Ethereum Classic (ETC) was created on July 30, 2015. It came into existence as a result of a contentious hard fork within the Ethereum blockchain. The fork was a response to the infamous DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) hack, in which a significant amount of Ether (ETH) was stolen due to a vulnerability in a smart contract. The Ethereum community was divided on how to handle this situation.

A majority of the community decided to implement a hard fork to reverse the effects of the hack and return the stolen Ether to its rightful owners, leading to the creation of Ethereum (ETH). However, a portion of the community believed in upholding the principles of immutability and decentralization, and they chose to continue with the original Ethereum blockchain, which later became known as Ethereum Classic (ETC). This split resulted in two separate cryptocurrencies, each with its own set of principles and development paths.

Ethereum Classic was created in July 2016 after a major split in the Ethereum community. The event was triggered by the infamous DAO hack, where a vulnerability in a smart contract led to the theft of millions of dollars’ worth of Ether. To recover the stolen funds, most of the Ethereum community supported a hard fork that essentially rewrote the blockchain’s history, returning the stolen assets to their original owners. However, a portion of the community opposed altering the blockchain, believing in the principle of immutability, meaning “code is law.” This group chose to continue using the original chain, which became known as Ethereum Classic (ETC). Since then, Ethereum Classic has maintained its original philosophy, emphasizing decentralization and resistance to major protocol changes, setting it apart from Ethereum (ETH).