A Global Timeline of Learning Institutions Before and After the First University
What counts as a university?
A university isn’t just a place where people studied — it’s a formal institution with structured faculties, certified degrees, scholarly governance, and continuous operation. That’s the definition used by historians, UNESCO, and Guinness World Records.
So what was the first real university in the world?
Not a temple school, not a monastery, not a library — but a fully functioning academic institution?
It was founded in 859 CE by a Muslim woman named Fatima al-Fihri.
She built Al-Qarawiyyin University in Fez, Morocco — and it still runs today.
Here’s the Full Timeline of global learning institutions that came before and after — so you can see the full picture for yourself.
Before the First University:
c. 2500 BCE – Sumerian Edubba (Tablet Schools)
Location: Sumer (Mesopotamia)
Type: Scribal school
Subjects: Cuneiform, math, accounting, religion
Structure: Boys trained to be scribes; no faculties or degrees
Notes: Oldest known formal schooling system. Not a university.
c. 2000–1000 BCE – House of Life (Per Ankh)
Location: Ancient Egypt
Type: Temple-based priestly learning center
Subjects: Medicine, religion, astronomy, administration
Structure: Restricted to elites and priests; no degree system
Notes: Sacred learning centers. No certification or university structure.
c. 1500 BCE onward – Vedic Gurukulas
Location: Ancient India
Type: Oral teacher-student tradition
Subjects: Vedas, grammar, logic, ritual, philosophy
Structure: One teacher (guru), multiple students; no formal faculties or degrees
Notes: Deeply respected in Hindu tradition. No formalized institution or certification.
c. 1200 BCE onward – Zhou Dynasty (China) Elite Tutelage
Location: Ancient China
Type: Aristocratic education system
Subjects: Rituals, music, calligraphy, military strategy
Structure: Private tutoring for noble youth; no public institution
Notes: Influenced early Chinese statecraft. No university form.
c. 1000 BCE onward – Confucian Shuyuan Academies
Location: Ancient China
Type: Confucian learning academy
Subjects: Philosophy, ethics, literature, governance
Structure: Some state-sponsored; lacked formal faculties or degrees
Notes: Played a role in shaping civil service exams. Not a university.
c. 700 BCE – Taxila (Takshashila)
Location: Gandhara (Modern Pakistan)
Type: Urban learning hub
Subjects: Vedas, logic, grammar, astronomy, surgery
Structure: Multi-disciplinary but no central authority or degrees
Notes: Renowned, but destroyed and unstructured. Not a university.
c. 700 BCE onward – Jewish Yeshivot
Location: Babylon & Ancient Israel
Type: Talmudic & Torah study schools
Subjects: Jewish law, scripture, ethics
Structure: Oral/textual; no faculties or secular subjects
Notes: Still influential. Not a university.
c. 600 BCE onward – Zoroastrian Fire-Temple Schools
Location: Ancient Persia
Type: Religious priestly centers
Subjects: Avesta (scripture), astronomy, rituals
Structure: Restricted to priesthood. No degrees or faculties
Notes: Sacred, but not academic institutions.
c. 600 BCE – Maya Education Centers
Location: Mesoamerica
Type: Temple instruction
Subjects: Math, astronomy, calendar systems
Structure: Oral and elite-based; no institutional system
Notes: Advanced knowledge, but no structured or public schooling system.
c. 387 BCE – Plato’s Academy
Location: Athens, Greece
Type: Philosophical school
Subjects: Philosophy, mathematics, metaphysics
Structure: Informal community; no degrees or administration
Notes: Immensely influential, but not a university.
c. 336 BCE – Aristotle’s Lyceum
Location: Athens, Greece
Type: Scientific-philosophical school
Subjects: Logic, biology, ethics, rhetoric
Structure: Teacher-led; no formal degrees or curriculum
Notes: Center for research. Still not a university.
c. 300 BCE – Library of Alexandria
Location: Egypt (under Greek rule)
Type: Library and research institution
Subjects: Literature, philosophy, astronomy, medicine
Structure: No teaching, degrees, or faculties
Notes: Center of knowledge preservation, not a university.
c. 280 BCE – Mouseion of Alexandria
Location: Alexandria, Egypt
Type: Scholar residence + state research
Subjects: Natural philosophy, math, medicine
Structure: No instruction or public curriculum
Notes: Supported scholars, but not an educational institution.
c. 500 CE – Nalanda
Location: Bihar, India
Type: Buddhist monastic university-like center
Subjects: Logic, philosophy, medicine, astronomy
Structure: Teachers, students, dormitories — but no secular subjects or degrees
Notes: Immensely important, but destroyed in 1193 and didn’t meet full university criteria.
c. 500 CE – Monastic & Cathedral Schools (Europe)
Location: Western & Byzantine Europe
Type: Church-run education
Subjects: Latin, theology, grammar
Structure: Informal clergy training; no universal access or degrees
Notes: Foundations for European universities, but incomplete.
c. 500 CE – Gundeshapur (Jundishapur)
Location: Persia (Sassanid Empire)
Type: Scientific-medical center
Subjects: Medicine, astronomy, Greek logic
Structure: Diverse scholars; no certification system
Notes: Major Islamic influence, but no degree-granting body.
Before 859 CE – Sub-Saharan Africa (Pre-Sankore)
Location: Mali, Ghana, Songhai
Type: Oral scholars and imams
Subjects: Qur’anic education, basic sciences
Structure: No formal institution or certification
Notes: Islamic knowledge traditions existed but no universities until later.
Pre-859 CE – Pre-Columbian America (Olmecs, Aztecs)
Location: Mesoamerica
Type: Calmecac & Telpochcalli (Aztecs — much later, 1300s)
Subjects: Warfare, religion, astrology
Structure: Elite-based; no formal faculties or degrees
Notes: Culturally important, but not early universities.
Pre-859 CE – Pre-Islamic Arabia
Location: Arabian Peninsula
Type: Oral tribal knowledge
Subjects: Poetry, lineage, ethics
Structure: No formal education system
Notes: No learning institutions at all until Islam.
859 CE – Al-Qarawiyyin University (The First University)
Location: Fez, Morocco
Founder: Fatima al-Fihri
Type: University
Subjects: Fiqh (Islamic law), mathematics, astronomy, medicine, grammar, logic, philosophy
Structure: Formal faculties, structured curriculum, degree (ijazah) system, continuous operation
Recognition: Officially recognized by Guinness World Records and other historical records as the oldest existing and continually operating university
Significance: First institution in history to meet all modern academic criteria of a university
Post-859 CE Timeline of University Development
970 CE – Al-Azhar University
Location: Cairo, Egypt
Founded by: Fatimid Caliphate
Type: University
Subjects: Theology, Arabic grammar, philosophy, law, sciences
Structure: Formal faculties, degree system, endowments (waqf), ijazah-based certification
Notes: Second-oldest continually operating university. Flourished during the Islamic Golden Age. Influenced later European models.
1088 CE – University of Bologna
Location: Italy
Founded by: Independent scholars and students
Type: Secular, legal-focused university
Subjects: Canon law, civil law, philosophy, medicine (later)
Structure: Student-run model at first; eventually adopted professorial structure
Notes: Often called the oldest university in Europe. First to use the Latin word universitas for a scholarly community. Influenced by Islamic legal and academic traditions.
1096 CE – University of Oxford
Location: England
Founded: Gradually formed from cathedral schools
Subjects: Theology, Latin grammar, logic, natural philosophy
Structure: Collegiate system, faculties, degree-based education
Notes: Gained prominence in the 12th century. Many elements (degrees, faculties) were adopted from Islamic models via translations and exposure through Spain and Sicily.
1117 CE – University of Salamanca
Location: Spain
Founded by: Leonese monarchy
Subjects: Canon law, civil law, theology, arts
Structure: Modeled after Bologna and influenced by Islamic Spain's scholarly networks
Notes: One of the oldest in Spain and Europe; important for early legal studies.
1150 CE – University of Paris
Location: France
Founded by: Evolved from cathedral school of Notre-Dame
Subjects: Theology, arts, medicine, law
Structure: Faculties, formal teaching and degree system
Notes: One of Europe’s major centers of scholasticism. Thomas Aquinas studied here. Also influenced by earlier Islamic scholarship translated from Arabic to Latin.
1222 CE – University of Padua
Location: Italy
Founded by: Students and professors from Bologna
Subjects: Law, medicine, philosophy, astronomy
Structure: Faculty system, degree awarding
Notes: Known for scientific progress and academic freedom. Scholars here translated Arabic medical texts.
1257 CE – College of the Sorbonne (Paris)
Location: France
Founded by: Robert de Sorbon
Subjects: Theology (main focus), philosophy
Structure: Incorporated into University of Paris
Notes: Became synonymous with theological education in the Latin West.
1290s CE – Sankore University (Timbuktu)
Location: Mali Empire (present-day Mali)
Founded by: Local scholars, royal patrons
Subjects: Theology, astronomy, medicine, mathematics, literature
Structure: Ijazah (certificate) system, decentralized faculties, oral and written scholarship
Notes: Inspired by earlier Islamic universities like Al-Qarawiyyin and Al-Azhar. Part of the rich West African Islamic intellectual tradition.
Established throughout the 1300s–1500s – Dozens of European Universities
Examples:
Cambridge (1209, UK)
Coimbra (1290, Portugal)
Prague (1348, Czechia)
Heidelberg (1386, Germany)
Kraków (1364, Poland)
Notes: Almost all modeled after Bologna or Paris, which were indirectly influenced by Islamic institutions.
What This Timeline Proves:
Fatima al-Fihri’s Al-Qarawiyyin came first with formal structure, degree certification, and continuous operation.
Later institutions — both Islamic and European — adopted and developed university models inspired by her legacy and the Islamic Golden Age.
Earlier centers (Nalanda, Alexandria, etc.) were centers of learning, not universities in structure or continuity.