Medieval Universities

Western European universities developed as students migrated to various places where noted teachers lectured on subjects of particular interest to them. Language was no barrier because lectures and disputation were conducted in the universal tongue, Latin. By the 12th century, Paris was established as the centre for theology and philosophy, and the University of Paris became the model for later universities in northern Europe. Bologna, Italy, was the centre for the study of law, and the University of Bologna set the pattern for Italian and Spanish universities. From the 13th century onwards, universities were established in France, England, Scotland, Germany, Bohemia, and Poland. Students migrating from the same country banded together into so-called nations for mutual aid and protection. From these communities developed the concept of the college (Latin, collegium,”society”). Medieval universities had the right to suspend studies when conditions in their towns and cities were unfavourable and to confer degrees that included the privilege of teaching in any Christian country