List of colleges and universities named after people
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Many colleges and universities are named after people. Namesakes include the founder of the institution, financial benefactors, revered religious leaders, notable historical figures, members of royalty, current political leaders, and respected teachers or other leaders associated with the institution. This is a list of higher education institutions named for people.
Institutions named for people associated with the institution
Founders or their family members
The following institutions are named for the individual people who are credited as their founders. A few institutions were named by the founder in honor of a parent, child, spouse, or other close family member.
Founded as the Cambridge School of Art by John Ruskin in 1858. Renamed Cambridgeshire College of Arts and Technology in 1960. Merged into Anglia Higher Education College in 1989. Merged into Anglia Polytechnic in 1991. Renamed Anglia Ruskin University in 2005.
Preacher Blackburn, a former president of Centre College, was working to establish the new school at the time of his death in 1838, but opening of the school was delayed until 1859.[7]
Lydia Moss Bradley founded the school in 1897 in memory of her husband Tobias and their six children, all of whom had died early and suddenly, leaving her a childless widow.
President of the Church Brigham Young personally purchased the buildings of the failed University of Deseret, forming Brigham Young Academy in 1876. Brigham Young University campuses in Hawaii and Idaho now also bear his name.
Established in 1855 as North Western Christian University; renamed in 1875 in honor of its founder, a Restoration Movement preacher and abolitionist who had achieved his goal of forming a Christian university in Indiana<>Ovid Butler, 1801-1881Archived 2008-05-15 at the Wayback Machine , The Restoration Movement website . Retrieved February 22, 2008.</ref>
Founded in 1887 as a community school named Buies Creek Academy; became a junior college in 1926 and was renamed in honor of its founder, a local preacher. The school became Campbell College in 1961 when it became a four-year school, and Campbell University in 1979 with the opening of its law school.
The university was formed by the affiliation of Case School of Engineering (originally Case School of Applied Science, founded by Case in 1877) and Western Reserve University.
Clark was both the founder and principal benefactor of the university, making major gifts in his lifetime and leaving a bequest that totaled about $2,915,000 in 1900.[8]
Henry Cogswell, who founded the college in 1887 with his wife Caroline, was a dentist and temperance crusader. The defunct Henry Cogswell College also bore his name.
Coker College began in 1894 as Welsh Neck High School founded by James Lide Coker. In 1908, Coker provided leadership for the conversion of the school to Coker College for Women. Men have attended since World War II.
Industrialist, inventor, and politician who conceived of the idea of having a free institute in New York. He erected a building and endowed the institution, which he presented to the City of New York in 1858.
College was established as Iowa Conference Seminary in 1853 and renamed in 1857 in honor of iron tycoon Cornell, who is sometimes described as the school's founder.[10][11]
Gordon started the Gordon Divinity School in Massachusetts in 1889; Conwell (also founder of ) started the Conwell School of Theology at Temple University; the two schools merged in 1969.
Established in 1885 as The Woman's College of Baltimore, renamed in honor of its founders in 1910< name="Sun">Goucher College, The Baltimore Sun, August 29, 2002</ref>
Founded in 1796 as Geneva Academy, becoming a college in 1822 under the leadership of Episcopal bishop John Henry Hobart. It was renamed in his honor in 1852. William Smith College was established as a coordinate college for women in 1906 with gifts from nurseryman William Smith.
General John A. Logan was a resident of Southern Illinois, a Union volunteer in the Civil War, and a member of the US House of Representatives in 1858 as a democrat and again after the war in 1868 as a republican.[13] The college mascot is the "Volunteers".
In 1961 Maharaja Kameshwar Singh donated his ancestral house, Anandbag Palace, a rich library, and surrounding land to establish a Sanskrit university.[14]
LeMoyne (1798–1879), a Pennsylvania doctor, donated $20,000 to the American Missionary Association in 1870 to help establish the institution that became LeMoyne College. The namesake of Owen College, established in 1947 as S.A. Owen Junior College, was a distinguished religious and civic leader. The two historically black institutions merged in 1968.[16]
Originally established as the Young Ladies Seminary; Susan and Cyrus Mills bought it in 1866, renamed it Mills Seminary, and later converted it to Mills College. Susan Mills served as principal and president until 1909.
Merchant Gordon, who died in 1731, willed his estate to build a residential school for young boys in Aberdeen. That school was the genesis of the institution now called the Robert Gordon University.
The former Texas Ranger founded the school as Schreiner Institute, a combined secondary school and junior college, in 1923. Originally a military institute, it dropped military training in 1971 and ended high school instruction in 1973. It became a four-year institution in 1981.
Lucy Skidmore Scribner formed the Young Women's Industrial Club in 1903 with inheritance money from her father, a prosperous coal merchant. In 1911, the club was chartered under the name "Skidmore School of Arts" as a college for vocational and professional training of young women.[19]
Founded by railroad magnate and California Governor Leland Stanford and his wife, Jane Stanford, and named in honor of their only child, who died of typhoid just before his 16th birthday.
George Washington Scott, Confederate general and businessman, gave $112,250 to Decatur Female Seminary (which he helped organize), which then renamed itself in honor of his mother.
The School of Business and Civic Administration of the City College of New York was renamed in 1953 for Baruch, a wealthy financier and devoted alumnus. The school received $9 million from his estate upon his death in 1965.[22]
Under the auspices of the American Baptist Home Mission Society, Mrs. Bathsheba A. Benedict of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, provided $13,000.00 to purchase the land for Benedict Institute.
University was founded with the help of an endowment from wealthy merchant Ferdinando Bocconi and was named for Bocconi's son, who had died in the First Italo–Ethiopian War.
Local businessmen, the Browns were among the signers of the College of Rhode Island's original charter in 1764 and became major benefactors; it was renamed in their honor in 1804.
Originally the University at Lewisburg; renamed in 1886 in honor of the benefactor from Philadelphia who assisted the school during the post-Civil War recession.
Originally Northfield College; renamed five years after its establishment (in 1871) to honor benefactor William Carleton, who had given US$50,000 to the fledgling institution.
Originally called Hesperian College and later California Christian College; renamed in 1934 in honor of Chapman, the chairman of the institution's board of trustees and a principal benefactor.
Massachusetts Governor William Claflin and his father, Boston philanthropist Lee Claflin, provided a large part of the funds to purchase the campus for the HBCU college.
Founded in 1326 as University Hall but suffered financial hardship; was refounded in 1338 as Clare Hall by an endowment from Elizabeth de Clare, a granddaughter of Edward I.
Clemson's will directed that most of his estate be used to establish a college to teach scientific agriculture and the mechanical arts to South Carolinians.
Farmer in the Catskills region of New York who pledged $1,500 toward the 1853 founding of the Cedar Rapids Collegiate Institute (later renamed in his honor). His pledge was made with the stipulation that the school be coeducational.
Originally (in 1813) the Maine Literary and Theological Institution and later Waterville College, was renamed for Boston merchant Colby due to his financial support which helped the school survive during the American Civil War.[23]
Originally the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York and later Madison University, was renamed for Colgate (founder of the company that became Colgate-Palmolive) in 1890 in honor of nearly 70 years of involvement and service by the Colgate family.[24]
Cotton mill owner who was among the school's founders and made substantial contributions<>History of Converse College, Converse College website . Retrieved January 6, 2008.</ref>
Originally called Indiana Asbury University, renamed in 1884 in honor of DePauw's substantial donations, which totaled over $600,000 during his lifetime.
Name changed from Trinity College to Duke University in 1924, after tobacco industrialist James B. Duke established The Duke Endowment. The name honors the donor's deceased father.
Originally The New School for Liberal Arts; renamed in 1985 following a generous donation by philanthropist and educational visionary Lang and his wife Theresa
Young clergyman whose bequest of £779, was (in 1639) the first principal donation to the new institution, his gift assured its continued operation.[25]
University was established on the grounds of the Hofstra estate with funds that his widow's will designated for creating a memorial to her husband.[26]
A large gift from Payne (brother-in-law of one of the founders) helped to establish the institution<> "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-09-21. Retrieved 2007-09-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)</ref>
Hopkins, who died in 1873, bequeathed $7 million for the founding of the university and Johns Hopkins Hospital. At the time, this was the largest philanthropic bequest in U.S. history, the equivalent of over $131 million in 2006.
Lord Kenyon was one of the college's earliest benefactors in 1824. Another was Lord Gambier, whose name was given to the associated village, Gambier, Ohio.[27]
Founded as Lahore Medical College, renamed King Edward Medical College after receiving assistance from the King Edward Medical Memorial Fund<> "King Edward Medical University". Archived from the original on 2007-08-10. Retrieved 2007-09-03.</ref>
Meharry was a young white man who, in 1826, was aided after an accident by a family of freedslaves. Afterward, he promised to repay their help by doing "something for your race." Fifty years later, he and four brothers donated $15,000 to assist with establishment of the medical department at Central Tennessee College; that department later became Meharry Medical College.[29]
Smith amassed a fortune in real estate and other businesses after starting out as a hunting guide in the Adirondacks. His son left a bequest to start a college in his name.
Lady Ann Mowlson, née Radcliffe, established the first scholarship at Harvard University (Radcliffe's parent institution) in 1643. The college was fully incorporated into Harvard in 1999, with the campus now serving as home to the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.
Formerly Glassboro State College; was renamed in 1992 after the Rowans gave $100 million to the school, at the time the largest gift to a public college.[31]
Established with support from the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust;[34] trust founder Sir Dorabji Tata was influential in establishing the Tata family's industrial endeavors.[35]
Provided initial funding for the school in 1866, donating $4,000 that he had received from an investment in the new oil industry in Titusville, Pennsylvania<>Thiel HistoryArchived 2013-02-23 at the Wayback Machine , Thiel College website . Retrieved June 12, 2008.</ref>
Tulane was converted from a public to a private university in the late 19th century with financing from the endowments of Paul Tulane and Josephine Louise Newcomb.
The HBCU school was originally named Denmark Industrial School after its location in Denmark, South Carolina. After donations from Ralph Voorhees, a New Jersey philanthropist, it was renamed the Vorhees Industrial Institute for Colored Youths. It later was named Vorhees School and Junior College. In 1962, it was renamed Voorhees College.
Founded in 1782 by William Smith with the patronage of George Washington, who consented to give his name to the college and who served five years on the Board of Visitors and Governors, before beginning his presidency of the United States
In 1796, while he was still President of the United States, Washington endowed what was then known as Liberty Hall Academy with $20,000, at the time the largest gift ever to a U.S. institution of higher learning. The school then became Washington Academy and later Washington College.
Chilean businessman and philanthropist. Because he had no descendants, he gave his entire fortune to his hometown Valparaíso for the founding of a technical and engineering school. The result of his legacy was the Federico Santa María Technical University.
Originally St. Clare College; renamed in 1946 when Stritch, who had been Archbishop of Milwaukee when the school was established within that archdiocese, became a Roman Catholic cardinal.
Originally named Claremont Men's College for its location; the name of McKenna, one of the school's founding trustees, was added to the name when the school became coeducational in 1976[38]
A founder of the South Carolina Baptist Convention whose efforts in support of Baptist missions and education led to the establishment of Furman University (and other institutions) and whose organizational concepts were eventually adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention. His son was the school's first president.[40]
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives and father of former New Jersey governor Thomas Kean. Campus site once belonged to the Kean family,[41] including land purchased while Robert Kean was in Congress.[42][43]
Former president of the college which had previously held names including Montgomery Masonic College, Stewart College, Southwestern Presbyterian University, and Southwestern at Memphis.
The medical school, first established in 1769, was renamed in 1969 in honor of 19th century Hungarian physician Semmelweis, discoverer of the cause of puerperal fever, who was a professor and chairman in the institution's Faculty of Medicine[44]
Mother Seton was the first American-born Catholic saint. The university was founded in 1856 by her nephew, Archdiocese of Newark Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley, who named the institution for his aunt.
British founder of the worldwide YMCA movement. Sir George Williams University originated as a night school adjunct to the Montreal YMCA, the first YMCA in North America. The downtown branch of Concordia University is still known as the Sir George Williams Campus.
Mother Spalding was the first superior of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, an order of Catholic nuns which founded the school that evolved into today's university.
Presbyterian minister who served on the Board of Home Missions of the Presbyterian Church (US), which named the college in his honor after his death.[45]
Immediately after the Civil War, Lee accepted an offer to be president of what was then Washington College, and served until his death in 1870, at which time Lee's name was added to the school.
Institutions named for contemporary royalty or politicians
Some educational institutions carry the names of members of royalty or political leaders who were in power at the time the institutions were established or received their present names. Some of these schools were given the names of the leaders who officially chartered them (for example, Charles University of Prague in the Czech Republic and College of William and Mary in the United States). Other institutions may have received other forms of support from their namesakes.
The following list includes both institutions named for members of royalty or politicians in power at the time the institutions received those names and institutions that were named for recently deceased royalty or politicians who may have been special supporters of the schools. Institutions named for family members of such leaders also are listed.
First the College of Petroleum and Minerals and later the University of Petroleum and Minerals, was renamed in 1986 in honor of King Fahd,[47] who ruled Saudi Arabia from 1982 to 2005.
Founded in 1851 as Owens College. Received a royal charter from Queen Victoria in 1880 and renamed Victoria University of Manchester. Absorbed into the University of Manchester in 2004.
Institutions named in honor of historical people not connected with the institution
Religious figures
The following universities and colleges are named for people who are noted primarily for their contributions to religion, including theologians, saints, holy people, and founders of religious denominations. Most, but not all, of the institutions of higher education named for religious figures are religious institutions.
Anthony of Padua was a Portuguese Catholic saint. He is known to have become the "quickest" saint in the history of the Catholic Church because he was canonized by Pope Gregory IX less than one year after his death on the 30th of May 1232.
Hindu saint of the 15th century, founder and guru of the Bishnoi sect<>The UniversityArchived 2006-02-09 at the Wayback Machine , Guru Jambheshwar University of Science & Technology website . Retrieved June 14, 2008.</ref>
For Asbury's significance, see the entry for Asbury Theological Seminary and Asbury University. The Indiana school was actually the first to be named after Asbury, opening in 1834. It adopted its current name of DePauw University in 1884 (six years before the founding of the Kentucky school), renaming itself after benefactor Washington C. DePauw.
Originally St. Ignatius College, renamed in 1923 for Carroll, the first archbishop of the Catholic Church in the United States and founder of fellow Jesuit institution Georgetown University
Originally the Catholic University of Nijmegen, renamed in 2004 for the Radboud Foundation (named for Saint Radboud, a medieval Bishop of Utrecht), which had the goal of stimulating Roman Catholic higher education and funded the university.
Hindu saint known as the Sage of Kanchi (1894–1994)<>About UsArchived 2008-04-05 at the Wayback Machine , Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Viswa Mahavidyalaya website. Retrieved March 29, 2008.</ref>
Wesleyan University is the oldest of the numerous institutions for whom Wesley (Protestant theologian who was the founder of Methodism) was namesake (see Wesleyan University (disambiguation))
12th Shia Imam, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
Other historical figures
Universities and colleges have been named for a diverse variety of historical figures, including national heroes, poets, prominent scientists, and political figures of the past.
World renowned physicist; on March 15, 1953, the day following his 74th birthday, Einstein formally agreed to permit his name to be used for the first medical school to be built in New York City since 1897.[54]
Indian jurist, scholar and political leader who was the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, an opponent of the caste system, a Buddhist revivalist, and one of the first Untouchables to obtain a college education in India
Established in 1972 as the International School of Law (ISL) in Washington, D.C.; merged with George Mason University in 1979 to become the George Mason University School of Law. It was renamed in July 2016 in honor of the late Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia, who died in February 2016.
Indian jurist, scholar and political leader who was the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, an opponent of the caste system, a Buddhist revivalist, and one of the first Untouchables to obtain a college education in India[55]
Name includes its location, the city of Berkeley, California, which in turn was named for the Anglo-Irish philosopher noted for his work on Immaterialism.[57]
American lawyer, statesman, politician, and renowned public speaker, who died five days after his participation in the Scopes Trial, near the site of the future college
Founded in 1966 as Meerut University, was later renamed in honor of Singh, Prime Minister of India in 1979-1980<> "Chaudhary Charan Singh University website". Archived from the original on 2019-08-14. Retrieved 2006-02-13.</ref>
Indian jurist, scholar and political leader who was the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, an opponent of the caste system, a Buddhist revivalist, and one of the first Untouchables to obtain a college education in India[58]
A German pedagogue, a student of Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi, who laid the foundation for modern education based on the recognition that children have unique needs and capabilities.
Indian nationalist leader. The institute is located in the premises of the Servants of India Society, which he established in 1905. The grounds include his bungalow and a massive banyan tree under which Gokhale and M.K. Gandhi discussed political issues.[61]
Garhwal University, founded 1973, was renamed in 1989 following the death of Shri Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna, Indian statesman born in the district of Pauri Garhwal.[62][63]
18th-century English religious leader who played a prominent part in the Methodist movement. The Women's College of Alabama was renamed in her honor shortly after it admitted its first male student.
Principal author of the United States Constitution and fourth President of the United States. The school, founded in 1908 as The State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg, first named itself after him in 1938 as Madison College, adopting its current name in 1976.
Founded as Woodrow Wilson Junior College in 1935 and renamed in 1969 in honor of the two leaders who had been assassinated, just eight weeks apart, in 1968
Persian scientist (1201–1274) known as a philosopher, mathematician, astronomer, theologian, physician, and prolific writer<>Who was K.N. Toosi?, K.N. Toosi University of Technology website. Retrieved March 29, 2008.</ref>
Originally Mithila University; renamed in 1975 after the assassination of Indian political leader Mishra<>Lalit Narayan Mithila University website, accessed May 16, 2008</ref>
Major figure in the history of Texas - Second president of the Republic of Texas, known as "Father of Texas Education" because of his leadership in setting aside public lands for education.
Originally Udaipur University; was renamed in 1984 in respect of Sukhadia, the architect of modern Rajasthan<>Mohan Lal Sukhadia University website, accessed May 16, 2008</ref>
Military leader at the end of the Chinese Ming Dynasty, a leader of the anti-Qing movement opposing the Qing Dynasty, and a general who defeated the Dutch to claim Taiwan in 1662.
Chinese military and political leader who assumed the leadership of the Kuomintang after the death of Sun Yat-sen in 1925 and led the national government of the Republic of China from 1928 to 1975.
One of the Founding Fathers of the United States, first Governor of Virginia, and quoted for his famous phrase: "Give me liberty or give me death!" Patrick Henry is a Christian institution with the mission of training students through a classical liberal arts curriculum and apprenticeship methodology to impact the world 'for Christ and for Liberty'.
Prince Father Mahidol Adulyadej, Prince of Songkhla (1892–1929) was the father of King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII) and King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX) and is regarded as the father of modern medicine and public health of Thailand.
Quaid-e-Azam (Urdu: قائد اعظم — "Great Leader") is an honorific title for Jinnah, the politician and leader of the All India Muslim League who founded Pakistan and served as its first Governor-General.
Medieval Catalan philosopher and writer, who wrote the first major work of Catalan language literature, is sometimes considered a pioneer of computation theory, and whose work anticipated by several centuries prominent theoretical work on voting systems.
When the Virginia Conference of the Methodist Church established the college in 1830, it named it for two non-Methodists to dispel the notion that the school would be sectarian. The non-Methodist namesakes were Randolph, a Virginia statesman, and Macon, a North Carolina statesman.[74]
Randolph College (Randolph–Macon Woman's College before July 2007), Virginia, US
Merchant known as the "Financier of the American Revolution"; signer of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, and Constitution.
32nd President of the United States and his wife, a civil rights advocate in her own right. The school was originally named Thomas Jefferson College, but renamed after Franklin died two weeks later.
British biophysicist and X-ray crystallographer who made critical contributions to the understanding of the fine molecular structures of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), RNA, viruses, coal, and graphite
Major figure in the history of Texas—leader of the Texas Revolution, first and third President of the Republic of Texas, U.S. Senator, and 7th Governor of Texas
The former National University of Iran was renamed in 1983 in honor of Beheshti, a leader of Iran's Islamic revolution who is called Shahid (martyr) after his 1981 death in a bomb explosion.[76]
Author of the Declaration of Independence, of the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, leader of the Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans and America's third president[81]
Originally named for one of its founders, Unitarian minister William Greenleaf Eliot, who did not want the institution to bear his name; renamed in 1854 for its original location on Washington Avenue in Downtown St. Louis (the avenue in turn was named for George Washington)< name=wustl> "Origin of the "Washington" Name". library.wustl.edu. Archived from the original on 2009-02-10.</ref>
Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established Iowa College. It has an open curriculum, which means students need not follow a prescribed list of classes. The college's 120-acre campus includes several listings on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and science.
La Trobe University is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora. The university was established in 1964, becoming the third university in the state of Victoria and the twelfth university in Australia. La Trobe is one of the Australian verdant universities and also part of the Innovative Research Universities group.
Seton Hall University (SHU) is a private Roman Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan university in the United States.
Bronte International University is an unaccredited post-secondary educational institution formerly in South Dakota. It is widely considered to be a diploma mill, operated from an unknown location. Its website offers "fast" degrees for "life experience."
Loma Linda University (LLU) is a private Seventh-day Adventist health sciences university in Loma Linda, California. As of 2019, the university comprises eight schools and a Faculty of Graduate Studies. It is a part of the Seventh-day Adventist education system. The university is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC). Its on-campus church has around 7,000 members.
Thomas Wayne "Kip" McKean II is an American minister. He was the founder of the International Churches of Christ and of the International Christian Church. He was former World Missions Evangelist of the International Christian Churches, also known as the "Portland/Sold-Out Discipling Movement".
Claflin University is a private historically black university in Orangeburg, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1869 after the American Civil War by northern missionaries for the education of freedmen and their children, it offers bachelor's and master's degrees.
Breyer State University, also called Breyer State University-Alabama, is an unaccredited distance education, for profit, private university that formerly operated in the U.S. states of Idaho and Alabama and now reports a location in Panama. It has been described by The New Republic magazine as a diploma mill that "claimed official-sounding accreditation to attract hundreds of people to obtain degrees". Breyer State University disputes this categorization.
This is a timeline of Philippine history, comprising important legal and territorial changes and political events in the Philippines and its predecessor states. To read about the background to these events, see history of the Philippines.
The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) is an Australian public university, founded by Francis Ormond MLA in 1887, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
↑ Gurney, Kaitlin. "10 years later, Rowan still reaps gift's rewards - Rowan Milestones", The Philadelphia Inquirer, July 9, 2002. Accessed August 1, 2007. "Rowan University catapulted onto the national stage a decade ago when industrialist Henry Rowan gave sleepy Glassboro State College $100 million, the largest single sum ever donated to a public institution.... Rowan and his late wife, Betty, gave the money on July 6, 1992, with just one requirement: that a first-rate engineering school be built. In gratitude, Glassboro State changed its name to Rowan College."
↑ Wollenberg, Charles (2002). "Chapter 2: Tale of Two Towns". Berkeley, A City in History. Berkeley Public Library. Archived from the original on June 12, 2009. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
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