The university traces its founding to 16 December 1955 and the formation of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Antananarivo. It established itself as the main center for higher education in the country, and was renamed the
University of Madagascar in 1961. It later opened five more branches in
Antsiranana,
Fianarantsoa,
Toamasina,
Toliara, and
Mahajanga.
Robert Mallet taught in Madagascar from 1959 to 1964, where he founded the Faculty of Letters at the University of Antananarivo, of which he was the first Dean. The University of Antananarivo runs the
Museum of Arts and Archaeology. The Institute of Higher Education of
Soavinandriana Itasy and the Institute of Higher Education of
Antsirabe Vakinankaratra are its two regional branches. With the Ministère de l’Enseignement Supérieur et de la Recherche Scientifique (Ministry of Higher Education), staff of the university oversee MadaRevues, a website compilation of scientific journals published in Madagascar. PDF articles are viewable for free. == Sports ==