The Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World will study Islamic civilization and issues relating to Islam in Britain.
The new center, set up with funding from the Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Foundation, was opened by Prince Alwaleed and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh who is the chancellor of the university, at a ceremony in Edinburgh.
Prince Alwaleed was accompanied by Princess Ameerah Altaweel, a delegation from Alwaleed bin Talal Foundation and Kingdom Holding Company.
"I am pleased to open the Center for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World at the University of Edinburgh. It is paramount for both Islam and the West to reach mutual ground for pro-active dialogue, respect, acceptance and tolerance," Prince Alwaleed said on the occasion.
"We are determined to continue building the bridge between Islam and the West for peace and humanity," he added.
In 2008, the Alwaleed bin Talal Foundation made an £8 million endowment to fund the center with a signing ceremony at Buckingham Palace.
Sir Timothy O'Shea, principal of the university, said: "The University of Edinburgh is honored to be entrusted with the task of creating this center, which will foster deeper understanding between the Muslim world and the West through the twin paths of effective outreach and high-quality research.
"Building on our 250-year history of scholarship in this area, we plan to use this opportunity to create an educational legacy that has continued impact across the United Kingdom and beyond, and that reaches far into the future."
The foundation has also established similar centers at Georgetown and Harvard in the US as well as at the American universities in Beirut and Cairo. A second center in the UK is based at the University of Cambridge.
