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Fatima, al-Fihri

Chapter · December 2011

DOI: 10.1093/acref/9780195301731.013.48736

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 Fatima al-Fihri

Fatima al-Fihri (?-880), known also under the names of «Fatima al-Fihriya, » and
«oum al-banine, » (the mother of the kids,) founded the Qarawiyine University in Fez,
Morocco, the oldest operating university in the world.

Al-Fihris migrated from Qayrawan, located in present day Tunisia, to Fez in the

beginning of the 9th century, during the Idrisid reign, the first Muslim state to govern

Morocco. During this period, there was an important migration of people from Qayrawan

to Fez. As a result, the population of Fez grew rapidly, far outpacing the city’s existing

infrastructure. This left many neighborhoods lacking mosques, amongst other things.

When one of the members of the Qayrawan migrant community, Mohammed al-Fihri, an

affluent businessman died, he left an important fortune to his daughters Mariam and

Fatima. Both daughters were highly educated, and therefore well aware of the

community’s needs for public places. Thus, they decided to spend all their inheritance to

remedy the situation. While Mariam built the Andalus Mosque, Fatima vowed to build

the biggest mosque in North Africa.

Very little is known about Fatima al-Fihri and the life she led. However, if one

takes into consideration the legacy that she left to humanity, one can sense some of her

personal qualities, among which were generosity, intelligence and clairvoyance. Fez was

already one of the most affluent cities in the Muslim world; however, Fatima contributed

to the consolidation of its importance, transforming the city into one of the major cultural,

intellectual and spiritual centers in the Muslim world, as well as the Christian West.

Indeed, once the construction of the mosque had begun, Fatima conceived the project of

building a madrasah, an institution of learning as well. Thus, in 859, without knowing it,

Fatima al-Fihri founded the oldest operating university in the world, the Qarawiyine

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University, known also under the names of al-Qaraouine, al-Karaouine and al-

Qairawiyin.

The Mosque that Fatima al-Fahri had initially built had a mihrab, four naves, a

small court and a relatively low minaret, however, along the centuries, the mosque got

bigger and gained importance. Since its foundation, the University Qarawiyine has

become one of the major educational and spiritual centers in the Muslim world. In

addition, between the 10th and 12th centuries, it became one of the leading institutions of

learning around the world. As such, it attracted some of the greatest thinkers in the world:

the geographer Charif al-Idrissi (1100-1165), the malekite jurist Abu Madhab al-Fasi, the

mystic poet Moheïddine Ibn al-Arabi (1165-1240), the philosopher, doctor, astronomer,

geometer, musician and poet Avempace (1085-1138), the philosopher, theologian, jurist,

mathematician and doctor Averroes (1126-1198), the astronomer and philosopher Nur

ad-Din al-Betrugi (?, 1204), the historian Lissan-Eddine Ibn al-Khatib (1313,1374), the

historian and philosopher Ibn Khaldoun (1332-1395), and the famous author Hassan al-

Wazzan (1494-1554?).

As an educational and cultural center, the Qarawiyine University played a

prominent role through the centuries, not only in the production and exchange of

knowledge, but in unifying the Muslim world around a cultural, educational and spiritual

identity. Numerous scholars taught at the institution as well as in other universities in the

Muslim world. Such luminaries as Abu Imran al-Fassi ( ?, 1038) taught malekite

jurisprudence in al-Qarawiyine, in Tunisia and in Egypt, and Abu Ali al-Kali taught his

literary work in al-Qarawiyine and in Cordova, in Muslim Spain.

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 Similarly, the scholarly work produced in al-Qarawiyine circulated widely in the

Muslim world. Sabiq al-Matmati’s poems were chanted in Damascus court, Abu Bakr

Ibn al-Arabi’s scholarly work (1076-1148) was taught in the Orient, and Ibn Ajroum’s (?,

1302) grammar book was interpreted in Cairo and Baghdad. Furthermore, when the

Merinid sultans traveled to the Orient, they surrounded themselves with scholars from al-

Qarawiyine, who engaged their Oriental peers in debates and exchanges of ideas. A case

in point, during a trip to Tunisia, around 1330, 400 Qarawiyine scholars accompanied the

sultan Abu al-Hassan.

The Qarawiyine University also played an important role in the transfer of

knowledge between Europe and the Muslim world. This transfer of knowledge took on

various forms through the centuries: first, it was through the arrival of European scholars

who came to study at the Qarawiyine University, such as the scientist Gerbert d’Aurillac,

known under the name of Pope Sylvester II (946-1003), who introduced the Arabic

numerical system in Europe. Another is the Jewish philosopher and theologian, Ibn

Maimun (Maimonides) (1135-1204), who was Abdul Arab Ibn Muwashah’s disciple.

Secondly, it was through the arrival of European scholars who visited the Qarawiyine

University, such as the religious figure Nicolas Clénard (1495-1542), a Louvain

University’s professor in Belgium, and the Dutch mathematician and orientalist Jacob

Golius (1596-1667), who brought back to Europe a copy of Ibn Baklarech’s book of

medicine. Lastly, it was through the export of Qarawiyine’s intellectual and scientific

production, particularly studies dealing with logic, medicine and astronomy, that were

translated from Arabic into Latin and other European languages at scientific and

translation institutes in Spain. Examples include important translations of works by

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Doctor Ibn Zuhr, known under the name of Avenzoar (1073, 1162), the doctor and

astronomer Avempace (1085-1138), the doctor and astronomer Abu Bakr Ibn Toufaïl

(1110-1185), and the doctor and mathematician Averroes (1126-1198).

As a result, these transfers through the centuries between the Arab World

and Europe meant that the scientific and philosophical work of scholars affiliated with al-

Qarawiyine not only constituted an important foundation of human knowledge, but also

helped to expand scientific knowledge in Europe.

Some historians locate the beginning of the decline of the importance of the

University al-Qarawiyine during the Merinid reign, around the 15th century, era during

which the sultans limited its freedom of speech. During this period, the intellectual and

scientific production in al-Qarawiyine stagnated, while Fez started to lose its importance

as a cultural, intellectual, and spiritual center.

Since then, several sultans have sought to restore the importance of the university

through attempted reforms of the Qarawiyine’s educational system. In 1789, the sultan

Sidi Mohamed ben Abdellah renewed the university’s corpus through a series of royal

decrees. Towards the end of the Nineteenth Century, the sultans Hassan I, Moulay

Abdelaziz, and Moulay Youssef (1882-1927) pursued further reforms. From the early to

mid Twentieth Century, King Mohammed V (1909-1961) continued with further

reformist efforts. Finally, since 1975, to ensure that the Qarawiyine University integrates

the knowledge of its time, its statutes were modified to bring it into accordance with the

same royal decree that governs all other Moroccan universities. Today, the institution of

learning that Fatima al-Fihri founded in 859, offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral

programs, and produces four periodicals: Revue al-Qaraouiyine, Revue d’al-logha al-

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 arabia-Marrakech, Revue d’ach-charia-Fez, Revue d’ach-charia-Agadir, and Revue

d’Ossouliddine-Tetouan.

Osire Glacier

Sources:
Latifa Lalaoui Mounir, L’Université Qarawiyyin de Fès (9ème-15ème siècle,) PhD
Dissertation, Education Sciences (Paris: Paris V University, 1989).

The Guinness Book of Records, 1998, 242.

Moulay Idriss el-Maarouf, «Archiving Remembrance of National Icons, » last accessed

in January 20, 2010,
http://medi-cafe.britishcouncil.org/writing/non-fictionbywhitemoor2/

Hezreen Abdul Rashid, «Fatima al-Fihri, Founder of the Oldest University in the World,
» lasted accessed in January 20, 2010,
http://theurbanmuslimwomen.wordpress.com/2008/08/04/fatima-al-fihri-founder-of-the-
oldest-university-in-the-world/

«Culture and Communication Directorate ISESCO, » last accessed in January 25, 2010,
http://www.isesco.org.ma/english/culture/culturalPolicies/2007/fes/history.php

Henri Terrasse, La mosquée al-Qaraouiyin à Fès (Paris : Librairie Klincksieck, 1968).

Al-Jaznai, Zahrat al-As (The Myrtle Flower) (Agler : A. Bel, 1923).

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