Kiel University, officially the Christian-Albrecht University of Kiel, (German: Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, abbreviated CAU, known informally as Christiana Albertina) is a public research university in the city of Kiel, Germany. It was founded in 1665 as the Academia Holsatorum Chiloniensis by Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp and has approximately 27,000 students today. It is the largest, oldest, and most prestigious university in the state of Schleswig-Holstein.

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Kiel University

Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel
Seal of Kiel University
Latin: Academia Holsatorum Chiloniensis sive Christiana Albertina
Motto	Pax optima rerum
Motto in English	Peace is the greatest good
Type	Public
Established	1665; 359 years ago (1665)
Budget	€ 268.7 million (2021)[1] Third-party funding: € 65 mio
President	Simone Fulda
Academic staff	433 professors (2021)[1]
Total staff	3,681 (2021, not including UKSH) [1]
Students	27,455 (2021)[1]
Location	Kiel , Schleswig-Holstein , Germany 54°20′20″N 10°7′21″E
Campus	Urban
Colors	Purple and white
Website	www.uni-kiel.de

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Until 1866, it was not only the northernmost university in Germany but at the same time the 2nd largest university of Denmark. Faculty, alumni, and researchers of Kiel University have won 12 Nobel Prizes. Kiel University has been a member of the German Universities Excellence Initiative since 2006. The Cluster of Excellence The Future Ocean, which was established in cooperation with the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel 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 is also affiliated with Kiel University. The university has a great reputation for its focus on public international law. The oldest public international law institution in Germany and Europe – the Walther Schuecking Institute for International Law – is based in Kiel.^[2]

Kiel University was founded under the name Christiana Albertina on 5 October 1665 by Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp. The citizens of the city of Kiel were initially quite sceptical about the upcoming influx of students, thinking that these could be "quite a pest with their gluttony, heavy drinking and their questionable character" (German: mit Fressen, Sauffen und allerley leichtfertigem Wesen sehr ärgerlich seyn). But those in the city who envisioned economic advantages of a university in the city won, and Kiel thus became the northernmost university in the German Holy Roman Empire.

After 1773, when Kiel had come under Danish rule, the university began to thrive, and when Kiel became part of Prussia in the year 1867, the university grew rapidly in size. The university opened one of the first botanical gardens in Germany (now the Alter Botanischer Garten Kiel), and Martin Gropius designed many of the new buildings needed to teach the growing number of students.

The Christiana Albertina was one of the first German universities to obey the Gleichschaltung in 1933 and agreed to remove many professors and students from the school, for instance Ferdinand Tönnies or Felix Jacoby. During World War II, Kiel University suffered heavy damage, therefore it was later rebuilt at a different location with only a few of the older buildings housing the medical school.

In 2019, it was announced it has banned full-face coverings in classrooms, citing the need for open communication that includes facial expressions and gestures.^[3][4]

Christian-Albrechts-Universität currently consists of the following eight faculties:^[5]

• Faculty of Theology
• Faculty of Law
• Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences
• Faculty of Medicine
• Faculty of Arts and Humanities
• Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
• Faculty of Agricultural Science and Nutrition
• Faculty of Engineering

Kiel University is recognized in several university ranking systems. According to the 2024 QS World University Rankings, the institution is globally positioned at 530 and holds the 33rd place nationally.^[11] In the 2024 THE World University Rankings, it is placed within the 301–350 bracket worldwide and ranks between 32nd and 33rd nationally.^[12] 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.^[13]

• The Ethnographisch-Archaeologische Zeitschrift (EAZ)^[14] is an interdisciplinary journal dedicated to the study of human societies from prehistory to the present day by bridging archaeology, anthropology, and philosophy and addressing topics like social inequality, climate change, and indigenous sovereignty.^{[15][16][17][14]} The EAZ was founded in 1960 as the successor to the publication series Ethnographisch-Archäologische Forschungen, which was published from 1953 to 1959.^[18] First published at Humboldt University Berlin in 1960,^[18] the EAZ later moved to Leipzig in 2010,^[19] and since 2023 it is published at Kiel University.^[16]

• Botanischer Garten der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, the university's botanical garden

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.^[20][21] The award's criteria include extraordinary academic achievements, a broad intellectual horizon and political or social involvement.^[22] It is endowed with a prize money of €500 for the 2nd and 3rd prize and €1000 for the 1st prize.^[23] 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.^[24]

• List of early modern universities in Europe
• Lists of universities and colleges