Image: Mariam Malik
Underrated Female Role Model – Fatima al Fihri
Mariam Malik
Perhaps the most underrated female role models are Muslim women since a majority expect that Muslim women have recently been getting their rights. The truth is that Muslim women have had their rights starting from fourteen hundred years ago. However, in the recent century, one of Islam’s biggest rules – upholding everyone’s rights, both men and women – has been forgotten. Thankfully, many Islamic countries are returning to how it originally was in Islam, where everyone, regardless of wealth, gender, or skin coloring had equal rights.
Few know that the oldest university in the world was founded by a woman. Even fewer know that she was a Muslimah. This often raises some confusion as some believe that the University of Bologna is the oldest university, but it is only the oldest university in Europe. The University of Karueein is the oldest existing and still operating university in the world, founded by Fatima al Fihri in 859 AD in Fez, Morocco. The university has been functioning for the past 1159 years – and to this day has over nine thousand students a year.
Fatima al Fihri was known for her charity, such as “taking children under her wing and teaching them.” In Tunisia, a prize was created in her honor, which rewarded enterprises and initiatives that encourage women’s education and professional careers. Fatima was from a family of rich migrant merchants, who migrated to Fez escaping persecution. As her community grew, she vowed to give the rapidly growing number of migrants a place to worship and study.
Fihri was fifty-nine years old when she founded the university – using her inheritance. She personally supervised the construction of the university and mined her land for the resources needed. At first, it was a large mosque that served religious purposes and conducted teachings. However, as the number of students grew, it became a university that taught both Islamic studies and educational curriculum. Soon it became the first institution to award degrees according to the different levels of education it offered. Another important contribution was the invention of algebra in this school. People of all religions and regions came to study at the academy. It was, and still is, a hub of knowledge and learning. Adjacent to the university is the oldest library, whose restoration was overseen by Aziza Chaouni, a Muslim woman as well.
In short, Women’s History Month is not only for us to realize the efforts women have done for society and the world, but to also discover more about those who have been overshadowed. There are many more underrepresented female role models, and we must use this month to discover them and honor their memory. Despite this, we need to remember that feminism and support for women’s rights are something to uphold every day. Every voice, no matter how small, is always important. In the words of Maya Angelou, “each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women.”
Works Cited
Stone, Wendy. “The World’s First University Was Founded By a Woman.” GlobalAcamdemyJobs. N.P., N.D. Web. 13 March 2021.
Ilham, Talbi “Fatime al-Fihri: Founder of the World’s Oldest University.” DW.com. N.P., 05 August 2020. Web. 13 March 2021.
No name. “Oldest Higher-Learning Institution, Oldest Unversity.” guinnessworldrecords. N.P., N.D. Web. 13 March 2021.
No name. “WISstory: Fatima al-Fihri, Founder of the World’s Longest Standing University.” womeninsciene.pdx. N.P., N.D. Web. 13 March 2021.
Written by Mariam Malik
Edited by Ginger Asen and Sathvika Ganti