In which country is the oldest continuously-operating university on Earth?

The University of al-Qarawiyyin (also called the University of Karaouine) was founded by a Tunisian princess, Fatima al-Fihri, in 859 CE. It was the first learning institution to issue degrees, and has been in continual operation since its doors first opened. The university, in Fez, Morocco, primarily teaches Islamic religion and legal sciences, with a focus on classical Arabic grammar and linguistics and Maliki law.

In 1963, al-Qarawiyyin became part of Morocco’s state-university system. Students range in age from 13 to 30, and the institution offers both high-school diplomas and university-level bachelor degrees. Contrary to popular misconception, the University of al-Qarawiyyin is coeducational, welcoming both male and female students.

Italy’s University of Bologna began in 1088. Great Britain’s Oxford University began in the town of the same name in 1096. Spain’s University of Salamanca, in Castile and León, probably began teaching students around 1094, but the king of León officially recognized the university in 1164, which is its official beginning.

The oldest university in the United States is a matter of some debate, as several institutions make substantial claims to the title, among them Harvard University, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the College of William and Mary, in Williamsburg, Virginia.