Texas A&M University, often referred to as Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU, stands for Texas Agricultural and Mechanical University. It was opened for classes in 1876 as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas. In 1963, the Texas state legislature officially renamed the school to Texas A&M University, with the "A" and "M" being a symbolic link to the schools past but no longer officially standing for "Agricultural and Mechanical". The letters "A&M" no longer have any explicit meaning, but they are retained as a link to the universitys past.