Bachelor of Civil Law (abbreviated "
BCL" or "
B.C.L.") is the name of various degrees in
law conferred by English-language universities. Historically, it originated as a postgraduate degree in the universities of
Oxford and
Cambridge, but many universities now offer the BCL as an undergraduate degree. Reference to civil law was not originally in contradistinction to
common law, but to
canon law, although it is true that common law was not taught in the civil law faculties in either university until at least the second half of the 18th century. However, some universities in English-speaking countries use the degree in the
former sense.