About Kahlil Gibran Kahlil Gibran (born Gibran Kahlil Gibran bin Mikhā'īl bin Sa'ad; Arabic جبران خليل جبران بن ميکائيل بن سعد, January 6, 1883 – April 10, 1931) also known as Kahlil Gibran, was a Lebanese American artist, poet, and writer. Born in the town of Bsharri in modern-day Lebanon (then part of the Ottoman Mount Lebanon mutasarrifate), as a young man he emigrated with his family to the United States where he studied art and began his literary career. He is chiefly known for his 1923 book The Prophet, a series of philosophical essays written in English prose. An early example of Inspirational fiction, the book sold well despite a cool critical reception, and became extremely popular in the 1960s counterculture. A consistent best-seller, The Prophet has been translated into some forty different languages, enabling it to be read and appreciated in places as far apart as Tokyo, Delhi, Manila, Nairobi, Rome, Paris, London and New York. Gibran is considered to be the third most widely read poet, behind Shakespeare and Lao-Tzu, in history.