|
|
|
 |
Al-Azhar was founded in 970 by Gawhar
El-Sekelli, a commander of the Fatimid
dynasty. Aimed at spreading the Shi'ite
teaching, the Fatimids made Al-Azhar a center of theological
teachings. This came just one year after the founding of Cairo,
the capital.
Al-Azhar played -and still plays- a very important role in the
Islamic world. For many centuries Al-Azhar has been a center
of learning Islamic theology, jurisprudence and religious exegesis.
However, after the end of the Fatimid dynasty, the orientation
of Al-Azhar teachings was changed to Sunni
doctrine after the takeover of Sunni Moslem Saladin
Al-Ayyubi.
Several rulers along Egypt's Islamic history added foundations
to Al-Azhar integrating it to become the biggest Islamic university
in the world.
The teachings were restricted to religious ones in the beginning
but later on, the university began to include secular subjects
like science, medicine, trade … etc. |
|
|
|
