Africa boasts a rich and diverse educational history that spans many centuries. The continent has been home to some of the world’s oldest universities, many of which have played a significant role in shaping the intellectual landscape of the world. These universities were established long before the arrival of colonial powers and have a unique history and heritage.
Most people would guess that the oldest university in the world is in Europe or Asia or even in the United States of America, but it is actually in Morocco and was founded by a woman over two centuries before subsequent popular universities.
University education was invented some 1, 000 years ago in Africa. Some of her institutions date back to 859 AD and are spread across the continent.
Let’s delve into Africa’s educational legacy and explore the oldest universities in Africa that have stood the test of time. These institutions have played a pivotal role in shaping Africa’s intellectual landscape and have served as centers of learning for centuries.
It is important to state that, while the North African universities were among the early pioneers, the establishment of universities continued across Sub-Saharan Africa in subsequent decades.
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Sub-Saharan Africa has a rich and diverse history when it comes to universities and higher education.
Before the establishment of universities in countries with a young history of tertiary education, students pursued higher education abroad or at other institutions within their respective regions.
The Significance of Ancient African Universities
The significance of ancient African universities cannot be overstated. It is a testament to the rich educational history of the continent and its contributions to intellectual development. These institutions were centres of knowledge and learning, attracting scholars and students from far and wide.
One of the most notable aspects of ancient African universities is their establishment pre-dating many renowned Western universities. While Europe was still in its early stages of development, Africa was already nurturing higher education institutions that laid the foundation for advanced learning.
These universities served as vital hubs for knowledge exchange and intellectual discourse. They offered a wide range of subjects, including mathematics, astronomy, medicine, law, and theology. Students were encouraged to engage in critical thinking and debate, fostering an environment that nurtured innovation and intellectual growth.
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Moreover, these institutions played a significant role in shaping African society and culture. They were not only centres of education but also served as important social and cultural gathering places. They attracted scholars and intellectuals from different parts of Africa and beyond, creating a diverse and multicultural environment.
The significance of these ancient African universities extends beyond their historical context. They have left a lasting impact on the modern educational landscape and continue to inspire educators, researchers, and scholars today. By honouring and exploring their legacy, we gain a deeper understanding of Africa’s rich intellectual heritage and the immense contributions it has made to the world of education.
Spotlight on Africa's Oldest Universities
1. University of Al-Karaouine, Fez, Morocco (859 AD)
Al-Qarawiyyin University, which is also known as Al-Karaouine, is the oldest existing and still operational educational institute in the world. This is according to United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and Guiness World Records.
Al-Qarawayyin was founded in 859 A.D by Tunisian-born Fatima al-Fihri in Morocco’s Fez city. The university is not only the oldest higher education institution on earth, but also the first to be founded by a woman, who was a Muslim.
Fatima is believed to have used 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,” according to the map.
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Fatima used her inheritance from a merchant father’s wealth to establish the university, which was started as an associate school known as Madrasa.
The university was founded on the concept of higher education as we know it today. Al-Fihri’s idea was to create a social space enabling intellectual exchanges for progress learning and teaching. It has often been argued by scholars that Fatima’s ideas and vision influenced many universities across Europe. Her university’s professional and institutional learning style - which were previously unheard of as well as unseen - echoed across the European continent in the centuries that followed.
According to Bem Aziz al-Massoud, a professor of history in the University of Stellenbosch, “European countries were quick to see the potential behind the University of al-Qarawayyin’s concept of learning and soon founded their own institutions. Among the most notable of these is the University of Bologna, which was founded in 1088 in Italy, as well as the University of Oxford which was founded in 1096 in the United Kingdom. It is very important to note that it was the very first and only university in the world for a very long time. This being the case, naturally, it was an important benchmark or guide for many such institutions that followed.”
The university is so popular that Muslims all over the world have visited and eventually enrolled in the institution. It also had to introduce strict admission criteria that require students to know the Quran by heart and have a good knowledge of Arabic language as well as general sciences. Contrary to a common misconception, both women and men can attend the university.
Since its inception, al-Qarawayyin University has been the place for renowned scholars, one of whom was Mohammed al-Idris, a 12th century cartographer whose maps helped European exploration during the Renaissance era.
Despite the fact that the university is a gathering point for students of Islamic studies, it also attracts people from other religions as well. Pope Sylvester II (946-1003), who was known to have a passion for mathematics and astronomy, was one of many Christian scholars who visited the institution.
The university was, however, only added to Morocco’s university system in 1963. Two years later, the university was officially named the University of al-Qarawayyin instead of the short al-Qarawiyyin.
To this day, the university of al-Qarawayyin maintains its traditional ways of teaching students, one of which is having them sit in a semi-circle called halqa around the sheik or instructor.
Traces its origins back to the al-Qarawiyyin mosque and associated madrasa founded by Fatima al-Fihri in 859, and was named a university in 1965.
How the world's oldest university was lost for 800 years – BBC REEL
2. Al-Azhar University, Egypt (972 AD)
“The University of Al-Azhar” is Egypt’s oldest degree-granting university and is known as “Sunni Islam’s most distinguished university.” It is affiliated with the Al-Azhar Mosque in Islamic Cairo. By October 975 AD, studies at Al-Azhar had begun in Ramadan, when Chief Justice Abul Hasan Ali ibn Al-No’man began teaching the Shiite jurisprudence text “Al-Ikhtisar.”
The Fatimids established it as a centre of Islamic study in 970 or 972, and its pupils studied the Qur’an and Islamic law in depth, as well as logic, grammar, rhetoric, and how to calculate lunar phases.
3. University of Timbuktu, Mali (982 CE)
The University of Timbuktu is a collective term for the teaching associated with three mosques in the city of Timbuktu in what is now Mali: the mosques of Sankore, Djinguereber, and Sidi Yahya. It was an organized scholastic community that endured for many centuries during the medieval period.
The university contributed to the modern understanding of Islamic and academic studies in West Africa during the medieval period and produced several scholars and manuscripts taught under the Maliki school of thought.
The University of Timbuktu is also known as the ‘University of Sankore,’ as there are two other universities in Timbuktu, ‘Jingaray Ber’ and ‘Sidi Yahya’.
The Sankore Mosque was built in 989 CE by Timbuktu’s learned chief judge, Al-Qadi Aqib ibn Mahmud ibn Umar. He built the mosque’s inner court to the exact dimensions of the Ka’abah in Makkah. A wealthy Mandinka lady endowed Sankore University, elevating it to the forefront of education.
The University of Sankoré is one of three ancient centres of learning located in Timbuktu, Mali. It is believed to have been established by Mansa Musa, who was the ruler of the Mali Empire, though the Sankoré mosque itself was founded by an unknown Malinke patron.
The three mosques of Sankoré: Sankoré, Djinguereber, and Sidi Yahya comprise the University of Timbuktu. The madrasa went through multiple periods of patronage and renovation under both the Mali Empire and the Songhai Empire until the Battle of Tondibi in 1591 led to its looting.
4. University of Ez-Zitouna, Tunisia (737 AD)
Ez-Zitouna University is a public ancient medieval university in Tunis, Tunisia. The university originates in the Al-Zaytuna Mosque, founded at the end of the 7th century or in the early 8th century, which developed into a major Islamic centre of learning in North Africa.
The oldest higher education institution in Tunisia, it traces its origins back to the Al-Zaytuna Mosque founded around 737 and became an important higher education institution under the Hafsid dynasty in the 13th to 16th century. It was ransacked by the Spanish during their occupation of Tunis in the mid 16th century but was restored in the 17th century.
It consists of the Higher Institute of Theology and the Higher Institute of Islamic Civilisation in Tunis and a research institution, the Center of Islamic Studies, in Kairouan.
5. Fourah Bay College - University of Sierra Leone (1827)
In Freetown, Sierra Leone, Fourah Bay College is a public university in the Mount Aureol district. It is the earliest and first Western-style university in West Africa, having been established on February 18, 1827.
It was also the first Western-style institution to be erected in the region. It is among the University of Sierra Leone’s constituent colleges. Several significant Sierra Leone leaders have attended the university, as well as numerous Ghanaians who played key roles in the country’s independence (Kojo Botsio, Casely Hayford).
The University of Sierra Leone is made up of three colleges, including Fourah Bay College.
Founded as a missionary school to train teachers in 1827.
Became an affiliated college of Durham University in 1876 and awarded first degrees in West Africa in 1878.
6. University of Cape Town (1829)
The Institution of Cape Town (UCT) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa’s Western Cape region. Together with Stellenbosch University, which was granted full university status on the same day in 1918, it is the oldest institution in South Africa. It is also the oldest existent university in Sub-Saharan Africa.
In the QS World Institution Rankings, the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, and the Academic Ranking of World Universities, UCT is the highest-ranked African university, and its Law and Commerce faculties are routinely rated among the top hundred in the world.
7. University of Liberia (1862)
The University of Liberia is a publicly funded institution of higher learning located in Monrovia, Liberia. Authorized by the national government in 1851, the university opened in 1862 as Liberia College. UL has four campuses; including the Capitol Hill Campus in Monrovia, the Fendall campus in Louisiana, outside Monrovia, the Medical School Campus in Congo Town and the Straz-Sinje Campus located in Sinje Grand Cape Mount County.
The university enrols approximately 18,000 students and is one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in West Africa. It is accredited by the Liberian Commission on Higher Education.
8. Cuttington University, Liberia (1889)
In English-speaking West Africa, Cuttington University in Suacoco, Liberia, founded in 1889 is the region’s oldest university, followed 60 years later in 1948 by the University of Ghana and the University of Ibadan in Nigeria.
9. Stellenbosch University, South Africa (1903)
Stellenbosch University is a public research university situated in Stellenbosch, a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Stellenbosch is the oldest university in South Africa and the oldest extant university in Sub-Saharan Africa, together with the University of Cape Town - which received full university status on the same day in 1918.
Stellenbosch University designed and manufactured Africa’s first microsatellite, SUNSAT, launched in 1999. It was also the first African university to sign the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities.
10. Cairo University, Egypt (1908)
Egypt’s Cairo University was established on December 21, 1908. Previously, it was known as “Egyptian University” and then “Fuad University.” In contrast to the religious institution of Al Azhar, Cairo University was formed as a European-inspired civil university, and it became the primary indigenous model for other state universities.
Cairo University is consistently regarded as one of Egypt’s best universities and one of Africa’s best institutions. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Saddam Hussein, Mohamed Morsi, Naguib Mahfouz (Nobel Peace Prize winner), Yasser Arafat (Nobel Peace Prize winner), Mohamed ElBaradei (Nobel Peace Prize winner), and Taher Elgamal, the designer of the ElGamal encryption system and known as the “Father of SSL,” are all notable alumni of Cairo University.
Additional Universities
- University of Algiers, Algeria (1909)
- University of Fort Hare, South Africa (1916)
- Makerere University, Uganda (1922)
- University of Khartoum, Sudan
- University of Ghana (1948)
Timeline of University Establishment in Africa
Here's a timeline showcasing the establishment of universities across Africa:
| Decade | Countries Establishing First Universities |
|---|---|
| 1990s | Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea (1999), Somalia (1993), Equatorial Guinea (1995), Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (1992) |
| 2000s | South Sudan (2006) |
In East Africa, Uganda’s Makerere University is the oldest institution of higher learning, established in 1922.
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