Origin of RN unarmoured wooden screw vessel names

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The table below gives my interpretation of the origins of the names of the unarmoured wooden screw vessels (sloops and larger) of the Royal Navy. Note that in practice, many of these ships will have been named for previous ships of the same name, rather than the actual subjects given here.

Follow the links in the Name column for more details of the ships themselves.

The 200 names are grouped into the following categories:
	Geo	Geographical locations; often with a maritime connection or the site of a British victory (39)
	Nat	The natural world: animals - often with a maritime connection or of an aggressive nature, gemstones, astronomical objects etc. (32)
	Per	Historical personages (26)
	Gr	Greek history or mythology (37)
	Rom	Roman history or mythology (12)
	Fict	Other fictional or mythological personages; some of these are very tenuous (14)
	Mind	"States of mind"; generally warlike or admirable (21)
	Misc	Miscellaneous (15)
	???	Unknown (4)

Name	Group	Interpretation
Aboukir	Geo	Location (Aboukir Bay) of the battle (also known as the Battle of the Nile) in which Admiral Horatio Nelson defeated Admiral Brueys' French fleet on 1 August 1798. This defeat put an end to French designs in the Middle East.
Africa	Geo	Continent.
Agamemnon	Gr	Son of Atreus, king of Mycenae. Leader of the Greek army in the Trojan war. Killed by his rival for the throne of Mycene, Aegisthus, and his own wife, Clytemnestra, upon his return from Troy.
Ajax	Gr	Greek hero of the Trojan war; killed himself when the weapons of Achilles were awarded to Odysseus and not to him.
Albion	Geo	Poetic name for England.
Alert	Mind
Algiers	Geo	In 1816 an Anglo-Dutch squadron under Admiral Sir Edward Pellew (1757-1833) visited Algiers to demand the release of the British Consul and over 1000 Christian slaves, mainly captured seamen. When no satisfactory reply was received the fleet bombarded Algiers on 27 August; the subsequent treaty broke the power of the "Barbary pirates," who had plagued European commerce in the Mediterranean for centuries. Pellew was created Viscount Exmouth for his role.
Amazon	Geo	South American river.
Amethyst	Nat	Gemstone.
Amphion	Gr	His mother, Antiope, was seduced by Zeus and bore him twin sons, Zethus and Amphion. Fleeing to escape the wrath of her father, she abandoned her infants and they were raised by shepherds. Amphion subsequently married Niobe.
Anson	Per	Admiral George Anson (1697-1762). Sent to attack Spanish possessions in South America, he circumnavigated the world between 1740 and 1744, taking much Spanish treasure, but loosing most of his men to disease. Defeated the French fleet under Admiral La Jonquiére off Cape Finisterre on 14 May 1747. First lord of the admiralty 1757-1762.
Archer	Misc
Arethusa	Gr	A nymph; daughter of Nereus and Doris. She was favoured by Artemis and loved by the river god Alpheus. When Alpheus tried to abduct her, she fled under the ocean to the isle of Ortygia, where Artemis changed her into a fountain. Alpheus followed her and was himself changed into a river and united with her.
Ariadne	Gr	Cretan princess. She gave Theseus a thread and a sword allowing him to escape from the Cretan labyrinth. She followed Theseus from Crete, but he abandoned her to Dionysus.
Ariel	Fict	Prospero's sprite in Shakespeare's "the Tempest".
Arrogant	Mind
Atlas	Gr	A Titan. As punishment for his part in the uprising of the Titans against the Olympian gods, he was condemned to carry the heavens on his shoulders.
Aurora	Rom	Roman name for Eos, Greek goddess of the dawn, sister of Helios (sun) and Selene (moon). Also the Northern or Southern Lights (aurora borealis or aurora australis).
Bacchante	Rom	A devotee of Bacchus, the god of wine.
Barrosa	Geo	Location of a land battle (near Cadiz) on 5 March 1811. English forces under Sir Thomas Graham attacked French forces under Marshal Victor besieging Cadiz. Despite initial successes, Graham was forced to retreat after his Spanish allies, led by the Count de la Pena, departed the field.
Blanche	Misc	French frigate, one of a a number of vessels captured by Vengeance (74) and three other 3rd rates on 21 December 1779 in the West Indies.
Blenheim	Geo	Location (in Bavaria) of a battle of the War of the Spanish Succession on 13 August 1704. A French-Bavarian advance on Vienna was defeated by an international (mainly Austrian, British and Dutch) force. The British, Dutch and some other forces were commanded by the Duke of Marlborough. The French were thrown back across the Rhine. Bavaria was knocked out of the war and occupied, and the French allies of Savoy and Portugal changed sides.
Bombay	Geo	City (present day Mumbai) on the west coast of India.
Brisk	Mind
Bristol	Geo	English maritime city.
Briton	Geo	Inhabitant of Great Britain.
Brunswick	Per	King George I (ruled 1714-1727) was the first British king from the Hanover line of the House of Brunswick.
Cadmus	Gr	Founder of the city of Thebes. He killed the sacred dragon that guarded the spring of Ares. Athena told him to sow the dragon's teeth, and from these sprang the Sparti (sown men), ancestors of the noble families of Thebes.
Caesar	Rom	Gaius Julius Caesar (100-44 BC). Roman military and political leader, conquered Gaul and launched the first Roman invasion of Britain. After a civil war he was the undisputed master of the Roman world and later dictator for life. He heavily centralized the faltering government of the Roman Republic. His assassination led to a second set of civil wars and the replacement of the Republic by the Empire under his grand-nephew and adopted son, Caesar Augustus.
Camelion	Nat	Reptile (now spelt Chameleon).
Centurion	Rom	A Roman officer commanding a century or company, the strength of which varied from fifty to one hundred men.
Challenger	Mind
Chanticleer	Fict	The cock in the medieval stories of "Reynard the Fox".
Charybdis	Gr	A female sea monster, who sucked in and spewed out huge amounts of water, creating a whirlpool in the Strait of Messina; daughter of Poseidon and sister of Scylla.
Chesapeake	Geo	On 1 June 1813, during the "War of 1812" the United States frigate Chesapeake (Capt. James Lawrence) left Boston to confront the Royal Navy frigate Shannon (Capt. Philip Bowes Vere Broke). After an engagement of only 15 minutes the Chesapeake was forced to strike her colours, despite the last exhortation of the mortally wounded Laurence: "Don't Give Up The Ship". The Chesapeake had been named for the battle of the Chesapeake on 5 September 1781 between a British fleet led by Rear-Adm. Thomas Graves and a French fleet led by Rear-Adm. the Comte de Grasse, where the French victory ultimately resulted in the surrender of Cornwallis after the Battle of Yorktown, and the later recognition of the independence of the United States by Britain.
Clio	Gr	The muse of history.
Collingwood	Per	Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood (1750-1810). Captain of Barfleur on the "Glorious 1st of June" (1794) and of Excellent at Cape St Vincent (14 February 1797). Led the lee column at Trafalgar (21 October 1805).
Colossus	Mind
Columbine	Nat	A flower; common name for the genus Aquilegia. Flowering perennials belonging to the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae.
Conflict	Mind
Conqueror	Mind
Constance	Fict	Constance, Duchess of Brittany, widow to Geffrey (John's elder brother) in Shakespeare's "King John".
Cordelia	Fict	Lear's youngest daughter in Shakespeare's "King Lear".
Cornwallis	Per	Admiral Sir William Cornwallis (1744-1819), Commander-in chief in the West Indies in 1796. Commander of the Channel fleet in 1801.
Cossack	Geo	A warlike Russian people.
Cressy	Geo	Location of the victory of the English (led by King Edward III and his son, the Black Prince) over the French army of Philip VI on 26 August 1346. The first battle on the continent where an English army fought mainly as infantry and used the English long bow against mounted knights.
Cruizer	Misc
Curacoa	Geo	Island in the south-western Caribbean, 35 miles north of Venezuela. The largest of the Netherlands Antilles, captured from Spain in 1634.
Curlew	Nat	A seabird.
Danae	Gr	Mother of Perseus, who accidentally killed her father Acristius with a discus, thus fulfilling a prophesy.
Daphne	Gr	A nymph. She was loved by Apollo who pursued her. She prayed to Gaea for aid and was changed into a laurel tree.
Dauntless	Mind
Defiance	Mind
Desperate	Mind
Diadem	Nat	Gemstone.
Diamond	Nat	Gemstone.
Dido	Rom	Fled from Tyre when her brother, Pygmalion, killed her husband. Founded Carthage. Killed herself when the shipwrecked Aeneas was ordered by the gods to leave Carthage.
Donegal	Geo	In north-west Ireland. The previous ship of this name was the renamed French Hoche, carrying the "United Irishman" Wolfe Tone (1763-1798), which was captured by Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren on 12 October 1798 in Lough Swilly.
Doris	Gr	The wife of Nereus and mother of the fifty Nereids (sea-nymphs).
Druid	Misc
Dryad	Gr	A general name for wood nymphs.
Duke of Wellington	Per	Arthur Wellesley (1769-1852). Commander of the British Army in the Peninsular War, forced the French out of Spain in 1812 and reinforced his victory against the French at Toulouse. In 1814 granted the title of Duke of Wellington. Commander of the British forces which, together with the Prussian forces of von Blücher, defeated Napoleon at Waterloo in June 1815. Tory Prime Minister 1828-1830.
Duncan	Per	Admiral Adam Duncan (1731-1804) defeated the Dutch fleet under Vice-admiral de Winter off Camperduin (Kamperduin) on 11 October 1797; the Dutch fleet was about to attack the British coast.
Eclipse	Nat	...of the sun or moon, a natural phenomenon.
Edgar	Fict	The son of the Earl of Gloucester who takes rule of the kingdom at the end of Shakespeare's "King Lear".
Edinburgh	Geo	Capital city of Scotland.
Emerald	Nat	Gemstone.
Encounter	Misc
Encounter	Misc
Endymion	Gr	Handsome prince who was loved by Selene, goddess of the moon, who kept him in permanent sleep in a cave where she visited him every night.
Esk	Geo	River on the English/Scottish border.
Eurotas	Gr	(God of the) Eurotas (Evrótas) River in the Peloponnesus.
Euryalus	Gr	One of the Epigonoi (The sons of the seven heroes who unsuccessfully tried to conquer Thebes), and one of Jason's Argonauts.
Exmouth	Per	Admiral Sir Edward Pellew (1757-1833). On 27 August 1816 an Anglo-Dutch squadron under his command bombarded Algiers, after the Bey refused to release the British Consul and over 1000 Christian slaves, mainly captured seamen; the subsequent treaty broke the power of the "Barbary pirates," who had plagued European commerce in the Mediterranean for centuries. Pellew was created Viscount Exmouth for his role.
Falcon	Nat	Bird of pray.
Fawn	Nat	Young deer.
Forte	Misc	Name of a French frigate captured on 28 February 1799 by the British frigate Sibylle, Captain Edward Cooke, off the Bengal river.
Forth	???
Fox	Nat	Carnivorous mammal.
Frederick William	Per	Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl von Preußen (1831-1888), Emperor of Germany (Frederick III) in the last year of his life. Married Victoria Adelaide Mary, eldest daughter of Queen Victoria in 1858.
Galatea	Gr	A sea-nymph, loved by Polyphemus, a Cyclops who wooed her with love songs.
Gannet	Nat	A seabird.
Gibraltar	Geo	British possession, ceded by Spain in 1713 under the terms of the Treaty of Utrecht, commanding the western entrance of the Mediterranean Sea.
Glasgow	Geo	Scottish city.
Goliath	Fict	Biblical giant, slain by David with a slingshot.
Greyhound	Nat	A fast running dog.
Hannibal	Rom	Carthaginian general (247-183 BC) whose marched on Rome from Spain across the Alps during the 2nd Punic War in 218-217 BC, but failed to take the city. In 202 BC, he was recalled to Africa to defend - unsuccessfully - Carthage against a Roman invasion. About to be delivered to the Romans later, he poisoned himself.
Harrier	Nat	Bird of prey.
Hastings	Geo	Town on the coast of England, south east of London.
Hawke	Per	Admiral Sir Edward Hawke (1705-1781). During the Seven Years War he chased the French fleet of Admiral de Conflans into Quiberon Bay (20 November 1759) and thereby ended the threat of a French invasion of Britain, and removed the French navy from the rest of the war.
Hero	Gr	Lover of Leander, who swam every night over the Hellespont to her, until her lamp - his beacon - was blown out and he drowned, whereupon she killed herself.
Highflyer	Mind
Hogue	Geo	Location (off La Hougue, Normandy) of the victory of a combined English (Admiral Edward Russell, afterwards earl of Orford) and Dutch (Admiral van Allemonde) fleet over a French fleet in the period 19-23 May 1692, which prevented a Jacobite invasion of England.
Hood	Per	Admiral Samuel Hood (1724-1816). He was Rodney's second in command at the Battle of the Saintes off Dominica on 9 April 1792. In August 1793 he briefly occupied Toulon at the invitation of the French royalists.
Horatio	Fict	A friend of Hamlet and the only main character left alive at the end of Shakespeare's "Hamlet".
Hornet	Nat	An aggressive insect.
Howe	Per	Admiral Richard Howe (1726-1799). On the "Glorious First of June" 1794, at the first major naval battle of the French Revolutionary Wars, he defeated Rear Admiral Villaret-Joyeuse, who had sailed from Brest to meet and escort a grain convoy arriving from the United States.
Icarus	Gr	When Minos refused to let Daedalus and his son, Icarus, leave Crete, Daedalus built wings of wax and feathers for himself and Icarus. Together they flew away, but Icarus flew too close to the sun and fell to his death when the wax melted. Daedalus escaped to Sicily.
Immortalité	Mind	(French: immortality)
Impérieuse	Mind	(French: imperial)
Irresistible	Mind
James Watt	Per	James Watt (1736-1819); a Glasgow instrument maker. His many improvements to the steam engine made its use as a mobile power source practicable.
Jason	Gr	When Pelias killed his father, the king, Jason was reared by the centaur Chiron. Later Pelias promised Jason his rightful kingdom if he would bring the Golden Fleece to Boeotia. Jason assembled Greece's bravest heroes and together they sailed in the Argo in quest of the fleece.
Juno	Rom	Goddess of the moon, wife and sister of Jupiter.
Leander	Gr	Swam every night over the Hellespont to his lover, Hero, until her lamp - his beacon - was blown out and he drowned.
Liffey	Geo	River in Ireland.
Lion	Nat	Carnivorous mammal; the king of the jungle.
Liverpool	Geo	English maritime city.
London	Geo	Capital city of the United Kingdom.
Lyra	Nat	Stellar constellation.
Majestic	Mind
Malacca	Geo	City in Malaysia. Handed over by the Netherlands to Britain in 1795, returned in 1808, but then traded back to Britain in 1826.
Marlborough	Per	John Churchill (1650-1722), created Duke of Marlborough in 1703 after a series of victories against France in the War of the Spanish Succession. Later in the war he soundly defeated the French at the battles of Blenheim (with Prince Eugene of Saxony) and Ramillies.
Mars	Rom	God of war (and a planet).
Meeanee	Geo	A village in Sind, India (now Pakistan), near Hyderabad. The location of the battle in which Sir Charles Napier broke the power of the mirs of Sind on 17 February 1843, resulting in the conquest and annexation of Sind.
Melpomene	Gr	The muse of (theatrical) tragedy.
Mersey	Geo	English river.
Miranda	Fict	The daughter of the sorcerer Prospero, the former Duke of Milan in Shakespeare's "the Tempest".
Modeste	Misc	Name of a French 64-gun ship captured at Lagos on 18 August 1759.
Mutine	Misc	Name of a French brig (La Mutine = the Mutineer) captured by the boats of Minerve and Lively near Santa Cruz on 28 May 1797.
Narcissus	Gr	Handsome young man who was punished by love of his own reflection in a well when he rejected the love of the nymph Echo. He fell into the well and drowned.
Nelson	Per	Admiral Horatio Nelson (1758-1815). On 1 August 1798 he defeated a French fleet under Admiral Brueys at the Battle of Aboukir (or the Nile), putting an end to French designs in the Middle East. Following the battle he was based at Naples where his celebrated liaison began with Lady Emma Hamilton, the wife of the British ambassador. He was second in command of the fleet sent against Denmark in 1801 and carried the assault on Copenhagen to a successful conclusion. At the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805 he inflicted a crushing defeat on the numerically superior Franco-Spanish fleet under Admiral Villeneuve, but was hit by a musket ball from a French sharpshooter and died on his flagship, Victory, in the knowledge that he had achieved another famous victory.
Neptune	Rom	God of the sea.
Newcastle	Geo	English maritime city.
Niger	Geo	West African river (and target of British exploratory and anti-slavery expeditions).
Nile	Geo	African River. Its mouth the location of the battle (also known as the Battle of Aboukir) in which Admiral Horatio Nelson defeated Admiral Brueys' French fleet on 1 August 1798; the defeat put an end to French designs in the Middle East.
Niobe	Gr	Wife of Amphion. All her children were killed by Apollo and Artemis, when she boasted to their mother, the goddess Leto, that she had more children that Leto.
Nymphe	Gr	One of the lower gods, personifying various aspects of nature.
Octavia	Fict	Sister of Caesar in Shakespeare's "Anthony and Cleopatra". Anthony marries her but soon returns to his mistress Cleopatra.
Orestes	Gr	Son of Agamnemnon and Clytemnestra, who avenged his father by killing his murderer, Aegisthus, and his mother, who had been seduced by Aegisthus. He was tried by the Furies (Erinyes), the goddesses of revenge, but freed when Athene cast the deciding vote.
Orion	Gr	A hunter in love with Merope. He lost the sight of his eyes in an attempt to kidnap Merope when her father demanded that he first perform an heroic deed. His sight was restored, but he was killed by Artemis, who loved him.
Orlando	Per	Character from the mediaeval "Adventures of Rinaldo and Orlando".
Orpheus	Gr	The son of Calliope and either Oeagrus or Apollo; a musician and poet whose songs could charm wild beasts and coax even rocks and trees into movement. He was one of the Argonauts, and when the Argo had to pass the island of the Sirens, it was Orpheus' music which prevented the crew from being lured to destruction.
Pantaloon	Misc	A buffoon in tight trousers in the Italian comedy.
Pearl	Nat	Gemstone produced by oysters.
Pelican	Nat	Aquatic bird.
Pelorus	Rom	Hannibal's pilot, when he returned to Carthage from Italy (and hence also a navigational instrument giving bearings relative to the ship's bow).
Pembroke	Per	Presumably one of the Earls of Pembroke, but not Thomas Herbert, 8th Earl, who was First Lord of the Admiralty 1690-1692, as the first RN ship called Pembroke was launched in 1655.
Perseus	Gr	Son of Zeus and Danae. He slew the Medusa, whose visage turned men to stone, and defeated his enemies with the head attached to his shield. He fell in love with the beautiful Andromeda, and returned with her and his mother to Argos, his native land, where he accidentally killed his grandfather, Acrisius, with a discus, thereby fulfilling an ancient prophesy.
Peterel	Nat	Seabird.
Phaeton	Gr	Son of Helios, the sun god. Was allowed once to drive the fiery chariot, but was unable to control its wild horses, whereby the sun came too near to the earth and scorched part of north Africa.
Phoebe	Gr	A Titan. The mother of Leto and Asteria and the grandmother of Artemis.
Phoenix	Fict	According to legend, the phoenix lived in Arabia; when it reached the end of its life (500 years), it burned itself on a pyre of flames, and from the ashes a new phoenix arose.
Plumper	???
Prince of Wales	Per	Edward Albert (1841-1910), the later King Edward VII, the eldest son of Queen Victoria, was only nineteen when he the first member of the British royal family to visit North America in 1860, the year this ship was launched.
Prince Regent	Per	George IV (1762-1830) reigned from 1820, but was Prince Regent between 1811 and 1820, during the incapacity of his father, George III.
Princess Royal	Per	Eldest daughter of the monarch (in this case: Queen Victoria). Victoria Adelaide Mary (1840-1901), married the German Prince Frederick William.
Pylades	Gr	The son of Strophius, and trusty friend of Orestes.
Queen	Misc
Racer	Misc
Racoon	Nat	Woodland mammal.
Rapid	Mind
Rattler	???
Rattler	???
Rattlesnake	Nat	Aggressive reptile.
Reindeer	Nat	Artic deer.
Renown	Mind
Revenge	Mind
Reynard	Fict	A fox, central figure in the medieval stories about "Reynard the Fox"
Rinaldo	Fict	Character from the mediaeval "Adventures of Rinaldo and Orlando".
Rodney	Per	Admiral George Brydges Rodney (1718-1792). He defeated the French fleet of the Comte de Grasse at the Battle of the Saintes off Dominica on 9 April 1792.
Rosario	Misc	Name of a Spanish ship, N.S. del Rosario, taken by Romulus and Mahonesa off Cadiz on 24 May 1797.
Royal Albert	Per	Prince Albert (Francis Charles Augustus Albert Emmanuel Saxe-Coburg-Gotha; 1819-1861), cousin and husband of Queen Victoria.
Royal George	Per	George IV (1762-1830); ruled from 1820.
Royal Sovereign	Misc
Royal William	Per	William IV (1765-1837); ruled from 1830.
Royalist	Mind
Russell	Per	Admiral Edward Russell (1653-1727) commanded the Anglo-Dutch force that defeated the French at La Hogue in 1692. First Lord of the Admiralty 1694-1699. Created Earl of Orford 1697.
Sans Pareil	Mind	(French: without equal).
Sapphire	Nat	Gemstone.
Satellite	Nat	i.e. the moon.
Scout	Misc
Scylla	Gr	A six-headed monster in the Strait of Messina, daughter of Poseidon and sister of Charybdis.
Seahorse	Nat	Tropical fish.
Severn	Geo	English river.
Shannon	Geo	Irish river.
Shearwater	Nat	Seabird.
Sirius	Gr	The dog of the hunter Orion (also a prominent star).
Spartan	Gr	A warlike race.
St George	Fict	Patron saint of England.
St Jean d'Acre	Geo	City (also known as Acre or Acco) on the Bay of Acre in )now) northern Israel, unsuccessfully besieged by Napoleon between 18 March and 20 May 1799. His siege artillery was lost to a Royal Navy flotilla under Commodore Sir William Sidney Smith.
Sutlej	Geo	River in India on which decisive battles were fought during the First Anglo-Sikh War (1845-46).
Swallow	Nat	A fast flying bird.
Tartar	Geo	A warlike Russian people.
Tenedos	Geo	An island - now belonging to Turkey and called Bozcaada - in the Aegean Sea some 12 miles south of the Dardanelles. According to legend, Tenedos was the staging post of the Greek forces under Agamemnon during the Trojan War. It was used by Xerxes as a base during the Persian War and by Admiral Sir John Thomas Duckworth during operations against Constantinople in 1807.
Termagant	Fict	An imaginary being supposed by mediaeval Christians to be a Mohammedan deity or false god. Also a scolding, nagging bad-tempered woman.
Thalia	Gr	The muse of (theatrical) comedy.
Thetis	Gr	A sea-nymph, daughter of Nereus and Doris, and mother of Achilles.
Topaze	Nat	Gemstone.
Trafalgar	Geo	Location (off Cape Trafalgar on the Spanish coast, south of Cadiz) of the battle on 21 October 1805 between the British fleet (under Admiral Horatio Nelson) and a combined Spanish-French fleet (under Admiral Villeneuve); a British victory but Nelson was killed.
Tribune	Rom
Undaunted	Mind
Vestal	Rom	Pertaining to Vesta, the god of the hearth.
Victor Emanuel	Per	Victor Emanuel II (1820-1878), last king of Piedmont-Sardinia (1849-1861) and first king of united Italy (1861-1878). In 1859, assured of military support by Napoleon III of France, Piedmont-Sardinia went to war with Austria to liberate Lombardy. This, together with upheavals in the smaller central Italian states, and Garibaldi's successful campaign in southern Italy against the Neapolitan Bourbons, led to the creation of a united Italy.
Victoria	Per	Queen Victoria.
Wasp	Nat	Aggressive insect.
Waterloo	Geo	Location, just south of Brussels, of the final battle of the Napoleonic Wars where British, Prussian, and Dutch forces under the Duke of Wellington defeated Napoleon on 18 June 1815. Napoleon found Wellington's army isolated from his allies and began a direct offensive, but the British held on until joined by the Prussians under Marshal von Blücher. Four days later Napoleon abdicated for the second and final time.
Windsor Castle	Geo	Royal residence outside London.
Wolverine	Nat	Carnivorous mammal.
Zebra	Nat	African wild horse species.

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