The University of al-Qarawiyyin in Fez, Morocco, was originally founded as a mosque in 859 AD. According to Guinness World Records, it is the oldest higher learning institution in the world.

In the Moroccan city of Fez, Fatima al-Fihri founded a mosque which developed into the famous al-Qarawiyyin university. Today it is recognized as the oldest existing university in the world.

A courtyard in front of a mosque adjacent to the al-Qarawiyyin Library, pre-restoration. Khonsali via Wikimedia Commons When the library at Morocco’s al-Qarawiyyin University was first built in ...

The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Centre delegation praised Al-Qarawiyyin University and the role it plays in all fields. The delegation pointed out that the University had represented a source of Islamic ...

In the Moroccan city of Fez, Fatima al-Fihri founded a mosque which developed into the famous al-Qarawiyyin university. Today it is recognized as the oldest existing university in the world.

A courtyard in front of a mosque adjacent to the al-Qarawiyyin Library, pre-restoration. Khonsali via Wikimedia Commons When the library at Morocco’s al-Qarawiyyin University was first built in ...

The University of al-Qarawiyyin is widely recognized as the oldest university in the world. Founded as a mosque in 859 AD by Fatima al-Fihri, it was later added to Morocco's university system in 1963.