Fatima al-Fihri

Hello, my name is Fatima al-Fihri. A long, long time ago, in the early 9th century, my family moved to a new home. We traveled from a place called Kairouan to a busy city called Fes. I had a sister named Mariam. Our father taught us something very special. He told us that learning new things and helping people in our community were the most important things we could do.

When I grew up, my father passed away. He left me some money, and I wanted to use it to do something good. I had a big, kind dream for the people of Fes. I wanted to build a special place for everyone. It would be a mosque, a place to pray, but it would also have a school inside. It would be a place where anyone could come to learn. In the year 859, I started building my dream.

My school was called the University of al-Qarawiyyin. It grew bigger and bigger. Soon, it became a very famous place for learning. People came from all over the world to study and read books there. My school is still open today. It is one of the oldest universities in the whole world where people are still learning new things.

I lived a full life and felt so happy seeing my dream help so many people learn and grow. Today, I am remembered for believing that everyone should have a chance to learn. My university is still standing in Fes. It reminds us all that one person’s kind idea can make the world a better place for a very, very long time.