San Cristóbal of Huamanga University

The San Cristóbal of Huamanga National University (in Spanish, Universidad Nacional de San Cristóbal de Huamanga) is a public university located in the city of Ayacucho (formerly known as Huamanga) in southern Peru.

San Cristóbal of Huamanga University

Universidad Nacional de San Cristóbal de Huamanga
Other name	UNSCH
Motto	Primum Vivere, Deinde Philosophare
Motto in English	First Live, then Philosophize
Type	Public
Established	July 3, 1677 (1677-07-03)
Founder	Cristóbal de Castilla y Zamora
Rector	Dr. Homero Ango Aguilar
Students	8,984 (2010)
Address	Portal Independencia Nº 57 , Ayacucho , Peru 13.148°S 74.22°W / -13.148; -74.22
Campus	Urban
Colors	Gray
Mascot	Eagle
Website	www.unsch.edu.pe

The university was established in 1677 by Cristóbal de Castilla y Zamora, the Catholic archbishop of La Plata o Charcas. Until it was closed in the mid-19th century, it operated mostly as a seminary for the training of Catholic priests. The government of Perú reopened it in 1959 as a national university.

In the 1960s, the university became a breeding ground for communist organizations, including the Shining Path. This group, led by philosophy professor Abimael Guzmán, started there before growing into a violent guerrilla movement that conducted a bloody campaign against the government of Perú and against rival leftists groups. (See also Efraín Morote Best.)

The rector of the university is Homero Ango Aguilar, a biologist.[1]