Yousef Nawwas was born in 1914 in the village of Taybeh in Jerusalem and graduated from Terra Santa College in Jerusalem in 1933. Nawwas founded the National Institute of Languages. In 1949, he opened the first branch of the Nawwas Tourism Company in Jerusalem, which grew to have branches worldwide with him at the helm. In 1971, he won a gold medal from the Lebanese president for his involvement. Nawwas was also granted a medal of excellence from the late King Hussein of Jordan and received the Award of Excellence from the Italian President Bertini in 1980, and the key to the city of London in 1982. He was also awarded a certificate of excellence by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism .Yousef moved to live in the U.S. in 1976 and has made California his home since 1992.
