Photo: Avi Ohayon / Government Press Office of Israel, CC BY-SA 3.0

Benjamin Netanyahu

1949 – present · age 77^[1][2]

Politics & Leadership

Fun Facts About Benjamin Netanyahu

• Benjamin Netanyahu once worked as an economic consultant at the Boston Consulting Group, where his colleague Mitt Romney became a lasting friend.^[1]
• Netanyahu graduated from Cheltenham High School in Pennsylvania, where he was active in the debate club, chess club and soccer.^[1]
• In the United States in the 1970s, Netanyahu went by the name Ben Nitai, which he said made his name easier for Americans to pronounce.^[1]
• As a soldier in the Sayeret Matkal special forces unit, Netanyahu took part in the 1972 rescue of the hijacked Sabena Flight 571 and was shot in the shoulder.^[1]
• Netanyahu completed an architecture degree at MIT in two and a half years, despite taking a break to fight in the Yom Kippur War.^[1]
• The family name Netanyahu, meaning "God has given," was adopted by his father, the historian Benzion Netanyahu, who was born Mileikowsky.^[1]
• Benjamin Netanyahu was alive at the same time as George Bernard Shaw — their lives overlapped for 1 year (1949–1950).^[1][2][3][4]
• Benjamin Netanyahu shares a birthday with Alfred Nobel: both were born on October 21.^[1][2][5][6]

Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu is an Israeli politician and diplomat who has served as prime minister of Israel since 2022. Having previously held office from 1996 to 1999 and from 2009 to 2021, Netanyahu is Israel's longest-serving prime minister.^[1]

Contemporaries

Noam Chomsky

77 yr overlap

Wole Soyinka

77 yr overlap

Dalai Lama

77 yr overlap

Woody Allen

77 yr overlap

Francis Ford Coppola

77 yr overlap

Bob Dylan

77 yr overlap

Billie Jean King

77 yr overlap

Aung San Suu Kyi

77 yr overlap

Steven Spielberg

77 yr overlap

Haruki Murakami

77 yr overlap

Tu Youyou

77 yr overlap

Yoko Ono

77 yr overlap

Their World

Questions About Benjamin Netanyahu

When was Benjamin Netanyahu born?

Benjamin Netanyahu was born on October 21, 1949, and is alive today.

How old is Benjamin Netanyahu?

Benjamin Netanyahu was born on October 21, 1949, and turned 77 on October 21, 2026.

What is Benjamin Netanyahu known for?

Benjamin Netanyahu is known for: Prime Minister of Israel. Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu is an Israeli politician and diplomat who has served as prime minister of Israel since 2022. Having previously held office from 1996 to 1999 and from 2009 to 2021, Netanyahu is Israel's longest-serving prime minister.

Who was alive at the same time as Benjamin Netanyahu?

Benjamin Netanyahu's closest contemporary was Noam Chomsky. Their lives overlapped for 77 years.