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Ndamukong Suh plays defensive tackle for the Los Angeles Rams. Suh was born in Portland, Oregon, to parents Bernadette Suh (nee Lennon) and Michael Suh. Ndamukong Suh’s mom is from Jamaica and his dad was born in Cameroon.
“I definitely don’t want to be another defensive tackle on the shelf. I want to be something that’s different. I like being different. That’s one of the things that I’m so happy (with) about myself. I’m different – I’m African, I’m Jamaican, I’m American,” Ndamukong Suh, 32, told The Sporting News back in 2010.
Here’s what you need to know:
He Previously Opened up About His Background & Talked About How it Has Affected His Work Ethic
In October 2017, Ndamukong Suh spoke with the Miami Herald and talked a bit about his background and how it has affected his life.
“It’s heavily affected me in all positive ways. Seeing them growing up and understanding and having been to both those countries and seeing how they grew up gives you great pride and at the same time understanding about how hard you need to work. I understand how hard it was for them to get here, how hard they worked to get here. I saw the work ethic. It’s a pride thing but the biggest thing for me is culture — seeing how their culture is, how you carry yourself and approach things from a different perspective,” he told the outlet.
“People have the notion of American kids taking the easy way because everything’s kind of given to them. I look at myself as an American, without question, being born here and reaping the benefits of being an American. But at the same time I look at myself as a Cameroonian, as a Jamaican and so that combination of all three of those is what I embody — the drive, focus, determination of all of them,” he added.
His Father Is Part of the Ngema Tribe & Both Kids Have Cameroonian Names
Ndamukong Suh is very close to his parents. His family is often seen at football games, cheering him and the Los Angeles Rams on from a luxury box — the Super Bowl should be no different.
His father, Michael Suh, is part of the Ngema Tribe. He and his wife gave both of their kids Cameroonian names. According to ESPN, the name “Ndamukong” translates to “house of spears,” in the tribe’s dialect. Suh’s sister’s name is Ngum, which means “giver of strength, giver of power.”
In a 2011 interview with ESPN, Ndamukong Suh talked about the relationship he has with his sister — who lives up to her name’s meaning.
“I put myself in a position where I know I can trust somebody even though it may not be her exact skill. She’s a smart young woman who can learn fast and is very adaptable. She’s done that on the fly very, very well. I can tell her anything, yell at [her], cuss at [her], tell her anything when I am angry, get some frustration out and she knows she can take that with a grain of salt, that it was all just one way of me getting it all off my chest, and then we can get back to business or talk about personal stuff, whatever,” he told the outlet.