King Abdulaziz University (KAU) was founded in 1967 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Designed by English architect John Elliott, it had 2,000 faculty and more than 37,000 students in 2000/2001. Established initially as a private university by a group of businessmen led by Sheikh Muhammad Abu Bakr Bakhashab Pasha and including the writer Hamza Bogary.[1] King Abdulaziz University was converted to a state university in 1971.