A STUDY of the North-East's history has been handed £886,000 by the Arts and Humanities Research Board (AHRB).
The universities of Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland and Teesside are setting up the AHRB Centre for North-East England History.
It will cover topics such as the region's culture, how its identity was shaped, and its links with countries overseas. It aims to make its research accessible to as many people as possible.
The centre will be officially launched later in the year.
Durham University's Professor David Rollason, director designate of the centre, said: "This money is an enormous accolade for us and the region as a whole.
"The AHRB Centre for North-East England History will have a wide-ranging regional base which will bring all sorts of different people together to determine what it is that gives this area its unique identity.
"Our aim is to develop research into the North-East and establish its history as an area of international significance and study.'
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