Why are the Ivy League schools called the "Ivy League"?

Question

Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, etc... Why are the called the "Ivy League"? Please don't tell me it's because there is ivy on the walls - that just doesn't seem right.

I heard once that they were called the Ivy League because there were originally only 4 - the Roman numeral being "IV", hence the "IV" League?

Someone please help! This has driven me nuts for some time! lol

Cool!! Thanks!!

That just didn't seem to make sense! It seemed way too obvious me I guess.

Grats on the 10 points!

Answer 1

Named after the ivy plants that traditionally cover their historic buildings, the term Ivy League was first coined informally to refer to these institutions of higher education which compete in both scholastics and sports.

The eight members are Brown (Providence, RI), Columbia (NYC), Cornell (Ithaca, NY), Dartmouth (Hanover, NH), Harvard (Cambridge, MA), Pennsylvania (Philadelphia), Princeton (Princeton, NJ) and Yale (New Haven, CT).

Answer 2

The walls of the main buildings of those universities were ivy-covered.

"Named after the ivy plants that traditionally cover their historic buildings, the term Ivy League was first coined informally to refer to these institutions of higher education which compete in both scholastics and sports. Formally, it also refers to the association of these schools in NCAA Division I athletic competition. The Ivy League universities are often simply called the Ivies or, affectionately, the Ancient Eight.

Some attribute the name to the Roman numerals for four (IV), asserting that there was such a sports league originally with four members. The Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins helped to perpetuate this belief. The supposed "IV League" was formed over a century ago and consisted of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and a 4th school that varies depending on who is telling the story."