The 30 oldest universities in continuous operation
The top 3 according to 273 votes from people: University of Oxford · University of Bologna · University of Cambridge. (Updated Feb 23, 2025.)
Bologna, Oxford, Cambridge and Salamanca top the list of universities founded in the Middle Ages that are still running today. Italy has eleven of the thirty and Spain three. Dates follow Wikipedia, based on A History of the University in Europe; some, like Pisa or Sapienza, were founded earlier, closed and refounded, and the refoundation is what counts.
Automatically translated (original in Español). See the original
Top 30
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1
University of Oxford
1200–1214. Oxford, United Kingdom. There was teaching in Oxford from the late 11th century.
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2
University of Bologna
1180–1190. Bologna, Italy. The oldest; teaching is often dated to 1088.
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3
University of Cambridge
1209–1225. Cambridge, United Kingdom. Founded by scholars who left Oxford in 1209.
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4
University of Siena
1357. Siena, Italy.
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5
University of Padua
1222. Padua, Italy.
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6
University of Salamanca
1218–1219. Salamanca, Spain. The oldest surviving university in the Hispanic world.
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7
University of Valladolid
1241. Valladolid, Spain. First documented in 1241.
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8
Leipzig University
1409. Leipzig, Germany.
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9
University of Naples Federico II
1224. Naples, Italy. Founded by Emperor Frederick II; the oldest state-supported secular university.
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10
University of Perugia
1308. Perugia, Italy.
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11
University of Turin
1404. Turin, Italy.
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12
University of Vienna
1365. Vienna, Austria. The oldest in the German-speaking world.
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13
University of St Andrews
1410–1413. St Andrews, United Kingdom. The oldest in Scotland.
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14
University of Coimbra
1290. Coimbra, Portugal. Founded in Lisbon; moved permanently to Coimbra in 1537.
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15
Charles University
1348. Prague, Czech Republic. The oldest in Central Europe.
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16
Jagiellonian University
1364. Kraków, Poland.
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17
LMU Munich
1459–1472. Munich, Germany. Founded in Ingolstadt; moved to Munich in 1826.
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18
University of Pisa
c. 1400. Pisa, Italy. Established in 1343, closed around 1360 and refounded in the early 15th century.
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19
University of Pavia
1361. Pavia, Italy.
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20
University of Freiburg
1457. Freiburg, Germany.
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21
Heidelberg University
1385. Heidelberg, Germany. The oldest in Germany.
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22
University of Rostock
1419. Rostock, Germany.
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23
University of Catania
1444. Catania, Italy.
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24
University of Ferrara
1430. Ferrara, Italy.
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25
University of Greifswald
1456. Greifswald, Germany.
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26
University of Basel
1459. Basel, Switzerland. The oldest in Switzerland.
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27
University of Barcelona
1450. Barcelona, Spain.
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28
University of Copenhagen
1475–1479. Copenhagen, Denmark.
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29
University of Glasgow
1451. Glasgow, United Kingdom.
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30
Sapienza University of Rome
1431. Rome, Italy. Founded in 1303, closed at the end of the 14th century and refounded in 1431.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
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Comments (1)
Y la de Alcalá? Ah vale, que cerró y se volvió a fundar. Vaya lío de fechas tienen todas