It is affiliated with the Province of Hainan, and co-funded by the Hainan Provincial People's Government, the Ministry of Natural Resources (State Oceanic Administration), the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, the Sanya Municipal People's Government, and the Sansha Municipal People's Government.

HTOU was previously named Qiongzhou University and had a single campus in Wuzhishan in the middle of Hainan island.

It was formed from the Guangdong Province's school named Hainan Li and Miao Autonomous Region Normal School established in 1954 and by Hainan Li and Miao Autonomous Prefecture Teachers’ College which was established in 1958.

In 2006, after further development and construction, it was renamed Qiongzhou University teaching undergraduate education.

Hainan Normal School for Nationalities was merged into Qiongzhou University in 2006.