Alma mater is Latin for "nourishing mother". It was used in ancient Rome as a title for the mother goddess, and in Medieval Christianity for the Virgin Mary. In modern times it is used to refer to the university or college a person attends or attended. It also can refer to a song about a college or university similar to a fight song.

History

This term is derived from the motto ("Alma Mater Studiorum", meaning Nourishing Mother of Studies) of the world's oldest, continuously-operating, degree-granting university: the University of Bologna, in Italy, founded in A.D. 1088, which is located in the city of Bologna. It is also a term used in the Latin society.

Uses in academia

As a reference to an academic institution

In many modern languages it is usually and principally heard as a term of academia; thus, in the English language, it is often used in place of the name of the university or college a person has attended or graduated from. In American English, it may also be used in reference to the high school that an individual has attended.

As a song

In addition to this, alma mater may be the incipit, or the first line, of a school's anthem or song, and may be taken as a title for the genre. The term is more familiar in the United States than in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term often refers to the entire school song as opposed to simply the opening.

• "Alma Mater" is a song performed by the Portuguese gothic metal and black metal band Moonspell, from the album Wolfheart in 1995.
• "Underdog Alma Mater" is an album by the Texas synth-rock / pop-punk band Forever The Sickest Kids, released April 29th, 2008.
• In Chuck Berry's 1972 number one hit "My Ding-A-Ling", a live recording, Chuck can be heard saying to the audience, "We must do our Alma Mater". He then gets the females and males in the audience to sing alternate parts of the chorus.
• Morrissey released a song called "Alma Matters" on his Maladjusted album.
• "Alma Mater" is a song performed by Alice Cooper on his "School's Out" album in 1972.
• The bronze statue on the steps of Low Library on the campus of Columbia University is of an anthropomorphic Alma Mater, and named so.
• One of the musical numbers in the ill-fated Carrie: The Musical is entitled Alma Mater with lyrics by Dean Pitchford

External links

• Definition of alma mater at Merriam-Webster Online
• An example of an alma mater "Ah! Well I Remember!", from the University of Northern Colorado
• "Crimson and the Blue", the alma mater of the University of Kansas
• "Alma Mater" (sometimes known as Hail Saint Mary's), the alma mater of Saint Mary's University of Minnesota