Results for secret society
On this page:
 
Dictionary:

secret society


n.

An organization, such as a lodge, that requires its members to conceal certain activities, such as its rites of initiation, from outsiders.


 
 

Any of various oath-bound societies devoted to brotherhood (or sisterhood), moral discipline, and mutual assistance. Such societies usually conduct rituals of initiation to instruct new members in the rules of the group (see rite of passage). Greek and Roman mystery religions had their secular counterparts in clandestine social clubs, some of which served as platforms for political dissent. In West Africa secret societies such as Poro (for men) and Sande (for women) serve to translate slight advantages of wealth and prestige into political authority. In parts of New Guinea secret men's societies serve as repositories of tribal knowledge. Fraternal orders such as the Freemasons (see Freemasonry) may be considered secret societies, as may criminal groups such as the Mafia and the Chinese Triads and hate groups such as the Ku Klux Klan.

For more information on secret society, visit Britannica.com.

 
Irish Literature Companion: secret societies

secret societies became a common feature of Irish rural life in the second half of the 18th cent. Commencing with the Whiteboy movement in Tipperary and adjoining counties in 1761-5, there were major outbreaks of rural protest in every decade up to the 1840s. Such protest was generally the work of small local groups, linked by no more than the adoption of a common name—Whiteboys, Oakboys, Steelboys, Threshers, Carders, Cravats, Rockites, Terry Alts—or at most by the transmission from place to place of an oath of association. Rival Protestant and Catholic secret societies, the Peep o'Day Boys and the Defenders, emerged in south Ulster in the 1780s. After 1795 the Peep o'Day Boys were replaced, and to some extent absorbed, by the Orange Order. Ribbonism, emerging around 1812, was a direct successor to Defenderism. Appealing mainly to wage-earners and petty traders, it kept alive something of the nationalist and Republican sentiments of the 1790s. The great age of the secret societies ended with the Famine. Traditional techniques of protest did not disappear: Parnell, in 1881, could still warn that if he were arrested ‘Captain Moonlight’ would take his place.

 
US History Encyclopedia: Secret Societies

Secret Societies are voluntary associations possessing arcane knowledge known only to their exclusive initiates. Alexis de Tocqueville got it wrong when he proclaimed that American society brooked no cabals or conspiracies. Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography (unfinished) first presented the concept of a network of secret cells used to influence public opinion.

Secret societies claim glamorous genealogies to enhance their sense of deep purpose. The Improved Order of Red Men (1834, Baltimore) traces itself to the Boston Tea Party. Rosicrucians, the Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis, or AMORC (1915, New York City) claim a pedigree going back to Benjamin Franklin. The Cheyenne tribes of the Great Plains take their societies back to the mystical teachings of an orphaned boy named Sweet Medicine about 1000 B.C. Freemasons claim they go back to Solomon's temple.

Indigenous American tribes maintained secret societies. The men formed societies for warriors, religious societies, and hunting clubs. Women formed agrarian societies, often centered on the buffalo and corn, and crafts guilds. Both sexes joined mystery cults utilizing dreams and hallucinations. Initiates freely traveled from band to band and even between tribes for society meetings.

The importance of British freemasonry to American secret societies cannot be overemphasized. In 1730 Daniel Coxe became the first provincial grand master for New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Masonry grew to a national membership of two million men by 2000.

The golden age of fraternal and secret societies lasted until the 1960s. Several hundred societies existed during this period. The Independent Order of Odd Fellows, founded in Baltimore by Thomas Wildey in 1819, and the Knights of Pythias, founded in Washington, D.C., by Justus H. Rathbone in 1864, rivaled the Masons. Other "friendly" societies allowed only one nationality. They included the German Sons of Hermann (1852, New York City, by Dr. Philip Merkel), the Irish Ancient Order of Hibernians (1836, New York City), and the Hebrew B'nai B'rith (1843, New York City, by Henry Jones). In 1900 over 40 percent of all white males in America belonged to one or more of the freemasonry-based societies.

Those generally denied membership in these societies found others to join or created their own. Women joined the "Order of the Eastern Star" (1853, by Dr. Robert Morris) and the Order of Rebekah for female Odd Fellows (1851, Washington, D.C., by Schuyler Colfax). Prince Hall and fourteen other blacks in Boston received a freemason lodge charter from the Grand Lodge of England in 1784. E. A. Lightfoot, T. W. Stringer, and others founded the Knights of Phythias of North and South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa for blacks (1869, Philadelphia). The Reverend Michael J. McGivney and others incorporated the Roman Catholic Knights of Columbus (1882, New Haven, Connecticut). American-born Chinese began forming Tong (assembly hall) societies for mutual protection in San Francisco in 1874.

Popular twentieth-century fraternal orders stressed tangible benefits for members and civic benevolence rather than secrecy. Such societies as the Fraternal Order of Eagles (1898, Seattle, by John Cort), the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks (1868, New York, by Charles Vivian), and the Loyal Order of the Moose (1888) became immensely popular because they stressed family social events and public benevolence. In 2000 more than nine million people belonged to one or more American secret or fraternal societies worldwide.

Bibliography

Mails, Thomas E. Dog Soldiers, Bear Men, and Buffalo Women: A Study of the Societies and Cults of the Plains Indians. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1973.

Stevens, Albert C. The Cyclopedia of Fraternities. 2d ed. Detroit, Mich.: Gale Research, 1966.

Whalen, William J. Handbook of Secret Organizations. Milwaukee, Wisc.: Bruce Publishing, 1966.

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: secret society,
organization of initiated persons whose members, purposes, and rituals are kept secret. Human groups throughout history have maintained secret societies. The ceremonies of initiation into such a society typically begin with an oath pledging secrecy as to all proceedings of the society, ascribing special obligations to its members, and assenting to penalties for violation of the oath. This is followed by tests of the candidate's worthiness, including physical courage and even painful mutilations. A dominant theme in the initiation trials of most of these societies is the symbolism of death and rebirth. After the candidate has passed the prescribed tests, the secret knowledge is transmitted to him. Secret societies have served as schools in which the elders instruct the young men in the ways of their society. These initiations are reminiscent of coming-of-age ceremonies. Women have comparable societies, but theirs have never matched those of men in number. (A notable exception was the Hung Society of China, a secret society of women that lasted over 1,500 years.) The mysteries, or secret rites and doctrines, of the Egyptians, the Persians, the Greeks, the Romans, and other ancient peoples were transmitted solely through secret societies. In modern civilizations secret societies such as Freemasonry are numerous. They usually offer various types of mutual aid for their members; there are, for example, special obligations to members who are ill and to the families of deceased members. Some historic secret societies, such as the Bavarian Illuminati, have been the object of massive paranoid speculation, accused of conspiring for world political domination; but the model of the secret society, with its emphasis on absolute commitment and secret truths that set the initiate apart, has been used to explain various political groups from terrorists to Cold Warriors. Some secret societies, e.g., the Mafia and the Ku Klux Klan, under the guise of fraternal benevolence, have defended the interests of their members by violence. See also fraternal orders, fraternity.

Bibliography

See J. H. Lepper, Famous Secret Societies (1932); A. Daraul, A History of Secret Societies (1962); J. M. Roberts, The Mythology of the Secret Societies (1972).


 
Wikipedia: secret society

A secret society is an organization that conceals its activities and membership from outsiders. The term "secret society" is also often used by the general public to describe a wide range of organizations that do not fit this definition, such as collegiate fraternities and fraternal organizations that may have non-public ceremonies. It also includes organizations described in conspiracy theories.

Overview

Historically, secret societies have been the subject of suspicion and speculation from non-members since the time of the ancient Greeks, when meetings were held "sub rosa" (Latin, "under the rose"). This phrase arrises from the fact that the rose was the emblem of the god Horus in ancient Egypt[citation needed]. Later the Greeks and Romans regarded Horus as god of silence. This originates from a Greek/Roman misinterpretation of an Egyptian hieroglyphic adopting Horus along with Isis and Osiris as a god. The Greeks translated his Egyptian name Har-pa-khered to Harpocrates. The rose's connotation for secrecy also dates back to Greek mythology. Aphrodite gave a rose to her son Eros, the god of love; he, in turn, gave it to Harpocrates, the god of silence, to ensure that his mother's indiscretions (or those of the gods in general, in other accounts) were kept under wraps. In the Middle Ages a rose suspended from the ceiling of a council chamber pledged all present (those under the rose) to secrecy.[1] Today the phrases "Sub Rosa" and "under the rose" are commonly used to indicate secrecy.

Since some secret societies have political aims, they are illegal in several countries. Poland has made the ban of secret political parties and political organizations a part of its constitution.

Many student societies established on university campuses have been considered secret societies. These such collegiate secret societies are like the Flat Hat Club (1750) and Phi Beta Kappa (1776), both founded at William & Mary. The most famous member of the FHC was Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States. In correspondence, Jefferson noted that the Flat Hat Club served "no useful object." The nation's prestigious universities and liberal arts colleges are home to secret societies today. See List of collegiate secret societies. Perhaps one of the most famous secret college societies is the Skull and Bones club, of which both president George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry are members from their college years. The Skull and Bones Club is rumored to be a secret white supremist organization. However, if this once was true, it clearly no longer is, as there have been minority and homosexual members in recent years. It is rumored that some members of the Skull and Bones Club receive membership because of family connections. Many former members of it have gone on to have wealthy and powerful careers.

See also

References

  • Heckethorn, Charles William (1997). The secret societies of all ages and countries, embracing the mysteries of ancient India, China, Japan, Egypt, Mexico, Peru, Greece, and Scandinavia, the Cabbalists, early Christians, heretics, Assassins, Thugs, Templars, the Vehm and Inquisition, mystics, Rosicrucians, Illuminati, Freemasons, Skopzi, Camorristi, Carbonari, nihilists, and other sects. Kessinger Publishing. ISBN 1-56459-296-0. 
  • Whalen, William Joseph (1966). Handbook of secret organizations. Milwaukee: Bruce Pub. Co.. LCCN 66-026658. 
  • Axelrod, Alan (1997). The international encyclopedia of secret societies and fraternal orders. New York: Facts on File. ISBN 0-8160-2307-7. 
  • Roberts, J. M. (John Morris) (1972). The mythology of the secret societies. New York: Scribner. ISBN 0-684-12904-3. 
  • Robbins, Alexandra (2004). Pledged: the secret life of sororities. New York: Hyperion. ISBN 0-7868-8859-8. 

Notes

External links


 
 

Join the WikiAnswers Q&A community. Post a question or answer questions about "secret society" at WikiAnswers.

 

Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Irish Literature Companion. The Concise Oxford Companion to Irish Literature. Copyright © 1996, 2000, 2003 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
US History Encyclopedia. © 2006 through a partnership of Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Secret society" Read more

Search for answers directly from your browser with the FREE Answers.com Toolbar!  
Click here to download now. 

Get Answers your way! Check out all our free tools and products.

On this page:   E-mail   print Print  Link  

 

Keep Reading

Mentioned In:

Related Topics