought for the right to education, particularly for girls in countries where they are denied this basic right. She believes that education is the key to fighting terrorism and oppression and that every girl should have the opportunity to learn and pursue her dreams.
How did Malala change the world?
Malala Yousafzai changed the world by inspiring millions to believe in the power of education to fight injustice. She turned her personal tragedy into a global movement for girls' education and women's rights. The activist also encouraged global leaders and young activists alike to take action and improve access to education for all children, especially girls.
What is Malala doing now?
Malala Yousafzai is still actively advocating for girls' education and women’s rights globally through Malala Fund. This organization helps girls around the world to access free, quality education. Malala continues to speak out at international forums, support education initiatives, and inspire young activists to take action for social change.
