To the uninitiated, stepping onto a college campus and seeing rows of houses with symbols or letters that we don’t use every day can be confusing. And even if you’re an active member of a sorority or fraternity, you may not fully understand how those Greek letters came to be associated with collegiate clubs.
To unravel the mystery, let’s travel back into history.
The First Fraternity
A year before America even gained independence from Britain, the first American collegiate fraternity was founded at the College of William and Mary in Virginia. This fraternity wanted to set itself apart from other collegiate clubs, where the only focus seemed to be partying and having a good time. This fraternity wanted to distinguish itself with a name that reflected a history of intellect.
In the late 1700s, a large focus of higher education was on studying Latin and Ancient Greek. Everyone studied Latin, but if you mastered it, you could move on and study Ancient Greek.
Some collegiate clubs of the time named themselves using Latin letters. The founding father Thomas Jefferson belonged to such a group when he attended the College of William and Mary.
The first fraternity wanted to show off its prestige and prominence. They chose the phrase from ancient Greek Philosophia Biou Kyberne tes, which, in English, means philosophy is the guide of life. They shortened the Greek phrase to an acronym with the Greek letters Phi Beta Kappa, and eventually, that is what stuck. The founders of Phi Beta Kappa wanted to have a name that would only be decipherable by fellow students who were cultured enough to recognize the phrase and the characters.
The first fraternities also based their names on phrases in Ancient Greek, then called themselves the acronym. Eventually, as the study of Ancient Greek did not carry the same esteem, new Greek organizations just chose an assortment of Greek letters to name their newly founded organization.
The Start of Sororities
Sororities did not come around as quickly as fraternities did. Nearly a century spans the gap between the founding of Phi Beta Kappa and the founding of the first sorority: Alpha Delta Pi. At first, sororities were called “female fraternities,” but once sorors learned that literally meant a brotherhood of sisters, they sought a more fitting name.
The Latin name for sister is soror. A Latin professor at Syracuse University suggested the name “sororities” as the feminine counterpart of fraternities, and the name stuck.
The Growth of the Greek
Greek groups began to grow after the founding of Phi Beta Kappa. Phi Beta Kappa expanded to Harvard, and additional offshoots with similar values began emerging at the College of William and Mary.
As fraternities and sororities began, they were engulfed in secrecy and exclusivity. Clearly, today’s Greek groups are much more transparent, but they still remain exclusive about membership and have things that are shared privately only with members. Sororities and fraternities are still notoriously difficult to join with their high standards for prospective members.
Black Greek Life
The initial Greek groups had exclusively white membership, as they started almost two centuries before Black people were even allowed to receive higher education outside of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). When African Americans first inquired about joining sororities and fraternities, they were denied. In response, students at Howard University founded Black fraternities and sororities.
The council over the original Greek organizations would not recognize Black fraternities and sororities, so the National Pan-Hellenic Council was founded. The nine Greek organizations that belong to the National Pan-Hellenic Council are also known as the Divine Nine.
Today, race is not a qualifying or disqualifying feature in any sorority, although the Divine Nine sororities and fraternities still tend to attract a lot of Black members. Delta Sigma Theta belongs to the Divine Nine, but don’t be too surprised to see any race of women sporting Delta Sigma Theta apparel.
All of the organizations in the Divine Nine have high standards for their members, and they value integrity, academics, and service.
Unlike some other fraternities and sororities, Black Greek organizations are far more than just a social club for the college experience. The Divine Nine have strong alumni chapters, and many of the sorority sisters and fraternity brothers aren’t joining for a four-year experience; they are joining for life.