Kiel University, officially the Christian-Albrecht University of Kiel, (german: link=no, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, abbreviated CAU, known informally as Christiana Albertina) is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are the most important sites at which knowledge production occurs, along with "intergenerational kno ...

in the city of

Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the J ...

, Germany. It was founded in 1665 as the ''Academia Holsatorum Chiloniensis'' by

Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp Christian Albert (, Gottorp – , Gottorp) was a duke of Holstein-Gottorp and bishop of Lübeck. Biography Christian Albert was a son of Frederick III, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, and his wife Princess Marie Elisabeth of Saxony. He became duk ...

and has approximately 27,000 students today. It is the largest, oldest, and most prestigious university in the state of

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...

. Until 1866, it was not only the northernmost university in Germany but at the same time the 2nd largest university of

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. Faculty, alumni, and researchers of Kiel University have won 12

Nobel Prizes The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfre ...

. Kiel University has been a member of the

German Universities Excellence Initiative The Excellence Initiative of the German Council of Science and Humanities and the German Research Foundation (DFG) aims to promote cutting-edge research and to create outstanding conditions for young scholars at universities, to deepen cooperatio ...

since 2006. The Cluster of Excellence

The Future Ocean The Future Ocean is a Cluster of Excellence founded in November 2006 in line with the German excellence initiative by the Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (CAU), the Muthesius Kunsthochschule (MKHS), the Institut für Weltwirtschaft (I ...

, which was established in cooperation with the

GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel The GEOMAR - Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (GEOMAR), former ''Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences'' (German: ''Leibniz-Institut für Meereswissenschaften'', IFM-GEOMAR), is a research institute in Kiel, Germany. It was formed in 2004 ...

in 2006, is internationally recognized. The second Cluster of Excellence "Inflammation at Interfaces" deals with chronic inflammatory diseases. The

Kiel Institute for the World Economy The Kiel Institute for the World Economy (Institut für Weltwirtschaft, or IfW) is an independent, non-profit economic research institute and think tank based in Kiel, Germany. In 2017, it was ranked as one of the top 50 most influential think ta ...

is also affiliated with Kiel University. The university has a great reputation for its focus on public international law. The oldest

public international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

institution in Germany and Europe – the Walther Schuecking Institute for International Law – is based in Kiel.

History

Founding of the University in Kiel

The origins of the university in Kiel trace back to the increasing need for well-educated priests during the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

. Additionally, the growing involvement of citizens in significant administrative roles contributed to the idea of establishing a university in the

duchies A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a medieval country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between " ...

. However, wars in the early 17th century and political conflicts between dukes and the king initially delayed these plans. Eventually, Duke Friedrich III commissioned his son, Christian Albrecht, to advance the founding of the university. In 1660, Christian Albrecht succeeded in realizing these plans and selected Kiel as the university's location. On October 5, 1665, the university was inaugurated under the name ''Christiana Albertina'' in a former

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

with four lecture halls and a library. At that time, 17 professors taught theology, medicine, law, and the liberal arts.

Periods of Growth and Stagnation

A significant growth period for the university occurred a century later under Russian Empress

Catherine the Great , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...

, from whom it received its colors, purple and white. Following the unification of the duchies in 1773, the university continued to flourish as the northernmost German and southernmost Scandinavian university. Nearly 100 years later, the university's development stagnated, particularly after Schleswig-Holstein became part of Prussia. From 1870, student numbers began to rise again, and 38 years later, women were also admitted.

During and after WWII

During the

Nazi regime Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

starting in 1933, the university experienced

Gleichschaltung The Nazi term () or "coordination" was the process of Nazification by which Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party successively established a system of totalitarian control and coordination over all aspects of German society and societies occupied b ...

, the expulsion of Jewish professors, and the persecution of dissenters. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, many buildings were destroyed by Allied air raids, including the university library in 1942.

Post-War Reconstruction and Expansion

With the support of the British, teaching resumed as early as November 1945, initially on ships. In the 1960s, a new campus was developed on the Kiel Westring. The student protests of the late 1960s led to a modernization of the university's structure. The campus was expanded in 1972 with buildings on Olshausenstraße and new sports facilities, and in 1991, the Faculty of Engineering opened in Kiel-Gaarden. The number of students steadily increased and now stands at about 25,000 to 30,000. The Christian-Albrecht University has not only become an internationally respected university but also one of the largest employers in Kiel.

Faculties

Christian-Albrechts-Universität currently consists of the following eight faculties: *Faculty of Theology *Faculty of Law *Faculty of Business, Economics and

Social Sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soci ...

*Faculty of Medicine *Faculty of Arts and

Humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the t ...

*Faculty of Mathematics and

Natural Sciences Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...

*Faculty of

Agricultural Science Agricultural science (or agriscience for short) is a broad multidisciplinary field of biology that encompasses the parts of exact, natural, economic and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. Profession ...

and Nutrition *Faculty of Engineering

Notable people

Alumni

:''See also :University of Kiel alumni'' *

Franz Boas Franz Uri Boas (July 9, 1858 – December 21, 1942) was a German-American anthropologist and a pioneer of modern anthropology who has been called the "Father of American Anthropology". His work is associated with the movements known as historical ...

(1858–1942), anthropologist *

Alice Bota Alice Bota (born 15 December 1979) is a German journalist, presently working for the weekly ''Die Zeit'', and a book author. Born in Poland, she studied in both Germany and Poland and focuses on topics of Eastern Europe. Career Born in Krapkowi ...

(born 1979), journalist *

Georg von Dadelsen Georg may refer to: * ''Georg'' (film), 1997 *Georg (musical), Estonian musical * Georg (given name) * Georg (surname) * , a Kriegsmarine coastal tanker See also * George (disambiguation) George may refer to: People * George (given name) * ...

(1918–2007), musicologist, ''

Neue Bach-Ausgabe The New Bach Edition (NBE) (german: Neue Bach-Ausgabe; NBA), is the second complete edition of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, published by Bärenreiter. The name is short for Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750): New Edition of the Complete Wo ...

'' *

Matthias von Davier Matthias is a name derived from the Greek Ματθαίος, in origin similar to Matthew. People Notable people named Matthias include the following: In religion: * Saint Matthias, chosen as an apostle in Acts 1:21–26 to replace Judas Iscariot * ...

, psychometrician, academic, inventor, and author *

Gerhard Domagk Gerhard Johannes Paul Domagk (; 30 October 1895 – 24 April 1964) was a German pathologist and bacteriologist. He is credited with the discovery of sulfonamidochrysoidine (KL730) as an antibiotic for which he received the 1939 Nobel Prize in Phy ...

, bacteriologist, Nobel laureate * Andre Franke, geneticist *

Maren Gaulke Maren may refer to: * Maren (name), includes a list of people who have the given name and surname * Maren, Netherlands * Maren (energy management system) * The Groovy Girls Groovy Girls were a line of fashion dolls manufactured by the American t ...

(born 1955), herpetologist *

Johanna Hellman Johanna Hellman (c. 14 June 1889 – 1982) was a female German and Swedish surgeon. She was the first female to be a member of the German Society for Surgery and contributed to surgical advancements in Germany and Sweden. Education and career Jo ...

(1889–1982), surgeon * Mareile Höppner, television presenter *

Doris König Doris König (born 25 June 1957 in Kiel) is a German judge, jurisprudent and public law scholar who serves as the Vice President of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany (german: Bundesverfassungsgericht). Career Between 1975 and 1980, ...

, current judge of the

Federal Constitutional Court of Germany The Federal Constitutional Court (german: link=no, Bundesverfassungsgericht ; abbreviated: ) is the supreme constitutional court for the Federal Republic of Germany, established by the constitution or Basic Law () of Germany. Since its inc ...

Wolfgang Kubicki Wolfgang Kubicki (born 3 March 1952) is a German politician of the Free Democratic Party of Germany (FDP) and member of the Bundestag from 1990 until 1992 and 2017 onwards. He has been vice chairman of the FDP in Germany since December 2013. Sin ...

, politician, vice chairman of the FDP in Germany, from 1992 to 1993 and since 1996 he is faction leader of the FDP in the

Landtag A Landtag (State Diet) is generally the legislative assembly or parliament of a federated state or other subnational self-governing entity in German-speaking nations. It is usually a unicameral assembly exercising legislative competence in non- ...

, the parliament of

, member of the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...

Oswald Pohl Oswald Ludwig Pohl (; 30 June 1892 – 7 June 1951) was a German SS functionary during the Nazi era. As the head of the SS Main Economic and Administrative Office and the head administrator of the Nazi concentration camps, he was a key figure in ...

(1892–1951), Nazi SS officer executed for war crimes * Viktoria Schmidt-Linsenhoff (1944–2013), German art historian and professor *

Gerhard Stoltenberg Gerhard Stoltenberg (29 September 1928 – 23 November 2001) was a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and minister in the cabinets of Ludwig Erhard, Kurt Georg Kiesinger and Helmut Kohl. He served as Minister-President o ...

, politician, former prime minister of

, former finance minister of Germany *

Peer Steinbrück Peer Steinbrück (born 10 January 1947) is a German politician who was the Chancellor-candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) in the 2013 federal election. Steinbrück served as the eighth Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia f ...

, politician, former prime minister of

North Rhine Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabi ...

, former finance minister of Germany * Erich Walter Sternberg, composer * Sibylle Kessal-Wulf, current judge of the

, Germany's highest court * Surya Hermawan, lecturer at Petra Christian University, Indonesia

Academics

Nobel Prize winners

Rankings

Kiel University is recognized in several

university ranking College and university rankings order the best institutions in higher education based on factors that vary depending on the ranking. Some rankings evaluate institutions within a single country, while others assess institutions worldwide. Rankings ...

systems. According to the 2024 ''

QS World University Rankings ''QS World University Rankings'' is an annual publication of university rankings by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). The QS system comprises three parts: the global overall ranking, the subject rankings (which name the world's top universities for the ...

'', the institution is globally positioned at 530 and holds the 33rd place nationally. In the 2024 ''THE World University Rankings'', it is placed within the 301–350 bracket worldwide and ranks between 32nd and 33rd nationally. The ''ARWU World Rankings'' for 2023 presents the university within the global 201–300 range, while its national rank is within the 10th to 19th positions.

Academic publishing

* The Ethnographisch-Archaeologische Zeitschrift (EAZ) is an

interdisciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several other fields like sociology, anthropology, psychology, ec ...

journal dedicated to the study of human societies from prehistory to the present day by bridging

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...

, and philosophy and addressing topics like

social inequality Social inequality occurs when resources in a given society are distributed unevenly, typically through norms of allocation, that engender specific patterns along lines of socially defined categories of persons. It posses and creates gender c ...

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

, and

indigenous sovereignty Indigenous rights are those rights that exist in recognition of the specific condition of the Indigenous peoples. This includes not only the most basic human rights of physical survival and integrity, but also the rights over their land (includ ...

. The EAZ was founded in 1960 as the successor to the publication series ''Ethnographisch-Archäologische Forschungen'', which was published from 1953 to 1959.Otto, Karl-Heinz (1960). "Editorial". ''EAZ – Ethnographisch-Archäologische Zeitschrift'' . 1 (1): 2. First published at

Humboldt University Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of ...

in 1960, the EAZ later moved to Leipzig in 2010, and since 2023 it is published at Kiel University.

Points of interest

Botanischer Garten der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel The Botanischer Garten der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (8 hectares), or less formally the Botanischer Garten Kiel, is a botanical garden and arboretum maintained by the University of Kiel. It is located at Am Botanischen Garten 1, K ...

, the university's

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

Gallery

File:Universitätsbibliothek CAU Leibniz-Straße Luftaufnahme.jpg, "Some shine when you read them" - Aerial photograph of the University Library of the CAU on Leibniz Street File:Luftaufnahme IPN.jpg, The Leibniz Institute for the Education in Natural Sciences and Mathematics at Olshausenstraße File:Luftaufnahme ZBM Botanischer Garten.jpg, The Center for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ZMB) of the CAU at the Botanical Garden File:Luftaufnahme Leibniz-Straße Institute Universitätsbibliothek Mensa.jpg, Leibniz-Straße-based institutes, the cafeteria and the university library File:Luftaufnahme Otto-Hahn-Platz Max-Eyth-Straße Chemie Anatomie Biochemie.jpg, The Otto-Hahn-Platz and the Max-Eyth-Straße with the various chemical institutes and the Anatomical Institute File:Luftaufnahme CAU Kiel Sportstätten Institut Sportwissenschaft.jpg, The sports facilities and the Institute of Sports Science of the CAU File:Luftaufnahme Botanischer Garten CAU Kiel.jpg, The grounds of the botanical garden of the CAU Kiel File:Schaugewächshäuser Botanischer Garten CAU Kiel.jpg, The greenhouses of the Botanical Garden of the CAU

Holstein Study Award

CAU's most renowned award is the Holstein Study Award (Holsteiner Studienpreis), which is awarded to the university's top three students each year since 2001. The award's criteria include extraordinary academic achievements, a broad intellectual horizon and political or social involvement. It is endowed with a prize money of €500 for the 2nd and 3rd prize and €1000 for the 1st prize. The Holstein Study Award is funded by the association 'Iuventus Academiae Holsatorum'. The award's expert jury includes professors of various faculties and the prizes are awarded by the university's president or vice-president in a formal ceremony in the top floor of the skyscraper on campus.

References

External links

*
Kiel University International Affairs

Students' Association at Kiel University
{{Authority control Universities and colleges in Schleswig-Holstein

University A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

Educational institutions established in the 1660s 1665 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire