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Theta Upsilon
ΘΥ
Founded	January 1, 1914; 111 years ago (1914-01-01) University of California, Berkeley
Type	Social
Former affiliation	NPC
Status	Merged
Merge date	May 6, 1962
Successor	Delta Zeta
Scope	National
Motto	Let there be light
Member badge
Colors	Red,   Orange,   Yellow   Green,   Cyan,   Blue, and   Violet
Symbol	Rising Sun, Rainbow
Flower	Iris
Tree	Bay tree
Mascot	Lion Rampant
Patron Greek divinity	Apollo
Publication	The Dial
Chapters	38
Headquarters	United States

Theta Upsilon (ΘΥ) was a national women's fraternity operating in the United States from February 1921 until May 1962, when the group was absorbed by the Delta Zeta sorority.

History

Local club

Theta Upsilon began as a local club at the University of California, Berkeley when six female students moved into a house on Walnut Street. The house became known as "The Walnut Shell".

In the academic year of 1913–1914, twelve girls organized an official "house club" under the university. It was called Mekatina, which meant "Among the Hills". Mekatina had a ritual based on Native American themes. The pin was a rising sun. The formal founding date, according to Delta Zeta's history, was January 1, 1914.

National fraternity

On February 7, 1921, the Mekatina students renamed themselves inaugural members of the Alpha chapter of Theta Upsilon. Ida Shaw Martin, of the Sorority Service Bureau, is credited with outlining the plans for Theta Upsilon and perfected its ritual.

Theta Upsilon would eventually install 38 chapters across the country. It benefited, too, from mergers with smaller groups. Early in its history, the fraternity merged with Lambda Omega sorority, which only the year prior had absorbed Alpha Sigma Delta sorority. Lambda Omega had begun as the Norroena club at Berkeley in 1915. its name meant "Breath of the North," with a ritual based on Native American and Norse values. The Norse values emphasized were hardihood, hospitality, economy, and friendship. Lambda Omega was an associate member of the National Panhellenic Conference. In 1932, Lambda Omega had absorbed Alpha Sigma Delta, which began as the Iaqua club, also at Berkeley in 1919. In 1932, Lambda Omega was, in turn, absorbed by Theta Upsilon.

The chapter at Berkeley, therefore, was the product of three Alpha chapters of small national sororities, prior to itself merging into Delta Zeta's Mu chapter in 1962.

Merger with Delta Zeta

On May 6, 1962, Theta Upsilon fraternity was officially absorbed by Delta Zeta sorority. The ceremony was held at the Alpha Alpha chapter house at Northwestern University. Delta Zeta gained nine new collegiate chapters while several others were enhanced by mergers.

Symbols

• The flower was the iris.
• The tree was the bay tree.
• The patron was Apollo.
• The official motto: Let there be light
• The magazine was The Dial
• The colors were the Rainbow tints
• Insignia were Rising Sun, Rainbow, Lion Rampant
• The crest included a rampant lion on a rising sun, with a banner at the bottom with the Greek or Roman letters A, E, and I.

Seven Degrees of Membership

(Per Delta Zeta's history)

• Rainbow Degree: pledge ceremony; new members received rainbow ribbons
• Iris Degree: second pledge ceremony; pledge pin of sterling silver fleur-de-lis received
• Covenant Degree: initiation degree, "full lifetime membership"; received official badge of "a pearled Θ superimposed upon Υ"
• Temple Degree: awarded to alumnae at national convention; distinguished those who "supported and cooperated with the national fraternity"
• Laurel Degree: awarded to Temple degree members who showed "outstanding service"; given at National Convention
• Mother/Patroness Degree: awarded to mothers of initiates, patronesses of college chapters, and housemothers.
• Honorary Patron: awarded by college chapters to any man who made an outstanding contribution to the fraternity; approved by National Council

Creed

"As a daughter of light, I believe in loyalty to God, the Light of all our being; in loyalty to our country, the land of opportunity and freedom, where all women have important roles to play; in loyalty to our fellowmen with whom I shall seek constantly understanding and true love.

"I believe in love, learning, and labor, bearing in mind that each is incomplete without the other- true love expressed through intelligence, service, learning acquired as a result of loving interest in others, and labor inspired by love and guided by intelligence.

"I believe in Theta Upsilon, its purposes, its ideals, and its aspirations. I pledge my heart, my head, and my hand to be a good citizen on the campus and in the community, to cooperate in all endeavors, to maintain high ideals in social life, to uphold a worthy standard in harmony with my sisters in Theta Upsilon, that together we may work to further the divine plan for all mankind."
-- Beatrice Card Fuller.

Chapters

Theta Upsilon had installed a total of 38 chapters by the time of the merger, counting its own and those it absorbed from Lambda Omega.

In 1962 there were four "overlaps" in chapters at California, Miami, Illinois, and Temple universities. These merged into existing Delta Zeta chapters on their respective campuses. Fairly early, a chapter at Ripon College reverted to its local name. Thirty years later it would become an Alpha Phi chapter. A chapter at Utah State University reverted to its local name, briefly, before becoming a Delta Delta Delta chapter.

Chapters active at the time of the ΔΖ merger are those in bold, those which were inactive are noted in italics.

1. Began as the Mekatina Club in 1909.
2. Interestingly, this chapter is a result of the eventual merger of the Alpha chapters of three sororities all formed at Berkeley, namely ΛΩ (1915), ΑΣΔ (1918), and ΘΥ (1914).
3. Began as Sigma Phi Omega (local) in 1921.
4. Began as Sigma Upsilon (local).
5. Began as Zeta Chi (local) in 1922.
6. Began as Beta Xi (local) in 1924.
7. Began as Alpha Iota Pi (local) in 1922.
8. Began as Kappa Psi Delta (local) in 1922.
9. Baird's notes this group was later called Kappa Sigma Chi (local), which became Gamma Psi chapter of ΑΦ, active from 1959–1970.
10. Began as Alpha Alpha Alpha (local) in 1922.
11. Began as Omega Delta Pi (local) in 1922.
12. Lombard College ceased operations in 1930.
13. Began as the "E.T.A. Club" (local) in 1927.
14. Began as Zeta Chi (local) in 1922. Became the Phi Pi chapter of ΔΔΔ, active from 1959–1971.
15. Began as Sigma Omicron (local) in 1926.
16. Began as Pi Rho Phi (local) in 1905.
17. Began as Delta Phi (local) in 1916.
18. Began as Pi Tau Delta (local) in 1926.
19. Began as Delta Phi Gamma (local) in 1926.
20. Began as Alpha Omega (local) in 1930.
21. Began as Psi Xi Omega (local) in 1919.
22. Began as Theta Gamma (local) in 1921.
23. Began as Alpha Theta Pi (local) in 1915.
24. ^ Formerly a Lambda Omega chapter.
25. It's interesting to note that this chapter, in the span of seven years, had four Greek letter names: It had been still a local chapter in 1928 called Beta Chi Theta (local). Later in 1928 it became Gamma chapter of Alpha Sigma Delta. In 1932 it became the Iota chapter of Lambda Omega, and in 1933 the Theta Alpha chapter of Theta Upsilon. It would close by 1935, probably due in large part to the pressure of the Great Depression.
26. Began as Phi Kappa Delta (local) in 1922.
27. Began as Kappa Beta Gamma (local) in 1948.
28. Began as Alpha Pi Beta (local) in 1952.
29. Began as Delta Chi Alpha (local) in 1958.
30. Began as Delta Gamma Phi (local) in 1957.

See also

• List of social sororities and women's fraternities
• Delta Zeta
• Lambda Omega

References

1. ^ Miner, Florence Hood (1983). Delta Zeta Sorority 1902- 1982: Building on Yesterday, Reaching for Tomorrow. Indianapolis, Indiana: Compolith Graphics and Maury Boyd and Associates, Inc. pp. 150–151.
2. Staff (Spring 1990). McKeeman, Gwen Moss (ed.). "The Lamp of Delta Zeta" (PDF). 79 (1). Oxford Ohio: Delta Zeta Sorority: 9, 16 and 19. Retrieved 2 December 2021. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
3. ^ Mrs. Ida Shaw Martin (1923). The Sorority Handbook. Ida Shaw Martin. p. 89.
4. Noted in the 1935 Colby College Oracle yearbook, page 100. Accessed 24 Nov 2021.
5. ^ William Raimond Baird; Carroll Lurding (eds.). "Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities (Baird's Manual Online Archive), list of inactive GLOs, including Theta Upsilon chapters". Student Life and Culture Archives. University of Illinois: University of Illinois Archives. Retrieved 16 November 2021. The main archive URL is The Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage.

• Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities (multiple volumes)

• Fraternities and sororities in the United States
• Delta Zeta
• Defunct former members of the National Panhellenic Conference
• 1921 establishments in California
• Student organizations established in 1921
• Women's organizations based in the United States
• Sororities