Vikings Wordmark Logo

The Portland State Vikings have been around since the 1950s, and their wordmark logo has seen many changes over the years. From its original design to its modern iteration, the iconic logo has become a symbol of pride for students and alumni alike.

In 1956, PSU’s first official mascot was unveiled—the Viking—along with an accompanying script wordmark that featured a Norse-style font. This version of the logo served as an homage to PSU’s Scandinavian roots and reflected on its location in Oregon’s “Viking Country". The colors were also updated at this time: green became dominant (representing nature) while white remained secondary (symbolizing purity).

In 1972, PSU made some significant modifications to its visual identity when it introduced a new shield-shaped mark featuring two crossed swords behind it. This version maintained much of what had come before but added more detail; it included serif lettering along with small stars inside each sword hilt representing courage or strength.

Fast forward several decades later into 2001 where yet another update was made by adding black into the mix alongside green & white in order to create contrast & depth within designs used across various mediums such as uniforms & merchandise items. Additionally, subtle updates were done like replacing curved edges from previous versions with sharper angles giving off a more aggressive feel that better suited the university's athletic teams. Finally, the current iteration is rounded out by bolder typeface choice making sure that message being conveyed is loud and clear no matter how far away one may be from campus!

Overall, Portland State Vikings have gone through quite a few changes throughout history but still managed to keep the same core values that make them so beloved today - tradition excellence loyalty!