Fraternities

A Brief History of Fraternities

Fraternities have a long history in American colleges and universities. The first Greek-letter organization in America was established by a group of five young men in 1776. Phi Beta Kappa was founded at the College of [Page 298]William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, as an academic honor society and still functions today in colleges and universities across the country. Originally founded as a secret society in which freedom of inquiry was expressed, many rituals of today's fraternities (including secret handshakes, mottos, signs, and passwords) can be traced back to those of Phi Beta Kappa.

While academically oriented fraternities like Phi Beta Kappa were common in the late 1700s, social fraternities began to emerge as colleges became more focused on liberal arts education. In 1824 Chi Phi Fraternity was founded at the College of New Jersey, now known as Princeton University, and is the oldest social fraternity among American colleges and universities. Today, there are more than 350 groups that classify themselves as social fraternities. Such social fraternities have become the norm on college campuses.

In the latter part of the 19th century, chapter-owned houses became a part of the fraternity movement. With a new home for fraternity members, colleges and universities became a very real part of young men's social lives. Today, fraternity chapter houses on college campuses provide dense and prosperous social networks that give young men a home away from home at universities. Many of the rituals and practices of fraternities continue to secure long-lasting friendships and allegiance. This type of “brotherhood” is often a strong social network for life.

Types of Fraternities

When one thinks of a social fraternity, white male Greek fraternities are usually the first group to spring to mind. However, since the first social fraternity emerged, a variety of fraternities have differentiated themselves from this model. In 1906, Alpha Phi Alpha was founded at Cornell University as the first African American Greek social fraternity in the United States. The first Asian American Greek fraternity, Rho Psi, was established in 1916, also at Cornell University. Phi Iota Alpha was founded in 1931 as the first Latin American Greek fraternity at Louisiana State University. Both established in 1996, Epsilon Chi Nu and Phi Sigma Nu were the first Native American Greek fraternities in the nation (although Native American sororities were first to emerge in 1994). Such racial/ethnic diversity among fraternities has created a truly multifaceted Greek system.

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