's Kur Fraternity during the inauguration of
Józef Piłsudski Monument in Kraków. The only true distinction between a fraternity and any other form of social organizations is the implication that the members are freely associated as equals for a mutually beneficial purpose rather than because of a religious, governmental, commercial, or familial bond – although there are fraternities dedicated to each of these fields of association. On college
campuses, fraternities may be divided into four different groups: social, service, professional, and honorary. Fraternities can be organized for many purposes, including university education, work skills, ethics, ethnicity, religion, politics, charity, chivalry, other standards of personal conduct, asceticism, service, performing arts, family command of territory, and even crime. There is almost always an explicit goal of mutual support, and while there have been fraternal orders for the well-off there have also been many fraternities for those in the lower ranks of society, especially for national or religious minorities. Trade unions also grew out of fraternities such as the
Knights of Labor. The ability to organize freely, apart from the institutions of government and religion, was a fundamental part of the establishment of the modern world. In
Living the Enlightenment, Margaret C. Jacobs showed that the development of Jurgen Habermas's "public space" in 17th-century Netherlands was closely related to the establishment of lodges of
Freemasons.
Trade guilds '' by
Rembrandt, 1662. The development of fraternities in England may have originated with
guilds that were the forerunners of
trade unions and
friendly societies. These guilds were set up to provide
insurance for their members at a time when there was no
welfare state, trade unions or
universal health care. Various secret signs and handshakes were created to serve as proof of their membership allowing them to visit related guilds in other communities.
Fraternal orders of
Freemasonry. In London and other major cities, some Guilds (like the Freemasons and the Odd Fellows) survived by adapting their roles to a social support function. Eventually, these groups evolved in the early 18th century into more philosophical organizations focused on brotherly love and ethical living, with some elements inspired by organisations such as
chivalric orders. Among guilds that became prosperous are the
Freemasons,
Odd Fellows and
Foresters. Throughout the latter part of the 19th century and into the 20th century, many American fraternal orders such as the
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks,
Loyal Order of Moose, and
Fraternal Order of Eagles implemented practices and rituals inspired from orders such as the Freemasons and Odd Fellows. These organisations were segregated and Black organisations were founded that were based on the white ones such as
Prince Hall Freemasonry,
Grand United Order of Odd Fellows in America,
Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the World, as well as original fraternal organisations such as the
Independent Order of St. Luke. The
Orange Order is an
Ulster Protestant fraternity that celebrates the
Protestant faith and
Orange Order's heritage, mainly
King William's victory in the
Battle of the Boyne. They hold a number of parades annually, including the
Battle of the Somme Memorial Parade and the
Twelfth of July which attract thousands of people. They expanded to other continents through the
British Empire, including
Oceania, and established lodges in
West Africa, referred to as the
African Orange Order. The majority of lodges today are in
Togo and
Ghana. The
Royal Black Institution is also an Ulster Protestant fraternity that hold parades, including the "last Saturday in August" Royal Black Parade.
University and college fraternities are known for practicing their tradition of engaging in
academic fencing by rules dating back to the 1750s. Fraternities have a history in American colleges and universities and form a major subsection of the whole range of fraternities. As fraternities grew larger they outpaced the capacity of volunteer management and began to employ staff, eventually requiring an administrative office. Today, hundreds of national fraternities account for roughly 15,000 active chapters. Some national groups remain quite small, with only a handful of active groups, while the largest will manage in excess of 300 active chapters. Alternatively, some fraternities remain as local units, often retaining a
literary society model that was more prevalent in the 19th century. Fraternities offer a wide variety of services: National chapters and locals may or may not have buildings, and while many are residential, some have properties that are meeting halls only. Fraternities which provide residential space exhibit an array of services and sizes. Meals may be catered, or served by a full-time staff, but in other cases the members will cook their own meals. Maintenance is typically performed by members, although on some campuses the host institution handles capital improvements. Sorority chapters tend to be larger, with a business model that includes more formal maintenance and support. Prior to the formation of the
NIC,
NPC and other associations, whole chapters or schismatic groups of members would occasionally break away to form new fraternities as an offshoot of a former national. These national associations were developed, in part, to prevent this practice.
Colby College,
Amherst College, and a few others are the outliers, where these bans persist. The
College of Wooster adopted a Greek ban 100 years ago, but fraternities and sororities there have continued as local organizations. In 2017
Harvard University attempted to ban single-sex clubs, a matter that was met with separate lawsuits in federal and Massachusetts courts. Often, Greek chapters that are suspended or banned will continue as
sub rosa organizations. Since at least the 1940s, fraternities have received increased scrutiny in the United States from
incidents of
hazing or racism that have received national attention, and on some campuses, such as
Florida State, the organizations have been temporarily banned while administrators and national fraternities adjust to resolve these shared challenges. In Germany the
German Student Corps are the oldest academic fraternities. Twenty-eight were founded in the 18th century and two of them still exist. Most of their traditions have not changed much for the past two centuries. These traditions include
academic fencing duels with sharp blades while wearing only eye and neck protection, or regular
hunting events, as can be seen in examples such as
Corps Hubertia Freiburg,
Corps Palatia Munich,
Corps Rhenania Heidelberg or
Corps Bavaria Munich. At Swedish universities, especially those of
Uppsala and
Lund, students have organized in student nations since the 16th century. Generally, these organizations are open to all students who wish to join. Parallel to the nations, both Uppsala and Lund play host to a large number of university-related secret societies, for both students and older academics. There are thriving collegiate fraternity systems in
Puerto Rico and in the
Philippines. ==See also==