University of Pavia
Encyclopedia
The University of Pavia is a university located in Pavia
, Lombardy
, Italy
. It was founded in 1361 and is organized in 9 Faculties.
king of Italy
Lothar I (ruled 818-55) mentions the existence of a higher education institution at Pavia
as early as AD 825. This institution, mainly devoted to ecclesiastical and civil law as well as to divinity studies, was then selected as the prime educational centre for northern Italy
. Officially established as a studium generale
by the Holy Roman emperor
Charles IV
(r. 1355-78) in 1361, the institution was enlarged and renovated by the duke of Milan
, Gian Galeazzo Visconti
(ruled 1385-1402), becoming the Duchy's sole university.
In 1858, the University was the scene of intense student protests against Austria
n rule in northern Italy (through the puppet kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia). The authorities responded by ordering the university's temporary closure. The incidents at Pavia were typical of the wave of nationalist demonstrations all over Italy that immediately preceded the Unification of Italy (1859-66).
During the following centuries, through periods of both adversity and prosperity, the fame of the University of Pavia grew and in Italy and abroad.
Throughout its history, the university has benefited from the presence of many learned men and distinguished scientists who wrote celebrated works and made important discoveries e.g. the mathematician Girolamo Cardano (born in Pavia, 1501-76), the physicist Alessandro Volta
(Pavia chair of natural philosophy 1769-1804), the poet Ugo Foscolo
(chair of Italian eloquence 1809-10), and the physician Camillo Golgi
(at Pavia from 1861).
Also critical to the university's reputation was its distinguished record of public education, epitomised by the establishment of 5 private and public colleges. The oldest colleges, the Collegio Borromeo
and Collegio Ghislieri, were built in the 16th century, and in more recent times others were founded through both public and private initiatives: the Nuovo College, the Santa Caterina College and the EDiSU. In 1997, were established the IUSS
, which is an Higher Learning Institution (in Italian, "Istituto Universitario di Studi Superiori"). The IUSS is the federal body that links the 5 colleges of Pavia which constitute the Pavia University System.
Today, the University continues to offer a wide variety of disciplinary and inter-disciplinary teaching. Research is carried out in departments, institutes, clinics, centres and laboratories, in close association with public and private institutions, enterprises, and factories.
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These are the 9 faculties in which the university is divided into:
Pavia
Pavia , the ancient Ticinum, is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It is the capital of the province of Pavia. It has a population of c. 71,000...
, Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It was founded in 1361 and is organized in 9 Faculties.
History
The University of Pavia is one of the oldest universities in Europe. An edict issued by the FrankishFranks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
king of Italy
King of Italy
King of Italy is a title adopted by many rulers of the Italian peninsula after the fall of the Roman Empire...
Lothar I (ruled 818-55) mentions the existence of a higher education institution at Pavia
Pavia
Pavia , the ancient Ticinum, is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It is the capital of the province of Pavia. It has a population of c. 71,000...
as early as AD 825. This institution, mainly devoted to ecclesiastical and civil law as well as to divinity studies, was then selected as the prime educational centre for northern Italy
Northern Italy
Northern Italy is a wide cultural, historical and geographical definition, without any administrative usage, used to indicate the northern part of the Italian state, also referred as Settentrione or Alta Italia...
. Officially established as a studium generale
Studium Generale
Studium generale is the old customary name for a Medieval university.- Definition :There is no clear official definition of what constituted a Studium generale...
by the Holy Roman emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
Charles IV
Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles IV , born Wenceslaus , was the second king of Bohemia from the House of Luxembourg, and the first king of Bohemia to also become Holy Roman Emperor....
(r. 1355-78) in 1361, the institution was enlarged and renovated by the duke of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Gian Galeazzo Visconti
Gian Galeazzo Visconti
Gian Galeazzo Visconti , son of Galeazzo II Visconti and Bianca of Savoy, was the first Duke of Milan and ruled the late-medieval city just before the dawn of the Renaissance...
(ruled 1385-1402), becoming the Duchy's sole university.
In 1858, the University was the scene of intense student protests against Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n rule in northern Italy (through the puppet kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia). The authorities responded by ordering the university's temporary closure. The incidents at Pavia were typical of the wave of nationalist demonstrations all over Italy that immediately preceded the Unification of Italy (1859-66).
During the following centuries, through periods of both adversity and prosperity, the fame of the University of Pavia grew and in Italy and abroad.
Throughout its history, the university has benefited from the presence of many learned men and distinguished scientists who wrote celebrated works and made important discoveries e.g. the mathematician Girolamo Cardano (born in Pavia, 1501-76), the physicist Alessandro Volta
Alessandro Volta
Count Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio Gerolamo Umberto Volta was a Lombard physicist known especially for the invention of the battery in 1800.-Early life and works:...
(Pavia chair of natural philosophy 1769-1804), the poet Ugo Foscolo
Ugo Foscolo
Ugo Foscolo , born Niccolò Foscolo, was an Italian writer, revolutionary and poet.-Biography:Foscolo was born on the Ionian island of Zakynthos...
(chair of Italian eloquence 1809-10), and the physician Camillo Golgi
Camillo Golgi
Camillo Golgi was an Italian physician, pathologist, scientist, and Nobel laureate.-Biography:Camillo Golgi was born in the village of Corteno, Lombardy, then part of the Austrian Empire. The village is now named Corteno Golgi in his honour. His father was a physician and district medical officer...
(at Pavia from 1861).
Also critical to the university's reputation was its distinguished record of public education, epitomised by the establishment of 5 private and public colleges. The oldest colleges, the Collegio Borromeo
Collegio Borromeo
LAlmo Collegio Borromeo, recognized by the Ministry of Education, Universities and Research as a "highly qualified Cultural Institute", is the oldest such institution remaining in operation in Italy. Together with Collegio Ghislieri, with which there is goliardic rivalry, it is one of two historic...
and Collegio Ghislieri, were built in the 16th century, and in more recent times others were founded through both public and private initiatives: the Nuovo College, the Santa Caterina College and the EDiSU. In 1997, were established the IUSS
IUSS Pavia
The Scuola Superiore IUSS or the "Istituto Universitario di Studi Superiori" of Pavia is a higher learning institute located in Pavia, Northern -Italy....
, which is an Higher Learning Institution (in Italian, "Istituto Universitario di Studi Superiori"). The IUSS is the federal body that links the 5 colleges of Pavia which constitute the Pavia University System.
Today, the University continues to offer a wide variety of disciplinary and inter-disciplinary teaching. Research is carried out in departments, institutes, clinics, centres and laboratories, in close association with public and private institutions, enterprises, and factories.
Organization
- Faculty of EconomicsEconomicsEconomics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
- Faculty of EngineeringEngineeringEngineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
- Faculty of HumanitiesHumanitiesThe humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....
- Faculty of LawLawLaw is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
- Faculty of PhysicalPhysicsPhysics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, Natural and Mathematical SciencesMathematical sciencesMathematical sciences is a broad term that refers to those academic disciplines that are primarily mathematical in nature but may not be universally considered subfields of mathematics proper... - Faculty of MedicineMedicineMedicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
- Faculty of MusicologyMusicologyMusicology is the scholarly study of music. The word is used in narrow, broad and intermediate senses. In the narrow sense, musicology is confined to the music history of Western culture...
- Faculty of PharmacyPharmacyPharmacy is the health profession that links the health sciences with the chemical sciences and it is charged with ensuring the safe and effective use of pharmaceutical drugs...
- Faculty of PoliticsPoliticsPolitics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
Teaching Languages
- Italian - Most of the courses in University of Pavia are taught in Italian.
- English - In 2009 the University began offering several degrees that were taught in English. These Degrees are:
-
- Six-year degree in MedicineMedicineMedicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
- Master's degree in International Business and Economics (MIBE)
- Master's degree in Molecular Biology and Genetics (MBG).
- Six-year degree in Medicine
Notable alumni and academics
- Gerolamo CardanoGerolamo CardanoGerolamo Cardano was an Italian Renaissance mathematician, physician, astrologer and gambler...
, mathematician, physician, astrologer and gambler. - Alessandro VoltaAlessandro VoltaCount Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio Gerolamo Umberto Volta was a Lombard physicist known especially for the invention of the battery in 1800.-Early life and works:...
, scientist, developer of the first electric cellBattery (electricity)An electrical battery is one or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy. Since the invention of the first battery in 1800 by Alessandro Volta and especially since the technically improved Daniell cell in 1836, batteries have become a common power... - Lazzaro SpallanzaniLazzaro SpallanzaniLazzaro Spallanzani was an Italian Catholic priest, biologist and physiologist who made important contributions to the experimental study of bodily functions, animal reproduction, and essentially discovered echolocation...
, biologist - Camillo GolgiCamillo GolgiCamillo Golgi was an Italian physician, pathologist, scientist, and Nobel laureate.-Biography:Camillo Golgi was born in the village of Corteno, Lombardy, then part of the Austrian Empire. The village is now named Corteno Golgi in his honour. His father was a physician and district medical officer...
, Nobel prize in Medicine and Physiology - Carlo RubbiaCarlo RubbiaCarlo Rubbia Knight Grand Cross is an Italian particle physicist and inventor who shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1984 with Simon van der Meer for work leading to the discovery of the W and Z particles at CERN.-Biography:...
, Nobel prize in Physics - Giulio NattaGiulio NattaGiulio Natta was an Italian chemist and Nobel laureate. He won a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1963 with Karl Ziegler for work on high polymers.-Early years:...
, Nobel prize in Chemistry - Luigi Luca Cavalli-SforzaLuigi Luca Cavalli-SforzaLuigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza is an Italian population geneticist born in Genoa, who has been a professor at Stanford University since 1970 .-Books:...
, population geneticistPopulation geneticsPopulation genetics is the study of allele frequency distribution and change under the influence of the four main evolutionary processes: natural selection, genetic drift, mutation and gene flow. It also takes into account the factors of recombination, population subdivision and population... - Alfonso Giacomo Gaspare CortiAlfonso Giacomo Gaspare CortiAlfonso Giacomo Gaspare Corti was born at Gambarana, near Pavia in 1822. A famous friend of Corti's father, Antonio Scarpa, may have kindled his boyhood interest in anatomy and medicine. As a medical student he enrolled first at the University of Pavia. Corti's favorite study there was...
, physician and scientist - Antonio ScarpaAntonio ScarpaAntonio Scarpa was an Italian anatomist and professor.-Biography:Antonio was born to an impoverished family in the frazione of Lorenzaga, Motta di Livenza, Veneto. An uncle, who was a member of the priesthood, gave him instruction until the age of 15, when he passed the entrance exam for the...
, physician and scientist - Baldus de UbaldisBaldus de UbaldisBaldus de Ubaldis was an Italian jurist, a leading figure in Medieval Roman Law.-Life:A member of the noble family of the Ubaldi , Baldus was born at Perugia in 1327, and studied civil law there under Bartolus de Saxoferrato, being admitted to the degree of doctor of civil law at the early age of...
, jurist - Lorenzo VallaLorenzo VallaLorenzo Valla was an Italian humanist, rhetorician, and educator. His family was from Piacenza; his father, Luciave della Valla, was a lawyer....
, humanist and philologist - Cesare Beccaria, jurist and philosopher
- Ugo FoscoloUgo FoscoloUgo Foscolo , born Niccolò Foscolo, was an Italian writer, revolutionary and poet.-Biography:Foscolo was born on the Ionian island of Zakynthos...
, writer, revolutionary and poet - Gian Domenico RomagnosiGian Domenico RomagnosiGian Domenico Romagnosi was an Italian philosopher, economist and jurist.-Biography:Gian Domenico Romagnosi was born in Salsomaggiore Terme....
, jurist, philosopher and economist - Contardo FerriniContardo FerriniBlessed Contardo Ferrini, O.F.S., was born on 5 April 1859 in Milan, Italy, to Rinaldo Ferrini and Luigia Buccellati. He was baptized at the same baptismal font where the Blessed Frédéric Ozanam, also a native of Milan, had been baptized 46 years prior...
, jurist
Points of interest
- Orto Botanico dell'Università di PaviaOrto Botanico dell'Università di PaviaThe Orto Botanico dell'Università di Pavia , also known as the Orto Botanico di Pavia, is a botanical garden maintained by the University of Pavia. It is located at Via S. Epifanio, 14, Pavia, Italy, and open weekdays....
, the university's botanical gardenBotanical gardenA botanical garden The 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. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
See also
- Coimbra GroupCoimbra GroupThe Coimbra Group is a network of 40 European universities, some among the oldest and most prestigious in Europe. It was founded in 1985 and formally constituted by charter in 1987....
(a network of leading European universities) - List of Italian universities
- List of medieval universities