Morocco
Founded the Al Qarawiyyin Mosque, Community service
Hijri Unkown-266 (AH); Common Era Unkown-880 (CE)
Daughter of Mohammed al-Fihri, Fatima al-Fihri, also called Umm al Banine, ‘Mother of the Boys’, is known for creating the oldest academic degree-granting university in existence today, the University of Qarawiyyin. Fatima and her family were among several families who moved from Tunisia to Morocco during the reign of the Moroccan King Idriss II. After her husband and her brothers died, she and her sister Mariam inherited a large fortune. Both women wanted to devote their money to pious work that would benefit the community in order to receive the blessing of God. To this end, Fatima built the Al Qarawiyyin mosque, while Mariam built the Al-Andalus mosque. From the 10th to the 12th century, the Al Qarawiyyin mosque developed into a university which became an important centre of education and one of the first Islamic and most prestigious universities in the world.
