Leipzig University
One of the world's oldest universities, founded in 1409.
**Leipzig University** (Universität Leipzig) is located in Leipzig, Saxony, Germany. It ranks among the oldest universities in the world and, among continuously operating German universities, is typically considered the second-oldest after Heidelberg. The institution was established on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Elector of Saxony, and his brother William II, Margrave of Meissen, starting with the four traditional scholastic faculties. It has maintained uninterrupted teaching and research for more than six centuries.
Among its former students are 55 heads of state or government, including Angela Merkel, who served as German Chancellor from 2005 to 2021. The university is linked to 19 Nobel laureates; the most recent is Svante Pääbo, who holds an honorary affiliation with Leipzig University as a director at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and received the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2022. Other notable alumni include Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Werner Heisenberg, Friedrich Nietzsche, Robert Schumann, Richard Wagner, Theodor Mommsen, Wilhelm Ostwald, Cai Yuanpei, Edward Teller, Gustav Stresemann, and Georgius Agricola.
**History**
**Founding and development until 1900**
The university was modeled on the University of Prague. German-speaking faculty members left Prague for Leipzig following the Jan Hus crisis and the Decree of Kutná Hora. The Alma mater Lipsiensis opened in 1409 after receiving an official charter from Pope Alexander V in his Bull of Acknowledgment on 9 September of that year. Johannes Otto von Münsterberg served as its first rector. From the start, the Paulinerkirche functioned as the university church. After the Reformation, the church and monastery buildings were given to the university in 1544. To secure stable, long-term funding, the university was granted lordship over several villages east of Leipzig (the university villages), a status it held for several centuries until 19th-century land reforms.
Like many European universities of the time, Leipzig was organized into colleges (collegia) that managed housing and lectures. These included the Small College, the Large College, the Red College (also called the New College), the College of Our Lady (Frauenkolleg), and the Pauliner College (Pauliner Kolleg). There were also private residential halls known as bursen.
Quick Facts
- Native Name
- Universität Leipzig
- Latin Name
- Alma Mater Lipsiensis
- Motto
- Aus Tradition Grenzen überschreiten (German)
- Motto Lang
- de
- Motto Eng
- Crossing boundaries out of tradition
- Established
- 1409-12-02
- Budget
- EUR 408.9 million
- Rector
- Eva Inés Obergfell
- Academic Staff
- 3,234
- Administrative Staff
- 1,962
- Students
- 29,459
- City
- Leipzig
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The university was modelled on the University of Prague, from which German-speaking faculty members withdrew after the Jan Hus crisis and the Decree of Kutná Hora. It was officially chartered by Pope Alexander V on 9 September 1409, and its first rector was Johannes Otto von Münsterberg. From its foundation, the Paulinerkirche served as the university church, and after the Reformation the church and monastery buildings were donated to the university in 1544. To secure funding, the university was endowed with lordship over several villages east of Leipzig, a status it held for several centuries.
Reader's Guide
Leipzig University's significance lies in its uninterrupted operation for over 600 years, making it a key institution in European higher education. It was one of the first German universities to allow women as guest students, and in 1873 the Allgemeiner Deutscher Frauenverein thanked it for this policy. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, it became a center for educating elites from Balkan states, hosting over 5,500 students from the region between 1859 and 1909. The university survived the Nazi period and World War II, during which 60% of its buildings and 70% of its books were destroyed. After the war, it reopened in 1946, was renamed Karl Marx University in 1953, and restored its original name in 1991 following German reunification. Its alumni include 55 prime ministers and presidents, notably Angela Merkel, and it is associated with 19 Nobel laureates, most recently Svante Pääbo in 2022.
Did You Know?
- During the Nazi period, many degrees of Jews were cancelled, and some were later reinstated as Karl-Marx University degrees by the GDR.
- The university was renamed Karl Marx University in 1953 and restored to Leipzig University in 1991.
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