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The victor symbol (Spanish: or ) is an emblem that is painted on the walls of some Spanish and Latin American universities to commemorate students who have received the degree of doctorate. The custom dates back to the 14th century, and the symbol has historically been used at older universities in the Spanish-speaking world, such as the University of Salamanca, the
The victor symbol (Spanish: or ) is an emblem that is painted on the walls of some Spanish and Latin American universities to commemorate students who have received the degree of doctorate. The custom dates back to the 14th century, and the symbol has historically been used at older universities in the Spanish-speaking world, such as the University of Salamanca, the University of Alcalá
The University of Alcalá ( es, Universidad de Alcalá) is a public university located in Alcalá de Henares, a city 35 km (22 miles) northeast of Madrid in Spain and also the third-largest city of the region. It was founded in 1293 as a ...
, and the University of Seville in Spain, as well as the National University of San Marcos in Lima, Peru. According to the custom, when a student receives the doctorate, the victor symbol is painted on the walls of the university in red or black paint along with the student's name.
At the end of the Spanish Civil War, the victor sign was appropriated by the nationalists as a symbol of their victory in the war, and it came to be used as a personal emblem for the dictator Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...
. Despite its former use by Franco, it is still used in its original sense at several universities.
The victor symbol takes the shape of the letters V, I, C, T, O, and R arranged in a monogram
A monogram is a motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol. Monograms are often made by combining the initials of an individual or a company, used as recognizable symbols or logos. A series o ...
that varies from symbol to symbol. In some cases, the letter C is omitted. Usually, the name of the student is painted alongside the symbol. The symbol is sometimes used to commemorate a notable person that visited the university or has some special connection with the university.
See also
*References
Universities and colleges in Spain Academia in Spain University of Salamanca 14th-century introductions Monograms Symbols History of education in Spain Francisco Franco Doctoral degrees {{Spain-stub