ali was born in bombay, british india, the son of yusuf ali allahbuksh (died 1891), also known as khan bahadur yusuf ali, a shi'i in the dawoodi bohra tradition, who turned his back on the traditional business-based occupation of his community and instead became a government inspector of police. on his retirement he gained the title khan bahadur for public service. as a child abdullah yusuf ali attended the anjuman himayat-ul-islam school and later studied at the missionary school wilson college, both in bombay. he also received a religious education and eventually could recite the entire qur'an from memory. he spoke both arabic and english fluently. he concentrated his efforts on the qur'an and studied the qur'anic commentaries beginning with those written in the early days of islamic history. ali took a first class bachelor of arts degree in english literature at the university of bombay in january 1891 aged 19 and was awarded a presidency of bombay scholarship to study at the university of cambridge in england.