The religion of

Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...

emerged in the context of

medieval India Medieval India refers to a long period of Post-classical history of the Indian subcontinent between the "ancient period" and "modern period". It is usually regarded as running approximately from the breakup of the Gupta Empire in the 6th cent ...

, where many

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

s and

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

s of the

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

region became Sikhs through conversion. The original Sikhs were thus all converts, with the first one being

Bhai Mardana Bhai Mardana ( pa, ਭਾਈ ਮਰਦਾਨਾ; 6 February 1459 — 1534) was one of the first Sikhs and longtime companion of Guru Nanak Dev, first in the line of gurus noted in Sikhism. Bhai Mardana, a Muslim, accompanied Guru Nanak Dev on hi ...

, a former Muslim. This is a list of converts to Sikhism. *

, (somewhat of a convert) from Islam. May not have been fully a Sikh *

Banda Singh Bahadur Banda Singh Bahadur (born Lachman Dev) (27 October 1670 – 9 June 1716), was a Sikh warrior and a commander of Khalsa army. At age 15, he left home to become an Asceticism, ascetic, and was given the name Madho Das Bairagi. He established a ...

- Born into a Hindu family as Lachman Dev (later Madho Das Bairagi), after meeting with

Guru Gobind Singh Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Sing ...

he became a Sikh warrior for the

Khalsa Khalsa ( pa, ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ, , ) refers to both a community that considers Sikhism as its faith,Kha ...

Army. *

Rai Bular Bhatti Rai Bular, (died c. 1515 or 1518) was a Muslim Rajput landlord of the Bhati clan during the latter half of the 15th century. He inherited the position as ''zamindar'' of Talwandi from his father Rai Bhoi. Although a Muslim Rajput, Rai was in ...

, a Muslim Rajput noble of the Bhatti clan during the latter half of the 15th century who was inspired by the Sikh Guru Nanak and donated half of his land. *

Ryan Hurst Ryan Douglas Hurst (born June 19, 1976) is an American actor, known for his roles as Gerry Bertier in ''Remember the Titans'' (2000), Sgt. Ernie Savage in ''We Were Soldiers'' (2002), Tom Clarke in '' Taken'' (2002), Opie Winston in the FX dram ...

- Hollywood actor who has chosen to be also known as Gobind Seva Singh. He has acted in Sons of Anarchy, We Were Soldiers and The Walking Dead as well as others. *

Alexandra Aitken Uttrang Kaur Khalsa (born Alexandra Penelope Aitken; 14 March 1980), also known earlier as Ally or Ale Aitken and still known as Alexandra Aitken, is a British model, actress and socialite. She has worked with some of Europe's leading fashion a ...

- actress and daughter of former British cabinet minister

Jonathan Aitken Jonathan William Patrick Aitken (born 30 August 1942) is a British author, Church of England priest, former prisoner and former Conservative Party politician. Beginning his career in journalism, he was elected to Parliament in 1974 (serving unt ...

. *

Vic Briggs Victor Harvey Briggs III (14 February 1945 – 30 June 2021) was a British blues and rock musician, best known as the lead guitarist with Eric Burdon and The Animals during the 1966–1968 period. Briggs, a convert to Sikhism, later played ...

- former

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

musician, now Vikram Singh Khalsa; became the first non-subcontinental to perform

kirtan Kirtana ( sa, कीर्तन; ), also rendered as Kirtan, is a Sanskrit word that means "narrating, reciting, telling, describing" of an idea or story, specifically in Indian religions. It also refers to a genre of religious performance arts ...

at Harmandir Sahib *

Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa (born in 1943 as Mary May Gibson in Downers Grove, Illinois) is a teacher of Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan and a pioneer in the field of pre-natal yoga. She is the co-founder and director of the Golden Bridge Yoga Cen ...

- yoga teacher; co-founder and director of the Golden Bridge Yoga Center in Los Angeles * Vikram Kaur Khalsa - former model and actress, starred in several horror movies *

Max Arthur Macauliffe Michael MacAuliffe, also known as Max Arthur Macauliffe (11 September 1838 − 15 March 1913) and Max Singh Metcalfe, was a senior British administrator, prolific scholar and author. MacAuliffe is renowned for his partial translation of Sikh sc ...

(1841–1913) - senior administrator of the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

who was posted in the Punjab; prolific scholar and author; converted to Sikhism in the 1860s *

Babaji Singh Babaji Singh Khalsa ( pa, ਬਾਬਾਜੀ ਸਿੰਘ ਖਾਲਸਾ) (August 15, 1947 – November 19, 2006) was a Mexico, Mexican Sikh who is credited for translating Guru Granth Sahib, the holy text of the Sikhs into Spanish. Life He was ...

- credited with translating

Guru Granth Sahib The Guru Granth Sahib ( pa, ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ) is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and Guru Maneyo Granth, eternal Guru following the lineage of the Sikh gur ...

, the holy text of the Sikhs, into Spanish. *

Martin Singh The 2012 New Democratic Party leadership election (NDP), was held March 24, 2012, in order to elect a permanent successor to Jack Layton who had died the previous summer. The New Democratic Party's executive and caucus set the rules for the ...

- Nova Scotia pharmacist and businessman and candidate for the leadership of the New Democratic Party of Canada in 2012. * Muhammad Sadiq - Singer and politician who is a member of Parliament in Lok Sabha. Was born Muslim, but brought up Sikh as his father would sing religious music Kirtan in Gurdwaras. He considers himself Sikh as per an interview given to newslaundry. *

Hazel Keech Hazel Keech (born 28 February 1987), also known by her modelling name Rose Dawn and married name Gurbasant Kaur, is a British actress and model who has appeared in Indian television programs and films. She has appeared in ''Billa'' and ''Bodygu ...

- Bollywood actress of British and Indian descent who has been in films such as

Bodyguard A bodyguard (or close protection officer/operative) is a type of security guard, government law enforcement officer, or servicemember who protects a person or a group of people — usually witnesses, high-ranking public officials or officers, w ...

. She took the name Gurbasant Kaur on marriage to Sikh cricket player Yuvraj Singh. *

Tyler Atkins ''The Amazing Race Australia 1'' is the first season of the Australian reality television game show ''The Amazing Race Australia'', the Australian version of ''The Amazing Race''. The first season featured eleven teams of two in a pre-existing re ...

- Also known as Tera Singh, is an Australia film director and actor. Most recently known for his completed production on his debut feature film, Bosch & Rockit, which he wrote, directed, and produced. * Alexander Gardner - American Sikh Soldier in Maharaja Ranjit Singh's army. Converted from Christianity. *

Maharaja Duleep Singh Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh, GCSI (4 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), or Sir Dalip Singh, and later in life nicknamed the "Black Prince of Perthshire", was the last ''Maharaja'' of the Sikh Empire. He was Maharaja Ranjit Singh's youngest son, ...

- Converted from Christianity back to Sikhism in 1864. *

Bhagat Singh Bhagat Singh (27 September 1907 – 23 March 1931) was a charismatic Indian revolutionary* * who participated in the mistaken murder of a junior British police officer * * in what was to be retaliation for the death of an Indian nationa ...

- Indian Independence freedom fighter, who is claimed to have "reconverted" to Sikhism from

Atheism Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...

before his execution in 1931. However, his reconversion is controversial and contested topic, amongst different sources and scholars. https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/chandigarh-news/sad-a-seeks-removal-of-bhagat-singh-s-portrait-from-golden-temple-s-museum-101658777891198.html Tyler Atkins LBJ 2012

References

{{Sikhism

See also

References