Morocco institute is world’s oldest seat of learning
I’msure that either Oxford or Cambridge is older, but just how old is St Andrews University? – L.
St Andrews was founded between 1410 and 1413, making it Scotland’s oldest university.
Today, around 11,000 students are enrolled at St Andrews.
Only two UK universities pre-date St Andrews – Oxford and Cambridge .
Oxford is the oldest university in the English-speaking world.
Although no distinct founding date is known, the oldest records of teaching at Oxford date back until 1096.
When a number of Oxford scholars were forced to leave following disputes with the local townspeople, a number of them went to Cambridge and established a new school in 1209.
However, to find the world’s oldest university, you have to go to the city of Fez in northern Morocco.
Dating back to the year 859, the University of Karueein is the oldest existing, and continually operating educational institution in the world.
It was founded by Fatima al-Fihri with an associated madrasa, which subsequently became one of the leading spiritual and educational centres of the historic Muslim world.
Fatima and her sister, both of whom were well educated, inherited a large amount of money from their father. Fatima vowed to spend her entire inheritance on the construction of a mosque suitable for her community.
Successive dynasties expanded the University of Karueein mosque until it became the largest in Africa, with a capacity of 22,000 worshipers.