A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees at all levels (bachelor, master, and doctorate) in a variety of subjects. A university provides both tertiary and quaternary education. The word university is derived from the Latin universitas, meaning corporation, since the first medieval European universities were simply groups of scholars.
History
Because of the above definition, there is some controversy regarding what is the world's oldest university. If we consider university simply as a higher education institution, then it is
Shangyang, which originated before the
21st century BC in
China. In the western world, the choice is between
Takshashila,
Nalanda and
Al-Azhar University. If we consider the original meaning of the word (from the latin "universitas": a corporation of students), then universities are a medieval European phenomenon and the oldest university is the
University of Bologna in northern
Italy (founded in
1088 and known as "Alma Mater Studiorum").
Students at Takshashila University, founded in Taxila (Pakistan) from around the 7th century BC, were given academic titles after graduating from one of its many courses. Nalanda University, founded in Bihar (India) from around the 5th century BC, also gave academic titles to its graduates, while also offering post-graduate courses. Al-Azhar University, founded in Cairo (Egypt) in the 10th century, offered a variety of post-graduate degrees, and is usually regarded as the first full-fledged university.
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Universities - Twitter Search200 World's Best Universities - Us News & World Report: http://bit.ly/kVOqAftherin (Francois Therin) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:13:55 -0000
200 World's Best Universities - Us News & World Report: http://bit.ly/kVOqA
When Ray Comfort's version of Origin of Species is distributed at universities, what may it be encouraging? http://tinyurl.com/ya6ygxzGaryM (Gary McFarlane) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:10:47 -0000
When Ray Comfort's version of Origin of Species is distributed at universities, what may it be encouraging? http://tinyurl.com/ya6ygxz
The economic impact of universities: For those who are sceptical about the capacity of universities to make a d.. http://rly.cc/fkXb7Education_Ind (Education) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:06:45 -0000
The economic impact of universities: For those who are sceptical about the capacity of universities to make a d.. http://rly.cc/fkXb7
Looking forward to #engage09 to see what universities can learn from the visual arts about public engagementBeaconforWales (Bruce Etherington) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:06:20 -0000
Looking forward to #engage09 to see what universities can learn from the visual arts about public engagement
RT @pontusw: Apparently UK universities spend £25 billion on journal subscriptions a year, twice the turnover of pharmaceutical industry.objetpetitm (Matti Pohjonen) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:06:17 -0000
RT @pontusw: Apparently UK universities spend £25 billion on journal subscriptions a year, twice the turnover of pharmaceutical industry.
Yle news: Aalto takes the development funds of other Universities. But that (Aalto) does not mean you @tuija , right?talvivaaraj (talvivaaraj) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:03:26 -0000
Yle news: Aalto takes the development funds of other Universities. But that (Aalto) does not mean you @tuija , right?
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