Yahiya Emerick
American Muslim author and scholar (1971–2026)
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Background
Emerick was born in the Midwest in 1971, into a Baptist family. He was an avid reader from a young age. His curiosity about religion was sparked around age 15 after a sermon on the Trinity left him more confused than enlightened, setting him on a path of theological questioning that would eventually lead him away from the faith of his upbringing.[3] That search came to a head during his freshman year at Michigan State University. After roughly six months of reading the Qur'an, he found he could not deny what he experienced as a personal appeal from God to the reader, and at age nineteen, during the winter of 1988–1989, he converted to Sunni Islam.[4] He later obtained a graduate degree in history.[5]
He served as a Muslim lecturer, educator, prayer leader, and author. He founded Amirah Publishing in 1992, in order to further his goal of publishing American-oriented literature on Islam. Emerick's Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Islam has been distributed worldwide by Alpha Books. From 1998 until 2008 his books were all published by Noorart Inc.[6]
Emerick died on July 11, 2026, at the age of 55.[7]
Educator and institutional roles
Alongside his writing, Emerick built a long career in Islamic education. He served as vice-principal of a full-time Islamic school in Westbury, New York, and taught in Sunday schools, summer programs, and full-time Muslim schools across North America. He also served as president of the Islamic Foundation of North America (IFNA), a nonprofit devoted to Islamic education and outreach, a role he held into the early 2000s.[8] He was active as a lecturer, prayer leader, and voice in interfaith dialogue.
Books
- Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Islam
- Critical Lives: Muhammad
- Learning About Islam
- Complete Idiot's Guide to Rumi Meditations
- The Meaning of the Holy Qur'an in Today's English
- My First Book About Islam
- What Islam is All About
- The Seafaring Beggar and Other Stories
- How to Tell Others About Islam
- Ahmad Deen and the Curse of the Aztec Warrior
- Ahmad Deen and the Jinn at Shaolin
- Layla Deen and the Case of the Ramadan Rogue
- The Holy Qur'an for School Children
- Muslim Youth Speak
- Color and Learn Salah
- In the Path of the Holy Prophet
- Test Masters for What Islam is All About
- Test Masters for Learning About Islam
- My First Book about Eman
- Full Circle: Story and Coloring Book
- Isabella: a Girl of Muslim Spain
- Layla Deen and the Popularity Contest