# Cambridge

> `cambridge@1.0.0`

The University of Cambridge — the second-oldest English-speaking university and the institutional counterpart to Oxford. Cambridge is identified worldwide by Cambridge Blue, a distinctive light teal-cyan (#8EE8D8 contemporary / #85B09A heritage) that deliberately differentiates Cambridge from Oxford's deep navy. The contemporary brand pairs the light Cambridge Blue with a Cambridge Dark Blue (#133844) anchor and a five-family secondary palette (Crest, Cherry, Purple, Indigo, Green) carrying editorial and data-viz accents. The voice is heritage-aware, restrained, and protective of the University shield.


**Tags:** `cambridge`, `university`, `education`, `cambridge-blue`, `heritage`, `conservative-institutional`, `light-first`

## Atoms

### Palette

**Cambridge** · `cambridge@1.0.0` · Proprietary — All Rights Reserved (Cambridge trademarks)

> The University of Cambridge brand palette as published in the Cambridge brand resources / colour guidelines. The core palette is built around a Cambridge Blue family — a distinctive light teal-cyan (#8EE8D8) that differentiates Cambridge from Oxford's navy — alongside Cambridge Dark Blue (#133844), Warm Blue (#00BDB6), and Light Blue (#D1F9F1). A heritage Cambridge Blue (#85B09A) preserves the traditional cooler shade. Five secondary colour families (Crest, Cherry, Purple, Indigo, Green) each carry a four-stop ramp, and a four-stop greyscale (Slate 1–4) provides neutrals. 

### Fonts

| Role | Font | License | Classification |
|------|------|---------|----------------|
| `heading` | **Inter** `(inter@1.0.0)` | OFL-1.1 | sans-serif |
| `body` | **Inter** `(inter@1.0.0)` | OFL-1.1 | sans-serif |
| `serif` | **Lora** `(lora@1.0.0)` | OFL-1.1 | serif |
| `mono` | **JetBrainsMono Nerd Font** `(jetbrainsmono-nerdfont@1.0.0)` | OFL-1.1 | monospace |

## Swatches

| ID | Name | Value |
|----|------|-------|
| `cambridge-blue` | Cambridge Blue | `#8EE8D8` |
| `cambridge-light-blue` | Cambridge Light Blue | `#D1F9F1` |
| `cambridge-warm-blue` | Cambridge Warm Blue | `#00BDB6` |
| `cambridge-dark-blue` | Cambridge Dark Blue | `#133844` |
| `heritage-cambridge-blue` | Heritage Cambridge Blue | `#85B09A` |
| `light-crest` | Light Crest | `#FFE2C8` |
| `warm-crest` | Warm Crest | `#FFC392` |
| `crest` | Crest | `#FD8153` |
| `dark-crest` | Dark Crest | `#DD3025` |
| `light-cherry` | Light Cherry | `#F2CAD8` |
| `warm-cherry` | Warm Cherry | `#E18AAC` |
| `cherry` | Cherry | `#CD3572` |
| `dark-cherry` | Dark Cherry | `#911449` |
| `light-purple` | Light Purple | `#F2ECF8` |
| `warm-purple` | Warm Purple | `#D1B7EB` |
| `purple` | Purple | `#A368DF` |
| `dark-purple` | Dark Purple | `#681FB1` |
| `light-indigo` | Light Indigo | `#EBEDFB` |
| `warm-indigo` | Warm Indigo | `#B0B9F1` |
| `indigo` | Indigo | `#5366E0` |
| `dark-indigo` | Dark Indigo | `#29347A` |
| `light-green` | Light Green | `#DFF2EA` |
| `warm-green` | Warm Green | `#AFDFCB` |
| `green` | Green | `#4DB78C` |
| `dark-green` | Dark Green | `#13553A` |
| `cambridge-judge-yellow` | Cambridge Judge Yellow | `#FFB81C` |
| `white` | White | `#FFFFFF` |
| `slate-1` | Slate 1 | `#ECEEF1` |
| `slate-2` | Slate 2 | `#B5BDC8` |
| `slate-3` | Slate 3 | `#546072` |
| `slate-4` | Slate 4 | `#232830` |

## Mode role mappings

### Light mode

| Role | Swatch | Hex |
|------|--------|-----|
| `background` | `white` | `#FFFFFF` |
| `surface` | `slate-1` | `#ECEEF1` |
| `surface-elevated` | `white` | `#FFFFFF` |
| `text-primary` | `slate-4` | `#232830` |
| `text-secondary` | `slate-3` | `#546072` |
| `text-tertiary` | `slate-2` | `#B5BDC8` |
| `primary` | `cambridge-blue` | `#8EE8D8` |
| `primary-hover` | `cambridge-warm-blue` | `#00BDB6` |
| `accent` | `cambridge-warm-blue` | `#00BDB6` |
| `accent-hover` | `cambridge-dark-blue` | `#133844` |
| `link` | `indigo` | `#5366E0` |
| `link-hover` | `dark-indigo` | `#29347A` |
| `warning` | `cambridge-judge-yellow` | `#FFB81C` |
| `warning-hover` | `crest` | `#FD8153` |
| `error` | `dark-cherry` | `#911449` |
| `success` | `green` | `#4DB78C` |
| `border` | `slate-2` | `#B5BDC8` |

### Dark mode

| Role | Swatch | Hex |
|------|--------|-----|
| `background` | `cambridge-dark-blue` | `#133844` |
| `surface` | `slate-4` | `#232830` |
| `surface-elevated` | `slate-3` | `#546072` |
| `text-primary` | `white` | `#FFFFFF` |
| `text-secondary` | `cambridge-light-blue` | `#D1F9F1` |
| `text-tertiary` | `slate-2` | `#B5BDC8` |
| `primary` | `cambridge-blue` | `#8EE8D8` |
| `primary-hover` | `cambridge-warm-blue` | `#00BDB6` |
| `accent` | `cambridge-light-blue` | `#D1F9F1` |
| `accent-hover` | `cambridge-warm-blue` | `#00BDB6` |
| `link` | `warm-indigo` | `#B0B9F1` |
| `link-hover` | `indigo` | `#5366E0` |
| `warning` | `cambridge-judge-yellow` | `#FFB81C` |
| `warning-hover` | `crest` | `#FD8153` |
| `error` | `warm-cherry` | `#E18AAC` |
| `success` | `warm-green` | `#AFDFCB` |
| `border` | `slate-3` | `#546072` |

## Brand semantic roles

### Colors

| Role | Swatch | Hex |
|------|--------|-----|
| `identity` | `white` | `#FFFFFF` |
| `on-identity` | `slate-4` | `#232830` |
| `primary` | `cambridge-blue` | `#8EE8D8` |
| `primary-hover` | `cambridge-warm-blue` | `#00BDB6` |
| `accent` | `cambridge-warm-blue` | `#00BDB6` |
| `accent-hover` | `cambridge-dark-blue` | `#133844` |
| `mark` | `cambridge-dark-blue` | `#133844` |
| `success` | `green` | `#4DB78C` |
| `warning` | `cambridge-judge-yellow` | `#FFB81C` |
| `error` | `dark-cherry` | `#911449` |
| `text-primary-light` | `slate-4` | `#232830` |
| `text-primary-dark` | `white` | `#FFFFFF` |
| `background-light` | `white` | `#FFFFFF` |
| `background-dark` | `cambridge-dark-blue` | `#133844` |
| `surface-light` | `slate-1` | `#ECEEF1` |
| `surface-dark` | `slate-4` | `#232830` |
| `text-secondary-light` | `slate-3` | `#546072` |
| `text-tertiary-light` | `slate-2` | `#B5BDC8` |
| `border-light` | `slate-2` | `#B5BDC8` |

### Typography

| Role | Font role key |
|------|---------------|
| `display` | `heading` |
| `prose` | `body` |
| `code` | `mono` |

## Rules

### 🛑 error (6)

#### `colorChoice` → `roles.colors.primary`

- **allowed:** cambridge-blue, cambridge-warm-blue, cambridge-dark-blue, heritage-cambridge-blue
- **forbidden:** crest, cherry, purple, indigo, green, cambridge-judge-yellow

> Cambridge Blue (#8EE8D8 contemporary, #85B09A heritage, with #00BDB6 warm and #133844 dark) is the institutional colour family. The secondary palette families (Crest, Cherry, Purple, Indigo, Green) are editorial accents and Cambridge Judge Yellow is a school-specific heritage accent — none may substitute for the primary brand anchor at the parent-University level. 

#### `colorChoice` → `roles.colors.mark`

- **allowed:** cambridge-dark-blue, slate-4, white
- **forbidden:** cambridge-blue, cambridge-warm-blue, crest, cherry, purple, indigo, cambridge-judge-yellow

> The Cambridge University shield and wordmark are reproduced in Cambridge Dark Blue or near-black, or reversed in white. The light contemporary Cambridge Blue is the brand-block / canvas accent, not the mark fill — its low chroma against white would compromise the shield's legibility. 

#### `contrastRatio` → `text-primary`

- **against:** `background`
- **minRatio:** `7`
- **standard:** `WCAG-AAA`

> Slate 4 (#232830) on white gives ~15:1 — clears AAA. As a research university with statutory obligations under the UK Equality Act and extensive long-form scholarly content, Cambridge targets the enhanced 7:1 floor rather than the AA 4.5:1 minimum on core text-on-canvas pairs. 

#### `forbiddenTreatment` → `logo`

- **treatments:** stretched, rotated, recolored, drop-shadow, outlined, gradient-fill, on-busy-photo, tilted, cropped

> Cambridge's brand guidelines prohibit stretching, rotating, recolouring, outlining, applying drop-shadow or gradient fills, or placing the University shield or wordmark on busy photographic backgrounds. Marks render in approved colourways only with documented clear-space. 

#### `fontPairing` → `typography.display`

- **requires:** `prose`
- **minSizeRatio:** `1.5`

> Cambridge's editorial hierarchy pairs a large display with body text at a minimum 1.5× ratio. The scholarly voice the institution projects depends on that explicit gap between display and prose. 

#### `contextRestriction` → `roles.colors.error`

- **forbiddenContexts:** confirmation, completion, data-viz-positive
- **allowedContexts:** error-state, destructive-action, validation-failure

> Dark Cherry (#911449) is the deep accent reserved for error and destructive-action signalling in the Cambridge secondary palette. Reusing it for confirmation or positive data-viz inverts the established semantic role. 

### ⚠️ warning (2)

#### `enumMembership` → `typography.heading.fontWeight`

- **allowed:** 400, 500, 600, 700

> Cambridge's editorial type ramp uses Regular (400), Medium (500), SemiBold (600), and Bold (700) weights across surfaces. Heavier display cuts (800/900) are not part of the documented institutional ramp. 

#### `accessibilityRequirement` → `*`

- **standard:** `WCAG-AAA`
- **criterion:** `1.4.6`

> WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 1.4.6 (Contrast Enhanced) — Level AAA. Cambridge's scholarly posture and obligations under the UK Equality Act to a diverse academic and public audience justify the enhanced 7:1 target on core text-on-background pairs. 

### 💡 recommendation (1)

#### `compositionConstraint` → `roles.colors.primary`

- **pairsWith:** white, slate-1, cambridge-dark-blue, slate-4
- **doesNotPairWith:** warm-cherry, warm-purple, cambridge-judge-yellow

> Cambridge Blue reads cleanest on white, the soft Slate 1 surface, or against the deep Cambridge Dark Blue / Slate 4 anchors. Adjacent to Warm Cherry or Warm Purple the teal-cyan loses its calm authority; adjacent to Cambridge Judge Yellow the school-specific heritage accent competes with the parent-University blue for visual weight. 

## Provenance

- **Source:** <https://www.cam.ac.uk/brand-resources/guidelines/colour>
- **License:** `Proprietary — All Rights Reserved (Cambridge trademarks)`
- **Attribution:** The Chancellor, Masters, and Scholars of the University of Cambridge — visual identity captured from the University of Cambridge brand-resources colour guidelines on cam.ac.uk. "Cambridge," "University of Cambridge," the Cambridge coat of arms, and the University shield are protected marks of the University of Cambridge. 
- **Imported:** `2026-05-19`
- **Notes:** The University publishes a proprietary type family for institutional use. This atom references inter@1 as the open-source sans substitute, lora@1 as the serif substitute consistent with Cambridge's heritage-aware voice, and jetbrainsmono-nerdfont@1 for code. The proprietary faces are not publicly distributed and assets are kept empty per trademark policy. The brand atom is scoped to the parent University only — the constituent colleges (Trinity, King's, St John's, etc.), Cambridge Judge Business School (which publishes its own identity using Cambridge Judge Yellow), and Cambridge University Press each carry distinct identities and are out of scope. Both the contemporary Cambridge Blue (#8EE8D8) and the heritage Cambridge Blue (#85B09A) are documented in the palette atom. 

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*Generated by the brand-atoms converter. Source: `cambridge@1.0.0` from the encyclopedia.*