El Materi was born on 20 November 1934, in Tunis to a wealthy Tunisian bourgeoisie family of Turkish descent;[2] his ancestor, Mohamed Stankouli, was born on the island of Kos, and was a Turkish officer who settled in Tunis at the end of the seventeenth century to defend Turkish interests.[3] In 1930, his mother, Nefissa Ben Cheikh Ahmed (1911-1996), married his father, Hafiz El Materi (1890-1975), who was a young widower with three children (Fatma, Khiareddine, and Slim). Nefissa Hafiz gave four children: Hayet (born 1931), Tahar (born 1932), Moncef (born in 1934) and Sinda (born in 1947).[4] His paternal uncle, Mahmoud El Materi, was a co-founder of Neo-Destour.[4]