Background

In 1932, the Maryland State reptile: the terrapin turtle was chosen as the official mascot of the University of Maryland. This came after a search for a mascot was spearheaded by the school newspaper, The Diamondback. The name for the new mascot, Testudo, has several purposed origin stories. One of them is that the name comes from the Latin word for a protective shelter used for Roman soldiers’ heads, similar to a tortoise shell.