The First University in the ‘New World’ - Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino

By Elizabeth Abbott, Third Year English and History

Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino, in the Dominican Republic, was established 486 years ago today. Although this is not the oldest university worldwide, with this position being taken by The University of Bologna, founded in 1088, Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino was arguably the first institution of higher education established in the Americas. Our Western-centric lens leads us to believe the first university in this continent was located in North America, but, in fact, the first North American university, Harvard, was established a hundred years later after Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino in 1636.

As was common with many educational institutions established in this period, Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino’s formation was orchestrated by religious figures; initially founded as a seminary for Roman Catholic monks then transformed into a university by papal bull. The university taught Arts and Theology, although subjects within these umbrella terms differ to what would be considered Arts and Theology today. In the Middle Ages, the Faculty of Arts dealt with theoretical disciplines, such as Mathematics, Logic, Grammar, and Astronomy, whereas the Theology department included practical subjects like Medicine, Law and Theology.

After running as a university for twenty years, debate sprung up surrounding whether this was indeed the first university established in the Americas. Since the university was not officially recognised by Royal Provision of the Kingdom of Spain until 1558, whereas the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos was created by Royal Provision in America in 1551, many have argued the later institution was in fact the first university in the Americas. The issue of titling was so contentious, the Kingdom of Spain even issued a Royal Decree prohibiting Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino from self-labelling itself as a primate of America. On top of this, all degrees given before 1558 at Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino were proclaimed unofficial.

This dispute raises questions about whether we need degrees as testimony of our work? There are many examples of officials disallowing ‘legitimate’ studying from occurring across time and place; women were only allowed to receive degrees in the UK in 1878, and this was only at one university: The University of London. We might ask if it is necessary for our seniors to recognise education for it to be useful or valid even?

Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino closed in 1823 due to the entry of Haitian troops into the country forcing many students into the military. However, in 1914 the autonomous Universidad Santo Domingo was established as successor of Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino. Today, the university is considered as part of the set of the foundational institutions set up in the local area, the city of Santo Domingo, along with the cathedral, hospital and first customs office.

Edited by William Budd