Culture and traditions of the Ateneo de Manila

Ateneo de Manila University (Filipino: Pamantasang Ateneo de Manila; Universidad Ateneo de Manila; Universitas Athenaea Manilensis) is a Catholic, private research university in Quezon City, Philippines.

Founded in 1859 as the Escuela Municipal by the Society of Jesus, Ateneo is the third-oldest extant university in the country. This article deals solely with the university’s culture and traditions.



Name
The Spanish term Ateneo is derived from the Latin word Athenæum, denoting a temple to Athena, goddess of wisdom, warfare, and the tutelary of the city of Athens in Greek mythology. The closest English gloss for this term is academy.

The Society of Jesus in the Philippines established several other schools beginning in 1856, nine of them were named “Ateneo”. Over the years, the name became recognized as the official title of Jesuit institutions of higher learning in the islands.

Motto
The present motto of the university is "Lux in Domino" ("Light in the Lord"), taken from :

Marian devotions
Ateneans value symbols of devotion to María la Purísima Concepción (Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception).

Mascot
In the 1930s, Ateneo adopted the Blue Eagle as its symbol; the precise species varies from depiction to depiction. The Philippine Eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi) is also the national bird of the Philippines.