Revealed:  World’s four oldest universities are located in Africa

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By Olabisi Deji-Folutile

Contrary to what many would have expected, the oldest universities in the world are located in Africa, not in ancient Greece or Europe,   a study has revealed.

Going by the results of the research, the foundation for the US first university was laid as late as in 1636 while the oldest university in Europe, the University of Bologna in Italy was founded in 1088 years after Africa had established universities, followed by the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, which was founded in 1096.

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According to the research by Erudera, the oldest universities in the world are located in Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt and Mali respectively.

The research by Erudera, an education search platform backed by AI, was aimed at gathering information on the oldest universities for each country of the world that is still operating today and to create a map with each university’s foundation year for quick reference.

The search platform researched and verified the oldest universities for 197 countries and selected the oldest university for each country provided its geographical location was still within the territory of the country as of 2021.

It collected its data using multiple sources and verified the data by consulting official university websites, education departments, and ministries, as well as other expert sources for some countries.

The oldest university in the world is the Ez-Zitouna University located in Tunisia, established in 737 AD first as a Madrasa and then as a university.

Although a religious university, the students could learn about science, philosophy, mathematics, art, and many other subjects and the university still exists till date.

The Al Quaraouiyine University in Morocco, the second oldest, was established in 859, and founded by a woman, Fatima al-Fihri. She is believed to have used the money inherited from her father to build the Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque, which subsequently developed a teaching institution and later became the University of al-Qarawiyyin.

The third oldest university in the world is Al Azhar University in Egypt established in 975 AD while the fourth oldest is the Sankore Mosque and University, which is located in Mali.

It was founded in 989 by Mansa Musa, who is often described as the wealthiest individual in all human history. The fifth country in Africa to have one of the world’s old universities is South Africa with its oldest university established in 1829.

However, of the overall 100 oldest universities in the world, only 10 are in Africa. Similarly, 43 out of 54 African countries had their oldest universities established after 1950.

According to the map of the oldest universities in the world, some countries as Western Sahara, Angola, South Sudan, Djibouti, Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, and the Gambia are listed among the 20 last world countries that had the first university established in their territory.

The dates of the establishment of these universities range from 1999 in the Gambia to Western Sahara in 2013.

Commenting on the first university ever founded in the world, Gent Ukehajdaraj from Erudera, who led this research, said that the value of the Ez-Zitouna University is even bigger than one may think; given the many wars the country has gone through.

“The Ez-Zitouna University has survived the Mahdia campaign, the Eighth Crusade, the Conquest of Tunis, as well as the Morean War, in addition to the Tunisian Civil war and more than ten other wars that took place in the Tunisian territory from the 18th century and on,” Ukëhajdaraj asserts.

He also highlights the fact that in spite of Africa being a pioneer in the establishment of first world universities, the majority of African countries fell behind in this regard, with 43 out of the 54 African countries establishing a university only in the second half of the 20th century and later.

While the research  shows that European countries do not occupy the three first places in the list of the oldest university in every country, however, they are mostly placed at the top of the list, leaving other currently highly developed countries like Canada, the US, and Australia quite behind.

The oldest university in Europe is the University of Bologna in Italy, founded in 1088. This is followed by the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, founded in 1096, the Spain’s University of Salamanca founded in 1134 by King Alfonso IX of Leon, and then the University of Montpellier in France, the foundations of which were laid in 1220 by Pope Nicholas IV.

Germany, which is one of the top five most famous countries in the world for international students, had its first university in 1386 when Rupert I Elector Palatine established the Heidelberg University. It is however the 15^th country in the world to have a university.

From the study, many universities in Nigeria are far older than some universities in Europe that host many Nigerian students overseas. For example,   the University of Ibadan, established in 1948 is far older than the University of Luxembourg founded in 2003, the University of Andorra, in Andorra, established in 1988, and the University of Monaco established in 1986 in the city-state of Monaco.

“What’s interesting about the very first universities established in Europe is that almost all of them were founded by Popes and monarchs,” Ukëhajdaraj says.

Oldest universities in Asia

 The oldest university established in Asia, which still exists to this day, is the University of Economic Sciences in Iran, founded in 1315 and now part of the Kharazmi University.

Also, Sungkyunkwan University in South Korea, established in 1398 by the Joseon dynasty, is the second oldest university in Asia, followed by the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines, founded in 1611 by Miguel de Benavides, Archbishop of Manila.

Next on the list is Istanbul University in Turkey, founded in 1453 by Sultan Mehmed II, who is known as Mehmed the Conqueror for conquering Constantinople at the age of 21.

“There was no university in Constantinople until the Ottoman army conquered the imperial capital. The university was established in the same year of its invasion in 1453,” Ukëhajdaraj points out while commenting on the first universities established in Asia.

Next on the list for Asia is the Presidency University in Kolkata, in the world’s most invaded country – India.

The university was founded in 1817 by Ram Mohan Roy, Radhakanta Deb, David Hare, Rasamay Dutt, Sir Edward East, 1st Baronet, and Rani Rashmoni. The latter is a woman, one among very few women university founders on this list.

Meanwhile, the last Asian country to have its first university established is Laos, where the foundations of the National University of Laos were laid in 1996.

Prior to that, the Sultan Qaboos University had been established in Oman in 1986, the first university of the oldest independent state in the Arab world.