The FSW building is now called Agora
As of 12 Januari 2026, the FSW faculty building is called Agora. This name was chosen by the FSW community. In ancient Greece, the agora was the heart of the city: a place for meeting, dialogue and the exchange of ideas. This is exactly how we see our faculty building: an open space where knowledge, perspectives and people come together.
The decision to part with the name Pieter de la Court is the result of a careful process of reflection and dialogue. Historical research has taught us that Pieter de la Court, in addition to being known as a freethinker and champion of economic and religious freedom and rights for migrants, was also closely associated with colonialism and slavery. This is at odds with the values of diversity and inclusivity that we as a community wish to promote.
Publications and reports
In 2022 colleagues Arthur Pormes and Karwan Fatah-Black published Was Pieter de la Court really a ‘free thinker’? in Mare. This was followed by a careful consultation and decision-making process with internal and external experts. At the same time, reports were published on the preliminary investigation into the involvement of Leiden University and the Municipality of Leiden in colonialism and slavery.
Student, entrepreneur, freethinker
Pieter de la Court was a seventeenth-century student at our university, an entrepreneur, a champion of democracy in the city and of economic and religious freedom and rights for migrants; reasons for the faculty to choose De la Court as the namesake for our building at the time.
WIC shareholder
However, the above-mentioned publication and reports confirm that the cloth industry, in which Pieter de la Court played a leading role during his years in Leiden, had strong ties to colonialism and slavery. After moving to Amsterdam, De la Court became a major shareholder and attendee at the meetings of the Board of the Dutch West India Company, which played a major role in the Dutch participation in the slave trade.
Current knowledge
In light of this, the Faculty Board, in consultation with the Faculty Council and the scientific directors of the institutes, believes that the naming of the building and the image of Pieter de la Court do not contribute to the diverse and inclusive knowledge community that our faculty aspires to be.
In search of a new name
At the end of 2025, FSW staff and students are invited to submit their ideas for a new name. A committee comprising representatives of the faculty board, the faculty council (one student and one staff member) and the executive board select eight candidate names from the submissions, which are then put to a vote. From 33 submissions and ultimately eight nominations, one name is chosen with 25.1% of the votes: Agora. The plaque at the entrance to the building bearing the name and image of De la Court has by then been relocated to the outer wall of lecture room SC.01 within the building.