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Trevor Noah Quotes

Comedian

Trevor Noah is a South African-born comedian, writer, and television host. He is known for his unique sense of humor and insightful commentary on social issues. Born on February 20, 1984, Noah grew up in Johannesburg, South Africa. He began his career performing in comedy clubs in Johannesburg and has since gained recognition in the television and radio industry.

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Famous Trevor Noah Quotes

“Comedy is crowded. There are hundreds of comedians in every place in the world.”

World Comedy Comedian Crowded Places In The World

Author:Trevor Noah

“I've lived many places all over the world, so I've always seen myself as a citizen of the world.”

World Citizens

Author:Trevor Noah

“America is the one place in the world where I just innately understood [that] South Africa and the United States of America have a very similar history. It's different timelines, but the directions we've taken and the consequences - dealing with the aftermath of what we consider to be democracy, and realizing that freedom is just the beginning of the conversation, that's something I've learned.”

“I'm not a political progressive, but I consider myself a progressive person. What makes me a progressive, in my opinion, is the fact that I try to improve myself and by large improve the world that I'm in - in the smallest way possible.”

World Way Trying Persons Facts Political Opinion Progressive Smallest Prove Myself

Author:Trevor Noah

“I know that I cannot change the entire world, but I've always believed I can at least affect change in my world.”

Knows World I Can Always Believe

Author:Trevor Noah

“In my world, a woman was the most powerful thing that I knew. Still is. A woman made the money in my house; a woman made my food. A woman beat my ass when I wasn't a good kid. Women were behind a lot of what spurred South Africa toward democracy.”

World Made Stills Kids House Powerful Behinds Democracy Beats South Ass Most Powerful South Africa

Author:Trevor Noah

“I'm coming from a place where I have seen a different way to handle it, or a slightly different way to go through what is happening, that gives me some perspective. So I think it always helps. It always helps to have someone who has traveled the world or seen a different way to do something. That helps give you perspective.”

Thinking World Way Giving Different Helping Perspective Happenings Give Me Handle Different Ways Traveled

Author:Trevor Noah

“It was just how my parents treated me. It was the world they decided to show me. I was really sheltered. My grandmother kept me locked in the house when I was staying, you know, with the family in Soweto. And every household, for instance, had to have a registry of everyone who lived in that house.”

Knows World Shows House Parent Decided Treated Instance Staying Grandmother Locked Household Show Me My Grandmother

Author:Trevor Noah

“I existed in a space where my mother was a black woman and my father was a white man. And that's how I saw the world. I was just like, some dads are whites and some moms are black. And that's how it is.”

Men World Mother Father Black Space White Saws Mom Dad White Man Black Women

Author:Trevor Noah

“[My mother] wanted to go as deep as possible into the world of religion. And that took her into Judaism.”

World Wanted Mother Judaism

Author:Trevor Noah

“[My mother ] will write me an email, and it'll be Shanah Tovah. And the next day it'll be something else, Baruch Hashem Adonai. And I - I'm lost half of the time, but that was the world that I grew up in.”

World Writing Mother Next Lost Half Grew Grew Up Next Day Email

Author:Trevor Noah

“I was lucky to come along for the ride. [My mother] really is an amazing woman. And the world we lived in in South Africa at the time was a very matriarchal society because so many black men had been removed from the home.”

Men World Home Mother Black Lucky South South Africa Along For The Ride Amazing Woman

Author:Trevor Noah

“Living with my mom, I saw how she used language to cross boundaries, handle situations, navigate the world.”

World Used Language Situation Saws Mom Crosses My Mom Boundaries Handle Navigate

Author:Trevor Noah

“When I first came to the U.S. - because I do accents and I've traveled the world. I have friends of almost every single ethnicity, and I would mimic them. And when I came to the U.S., I remember one day we're at "The Daily Show." And I mimicked my Chinese friend. And the guys at the show were like, oh, hey, don't ever do that again. That's really racist.”

World Firsts Shows Remember Guy One Day Hey Chinese Racist Accents Traveled Ethnicity Daily Show

Author:Trevor Noah

“I knew of like - I remember, for most of my life, I grew up, and "Knight Rider" was, you know - David Hasselhoff was a Dutch character in my world.”

Knows World Character Remember Grew Grew Up Knights Riders Dutch

Author:Trevor Noah

“I lived in a world where I didn't share the love for my stepfather that my mother shared for him. She married him.”

World Mother Share Married Stepfathers

Author:Trevor Noah

“I was like, wow, this guy's [Donald Trump ] going to do well. And I remember people laughed at me. People were like, oh, you silly ignorant person who's just come to this world. You clearly shouldn't be at "The Daily Show" 'cause you don't know what you're talking about. And I was like, but I don't know. He seems like he connects with people. I can relate to him as a performer. I can see what tools he's using. He's good at riffing. He's good at taking the crowd on a journey. I can see what he's doing.”

“Traveling the world I've learned that progressives, regardless of their locations, think in a global space.”

Thinking World Space I've Learned Location

Author:Trevor Noah

“When you are honest in your comedy, you have to acknowledge the world that you're in. Through a comedic voice you're talking about what needs to be talked about, whether it's race relations or politics or anything that's happening on a global or an American scale.”

World Needs Voice Race Talking Comedy Honest Happenings Relation Scales Acknowledge Race Relations Comedic

Author:Trevor Noah

“I grew up in a world where authority was female. I never thought to call myself a feminist because of branding. I had this skewed idea of feminist: I thought it meant being a woman who hates men. When I read Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's We Should All Be Feminists, I was like, "Oh, this is what my mom taught me. This is simple. I don't understand why everybody is not this."”

Men World Hate Simple Mom Authority Female Feminist My Mom Branding Hate Me

Author:Trevor Noah

About the Author

Born: February 20, 1984
Known for: Comedian
Quotes: 174

Books & Sources

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African ChildhoodRelated source material

Born A Crime Stories from a South African Childhood / Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race / Natives Race and Class in the Ruins of EmpireRelated source material

Into the Uncut GrassRelated source material

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