Mosque and University of al-Qarawiyyin

The Mosque and University of al-Qarawiyyin is recognized by UNESCO and Guinness World Records as the oldest continually operating degree-granting university in the world. You can pick out the complex from the dense, narrow streets of the Medina by its massive green-tiled pyramidal roof and its tall, square minaret. While its exterior remains relatively unassuming, the site has served as a central pillar of Islamic scholarship, law, and theology since it was founded in eight fifty-nine.