Philomathean Society

This article is about the society at the University of Pennsylvania. For others by this name, see § Other Philomathean Societies.
Philomathean Society
Founded1813; 211 years ago (1813)
University of Pennsylvania
TypeLiterary
AffiliationIndependent
StatusActive
ScopeLocal
Chapters1
HeadquartersFourth Floor, College Hall
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
United States
Websitewww.philomathean.org

The Philomathean Society /ˌfaɪloʊˈmeɪθiən/ of the University of Pennsylvania is a collegiate literary society, the oldest student group at the university,[1][2][3] and a claimant to the title of the oldest continuously-existing literary society in the United States, a claim disputed by Columbia University's Philolexian Society, which was established in 1802.[note 1] Founded in 1813, its goal is "to promote the learning of its members and to increase the academic prestige of the University."[4][5] Philomathean is derived from the Greek philomath, which means "a lover of learning." The motto of the Philomathean Society is Sic itur ad astra (Latin for "thus we proceed to the stars").

  1. ^ Hood, Clifton R. (January 2006). "Philomathean Society". University of Pennsylvania Archives. University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  2. ^ Kurtz, Rod. "U. Pennsylvania's Oldest Student Group Looks for New Blood." Daily Pennsylvanian. October 28, 1998.
  3. ^ American Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia. Records of the American Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia, Volume XV. 332.
  4. ^ Sanford, Gregory B. "Note: Your Opinion Really Does Not Matter: How the Use of Referenda in Funding Public University Student Groups Violates Constitutional Free Speech Principles." Notre Dame Law Review. January 2008.
  5. ^ Wood, George Bacon (1896). Early history of the University of Pennsylvania from its origin to the year 1827. with Supplementary Chapters by Frederick Dawson Stone (Third ed.). Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott & Co. pp. 156–7. OCLC 17853257.


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