By historic standards, America’s oldest universities are not very old. Most of the oldest ones were founded in the century after the pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620. Harvard, America’s oldest university, was started in 1636. Yale was founded in 1701. Neither will make a list of the world’s oldest universities, as they are not even close.
How old is old? The ancient Buddhist monastery of Nalanda in northeastern India, for example, passed on knowledge as far back as 500 C.E., until it was ransacked by invaders in the 13th century. The Madrasa Al Nizamiyya in Khargird, Iran, was founded in the 11th century as one of the first Islamic centers of knowledge. In fact, because of early Islam’s emphasis on teaching certain secular subjects, like mathematics and geometry, the two oldest existing universities are Islamic schools in Morocco and Egypt.
Universities in the New World did not start to emerge until the 17th century, so none are close to the age of the oldest that still exist. The oldest university in Asia that still churns out graduates today is the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, founded in 1611 by a Catholic bishop.
24/7 Tempo reviewed profiles of academic institutions of higher learning and cross-referenced founding date and enrollment number claims with university websites. In some cases, we also cross-referenced information with higher-education-oriented websites, mainly Times Higher Education and U.S. News and World Report. Some total student enrollment figures are estimates provided by the universities’ About Us pages. Others are from the higher-education-oriented websites. Figures that are not estimates come from the latest available academic school year posted on the universities’ websites.
The world’s oldest university is the University of Al-Karaouine. Here are the details:
- Founded: 859
- Main campus located: Fez, Morocco
- Total student enrollment: 8,000 (est.)
The University of Al-Karaouine is “the oldest existing, and continually operating educational institution in the world,” according to the Guinness Book of World Records. The university was founded by a woman 227 years after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. The university taught some natural sciences as part of its religiously centered curriculum and expanded its non-religious curriculum in the middle of the 20th century. Students must have memorized the entire Quran before attending the university.
Click here to see all the oldest universities in the world.
The Average American Is Losing Their Savings Every Day (Sponsor)
If you’re like many Americans and keep your money ‘safe’ in a checking or savings account, think again. The average yield on a savings account is a paltry .4% today, and inflation is much higher. Checking accounts are even worse.
Every day you don’t move to a high-yield savings account that beats inflation, you lose more and more value.
But there is good news. To win qualified customers, some accounts are paying 9-10x this national average. That’s an incredible way to keep your money safe, and get paid at the same time. Our top pick for high yield savings accounts includes other one time cash bonuses, and is FDIC insured.
Click here to see how much more you could be earning on your savings today. It takes just a few minutes and your money could be working for you.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
