Humboldt University of Berlin facts for kids

"University of Berlin" redirects here. For other uses, see University of Berlin (disambiguation).

Quick facts for kids
Humboldt University of Berlin
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
Seal of the Universitas Humboldtiana Berolinensis (Latin)
Motto	Universitas litterarum (Latin)
Motto in English	The Entity of Sciences
Type	Public
Established	15 October 1810; 214 years ago (1810-10-15)
Budget	€536.0 million (2022)
President	Julia von Blumenthal
Academic staff	2,403
Administrative staff	1,516
Students	32,553
Undergraduates	18,712
Postgraduates	10,881
Doctoral students	2,951
Location	Berlin , Germany 52°31′05″N 13°23′36″E / 52.51806°N 13.39333°E / 52.51806; 13.39333
Campus	Urban and suburban
Nobel Laureates	57 (as of 2020)
Colors	Blue and White
Affiliations	German Universities Excellence Initiative UNICA U15 Atomium Culture EUA IAU FGU Erasmus

The Humboldt University of Berlin (German: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) is a public research university in Berlin, Germany. It is one of the oldest universities in Berlin.

The university was started by Frederick William III of Prussia in 1809. It opened its doors in 1810. Important thinkers like Wilhelm von Humboldt helped create it. From 1828 to 1945, it was called Friedrich Wilhelm University.

During the Cold War, Berlin was divided. The university was in East Berlin. A new university, the Free University of Berlin, opened in West Berlin. In 1949, the university was renamed to honor Alexander von Humboldt and Wilhelm von Humboldt.

Humboldt University has nine main departments, including a medical school called Charité. About 32,000 students study there. They can choose from almost 190 different subjects. The main campus is on the famous Unter den Linden street in central Berlin.

This university is known worldwide for its special way of teaching. It combines teaching with research. This idea, called the Humboldtian model of higher education, has influenced many universities around the world.

In the 1800s and early 1900s, it was a leading university for science. Many professors, like Albert Einstein, made big discoveries there. So far, 57 Nobel Prize winners have been connected to the university. This is more than any other German university. Many other famous people, like Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, and the Brothers Grimm, also studied or taught here.

History of the University
University Departments
The University Library
University Rankings
Famous People from Humboldt University
See also

History of the University

The Main Building

The main building of Humboldt University is called the Prinz-Heinrich-Palais. It is on the Unter den Linden street in the center of Berlin. It was built between 1748 and 1753 for Prince Henry of Prussia (1726–1802). He was the brother of Frederick the Great.

In 1809, this royal palace became a university building. It was damaged during World War II bombings. It was rebuilt from 1949 to 1962.

How it Started

Statue of Wilhelm von Humboldt in front of the main building.

The University of Berlin officially started on August 16, 1809. This happened because of Wilhelm von Humboldt, a politician who wanted to improve education. King Friedrich Wilhelm III helped make it happen.

The university was set up in a palace that used to belong to Prince Henry. The first unofficial classes were held in the winter of 1809. Humboldt faced challenges but the school opened in the fall of 1810.

The first students joined on October 6, 1810. The first semester began on October 10, 1810. There were 256 students and 52 teachers. They taught law, medicine, theology, and philosophy. The university celebrates October 15, 1810, as its opening day.

In 1810, the university created the world's first special teaching position for history. From 1828 to 1945, the university was named Friedrich Wilhelm University. This was to honor its founder.

Many great thinkers studied or taught here. These include philosophers like Johann Gottlieb Fichte and Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. Famous physicists like Albert Einstein and Max Planck also worked here.

Friedrich Wilhelm University in 1850.

The founders of Marxist theory, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, attended the university. So did the poet Heinrich Heine and the German leader Otto von Bismarck. The civil rights activist W. E. B. Du Bois also studied here.

The way German universities combined teaching and research became a model for universities worldwide.

Growing Bigger

Statue of Alexander von Humboldt outside Humboldt-Universität.

Over time, the university added many new subjects. Alexander von Humboldt, Wilhelm's brother, helped promote new areas of study. New research buildings were built in the late 1800s. This helped with teaching science.

Famous scientists like chemist August Wilhelm Hofmann and physicist Hermann von Helmholtz worked here. Doctors like Rudolf Virchow and Robert Koch also added to the university's fame.

Friedrich Wilhelm University in 1900. It was a model for modern universities.

The university also took in other colleges in Berlin. For example, the Charité medical center became part of it. The Charité was first built in 1710 as a quarantine house for the plague. By 1829, it was the university's medical campus.

In 1810, the university started a collection of natural history items. This collection grew so large that it needed its own building by 1889. It then became the Museum für Naturkunde.

During the Nazi Era

Friedrich Wilhelm University in 1938.

After 1933, the Nazi government took control of all German universities. On May 10, 1933, about 20,000 books were taken from the university's library. These books were by authors the Nazis disliked. They were burned in a public square called Opernplatz (now Bebelplatz).

Today, there is a monument in the square to remember this event. It has a glass panel that looks down into an empty white room. This room has shelves for 20,000 books. A plaque quotes Heinrich Heine: "This was but a prelude; where they burn books, they ultimately burn people."

The Nazis also fired about 250 Jewish professors and staff from the university. Many students and scholars who opposed the Nazis were removed. Nearly one-third of all staff were fired during this time.

The Cold War Period

Humboldt University, 1950.

During the Cold War, the university was in East Berlin. It reopened in 1946. However, the Soviet authorities in East Germany controlled it. They limited academic freedom. They even arrested some students and teachers who spoke out. Some were sent to forced labor.

Because of this, the Free University of Berlin was created in West Berlin in 1948. It was supported by the United States. This new university aimed to be "free" from communist control.

In 1949, the university in East Berlin was officially renamed. It became the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. This name honored the Humboldt brothers and was accepted by both sides.

Modern Germany

The main building of Humboldt- Universität, located in Berlin's "Mitte" district (Unter den Linden boulevard)

After Germany reunited in 1990, the university changed a lot. Many staff members were replaced, especially in social sciences and humanities. This was to match the university system in West Germany.

Today, Humboldt University is a large state university. It has many students, including thousands from other countries.

The university has three main campuses: Campus Mitte, Campus Nord, and Campus Adlershof. The main building is at Campus Mitte in central Berlin. This is where humanities, law, and business subjects are taught. Campus Nord is for life sciences, including the Charité medical center. Campus Adlershof, in southeast Berlin, is for natural sciences, computer science, and mathematics.

University Departments

The Berlin Natural History Museum was founded with the university.

The university is divided into nine main departments, called faculties:

Faculty of Law
Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (like Geography, Computer Science, Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics)
Faculty of Life Sciences (like Agriculture, Biology, Psychology)
Charité – Berlin University of Medicine (shared with Free University of Berlin)
Faculty of Philosophy I (Philosophy, History, Information Science)
Faculty of Philosophy II (Literature, Linguistics, English, and Slavic Studies)
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (like Sociology, Cultural Studies, Education)
Faculty of Theology
Faculty of Economics and Business Administration

There are also some independent institutes that are part of the university. These include the Centre for British Studies and Humboldt-Innovation, which helps with research and new projects. The Museum für Naturkunde was also part of the university until 2009.

The University Library

The former Royal Library, now seat of the Faculty of Law

The university's first library was founded in 1831. A new library building was built between 1871 and 1874. In 1910, the collection moved to the Berlin State Library building.

During the 1930s, the library had over 830,000 books. It was one of Germany's top university libraries. Luckily, no books from the university library were destroyed during the Nazi book burnings in 1933.

In 2003, science books were moved to a new library at the Adlershof campus. This library is only for natural sciences. In 2009, a new main library building opened near the main campus. It is called the "Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm Centre."

Today, the university library has about 6.5 million books and 9,000 magazines. It is one of the largest university libraries in Germany.

University Rankings

University rankings

Overall – Global & National

QS World 2024	120	7
THE World 2024	=87	4
ARWU World
QS Employability
THE Employability

Humboldt University is highly ranked among universities worldwide. In 2024, it was ranked 120th globally by QS World University Rankings. It was the 7th best in Germany.

The Times Higher Education World University Rankings placed it 87th worldwide in 2024. It was the 4th best in Germany.

The university is especially strong in certain subjects. In 2023, it ranked first in Germany for arts and humanities and social sciences. It also ranked first in Germany for geography.

Famous People from Humboldt University

Albert Einstein, a theoretical physicist known for the theory of relativity. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics.
Erwin Schrödinger, a physicist who helped create quantum mechanics. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics.
Max Planck, a theoretical physicist who started quantum theory. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics.
Max von Laue, a physicist who won the Nobel Prize in Physics.
Paul Ehrlich, a doctor who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
Albrecht Kossel, a biochemist who studied genetics. He won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.
Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff, a pioneering chemist and the first winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
Otto Hahn, a chemist who studied radioactivity. He won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry.
Robert Koch, a doctor and microbiologist who discovered the causes of anthrax, tuberculosis, and cholera.
Rudolf Virchow, a doctor and scientist known as the "father of modern pathology".
Theodor Mommsen, a classical scholar who won the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Alfred Wegener, a polar researcher who came up with the idea of continental drift.
Otto von Bismarck, the first Chancellor of Germany.
Werner Heisenberg, a theoretical physicist and pioneer of quantum mechanics.
Karl Weierstrass, a mathematician known as the "father of modern analysis".
Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm, famous for collecting German folk tales.
Heinrich Heine, a poet known for his early lyric poetry.
Yeshayahu Leibowitz, a public thinker, scientist, and writer.
Karl Marx, a philosopher and political thinker.
Friedrich Engels, a philosopher and socialist revolutionary.
Angela Davis, a political activist and philosopher.
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, an important philosopher in Western thought.
Johann Gottlieb Fichte, a German idealist philosopher.
Walter Benjamin, a philosopher and cultural critic.
Max Stirner, a philosopher.
Ernst Cassirer, an idealist philosopher.
Arthur Schopenhauer, a philosopher.
Leopold von Ranke, a historian who founded modern history based on sources.
Barthold Georg Niebuhr, a historian and statesman.
Felix Mendelssohn, a composer from the Romantic period.
Max Weber, a sociologist who influenced modern social theory.
Georg Simmel, a sociologist and philosopher.
W.E.B. Du Bois, a civil rights activist and academic.
Karl Liebknecht, a socialist politician.
Gustav Stresemann, a statesman who won the Nobel Peace Prize.
Austen Chamberlain, a statesman who won the Nobel Peace Prize.
Gregor Gysi, a politician.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a theologian and anti-Nazi activist.
Friedrich Schleiermacher, a theologian and philosopher.
Emmanuelle Charpentier, a professor who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
Benedykt Dybowski, a professor of Zoology.