Origin of blue academic gown?

Question

I recently graduated with a master's in education at Wollongong University (in Australia) and was interested to find that their academic gown is blue! (as shown in the picture of me below)

http://www.djgamble.com/master.jpg

I was wondering if anyone knows which university the blue originated from. I am also interested in knowing why some universities choose colours other than black (besides it being a dark boring colour). Is there a historical reason?

Answer 1

Academic "regalia" as it is called, is a tradition that goes back to medieval times in European universities. In the USA it is a fairly recent tradition. American universities only started to use gowns of different styles and colors in the late 1800s. Supposedly a rich graduate of Williams College in Massachusetts wanted to have gowns so he had them made for Williams and then started a company to make and sell gowns. He patterned the gowns he was selling after the gowns at Cambridge U in England. They were immediately popular and right away a group of prestigious American schools agreed to adopt his designs. Since then there has been a standard design for gowns for Associates, Bachelors, Masters and Doctorate degrees in the USA. The gowns are all supposed to be black, but some school have in recent years begun using special colors, especially for the Doctoral gowns. This is kind of a fun tradition which I have seen develop as I have taken part in many academic processions.

The hoods of the gowns, imitating the Cambridge hoods, are usually marked with the school colors of the college giving the degree. The edges of the gown and the hood are marked with a velvet edging that is colored for the discipline or subject of the degree - there are about forty or so different colors of edgings used. PhD s have gowns that are edged with purple. Doctors of Pharmacy have gowns edged in green, etc,

It is a nice tradition that lends a lot of color and interest to graduation ceremonies...

Answer 2

In the US, most universities have black gowns for students graduating with bachelor's, master's or professional degrees. However, they often have colors for PHD gowns.

My gown from University of California is blue and gold. Duke University's gown is Blue and White. MIT's gown is the ugliest grey I have ever seen. Harvard's gown is solid red.

These gowns are the same as the school colors. Looking at your university's web site, I see that blue is one of your school colors.

Answer 3

Wow the girls did not wear that fancy of dresses when I went to my marine ball. Black's tacky not for a fancy ball, I suggest a very dark navy blue like the dress or a silver, if you aren't going to do the french tip

Answer 4

Cheapness. They were old blue curtains bought wholesale and made up into gowns.