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{{shortlead|date=June 2024}}
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[[File:Secret Society Buildings New Haven.jpg|thumb|300px|"Secret Society Buildings at Yale College" by [[Alice Donlevy]] {{circa|1880}}. Pictured are: [[Psi Upsilon]] (''Beta chapter)'', 120 High Street. Left center: [[Skull and Bones]] (Russell Trust Association), 64 High Street. Right center: [[Delta Kappa Epsilon]] (''Phi chapter''), east side of York Street, south of Elm Street. Bottom: [[Scroll and Key]] (Kingsley Trust SSS Nonse Association), 490 College Street.]]
[[File:Secret Society Buildings New Haven.jpg|thumb|300px|"Secret Society Buildings at [[Yale University|Yale College]]" by [[Alice Donlevy]] {{circa|1880}}. Pictured are: [[Psi Upsilon]] (''Beta chapter)'', 120 High Street. Left center: [[Skull and Bones]] (Russell Trust Association), 64 High Street. Right center: [[Delta Kappa Epsilon]] (''Phi chapter''), east side of York Street, south of Elm Street. Bottom: [[Scroll and Key]] (Kingsley Trust SSS Nonse Association), 490 College Street.]]
A '''secret society''' is an organization about which the activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as [[intelligence agencies]] or [[guerrilla warfare]] insurgencies, that hide their activities and memberships but maintain a public presence.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Daraul|first=Arkon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aEdvCwAAQBAJ|title=A History Of Secret Societies|date=2015-11-06|publisher=Pickle Partners Publishing|isbn=978-1-78625-613-3|language=en}}</ref>
A '''secret society''' is an [[organization]] about which the activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The [[society]] may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as [[intelligence agencies]] or [[guerrilla warfare]] insurgencies, that hide their activities and memberships but maintain a public presence.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Daraul|first=Arkon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aEdvCwAAQBAJ|title=A History Of Secret Societies|date=2015-11-06|publisher=Pickle Partners Publishing|isbn=978-1-78625-613-3|language=en}}</ref>
[[File:Double-leaf frontispiece from "The Epistles of the Brethren of Purity".jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|The [[Brethren of Purity]] were a secret society<ref name=":2" /> of Muslim philosophers in Basra, Iraq, in the 9th or 10th century CE.]]
[[File:Double-leaf frontispiece from "The Epistles of the Brethren of Purity".jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|The [[Brethren of Purity]] were a secret society<ref name=":2" /> of [[Muslims|Muslim]] [[Philosophy|philosophers]] in [[Basra]], [[Iraq]], in the 9th or 10th century CE.]]


==Definitions==
==Definitions==
The exact qualifications for labeling a group a secret society are disputed, but definitions generally rely on the degree to which the organization insists on [[secrecy]], and might involve the retention and transmission of secret knowledge, the denial of membership or knowledge of the group, the creation of personal bonds between members of the organization, and the use of secret rites or rituals which solidify{{clarify|date=May 2023}} members of the [[Social group|group]].
The exact qualifications for labeling a group a secret society are disputed, but definitions generally rely on the degree to which the organization insists on [[secrecy]], and might involve the retention and transmission of secret knowledge, the denial of membership or knowledge of the group, the creation of personal bonds between members of the organization, and the use of secret rites or rituals which solidify{{clarify|date=May 2023}} members of the [[Social group|group]].


Anthropologically and historically, secret societies have been deeply interlinked with the concept of the Männerbund, the all-male "warrior-band" or "warrior-society" of pre-modern cultures (see H. Schurtz, ''Alterklassen und Männerbünde'', Berlin, 1902; [[Arnold van Gennep|A. Van Gennep]], ''The Rites of Passage'', Chicago, 1960).
[[Anthropology|Anthropologically]] and [[historically]], secret societies have been deeply interlinked with the concept of the [[Männerbund]], the all-male "warrior-band" or "warrior-society" of pre-modern cultures (see H. Schurtz, ''Alterklassen und Männerbünde'', Berlin, 1902; [[Arnold van Gennep|A. Van Gennep]], ''The Rites of Passage'', Chicago, 1960).


A purported "family tree of secret societies" has been proposed, although it may not be comprehensive.<ref>Stevens (1899), p. vii.</ref>
A purported "[[family tree]] of secret societies" has been proposed, although it may not be comprehensive.<ref>Stevens (1899), p. vii.</ref>


[[Alan Axelrod]], author of the ''International Encyclopedia of Secret Societies and Fraternal Orders'',<ref>Checkmark Books (1998), {{ISBN|0816038716}}</ref> defines a secret society as an organization that:
[[Alan Axelrod]], author of the ''International [[Encyclopedia]] of Secret Societies and Fraternal Orders'',<ref>Checkmark Books (1998), {{ISBN|0816038716}}</ref> defines a secret society as an organization that:
* is exclusive
* is exclusive
* claims to own special secrets
* claims to own special secrets
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* The group's existence is usually not kept secret, but some beliefs or practices are concealed from the public and require an oath of secrecy and loyalty to learn.
* The group's existence is usually not kept secret, but some beliefs or practices are concealed from the public and require an oath of secrecy and loyalty to learn.
* The group promises superior status or knowledge to members.
* The group promises superior status or knowledge to members.
* The group's membership is in some way restrictive, such as by race, sex, religious affiliation, or invitation only.
* The group's membership is in some way restrictive, such as by [[Race (human categorization)|race]], [[sex]], [[religious affiliation]], or [[Invitation system|invitation]] only.
Spence also proposes a sub-category of "Elite Secret Societies" (composed of high-income or socially influential people) and notes that secret societies have a frequent if not universal tendency towards factionalism, infighting, and claiming origins older than can be reliably documented. Spence's definition includes groups traditionally thought of as secret societies ([[Freemasons]] and [[Rosicrucians]]) and other groups not so traditionally classified such as certain organized crime cabals ([[Sicilian Mafia|the Mafia]]), religious groups ([[Order of Assassins]] and [[Thelema]]) and political movements ([[Bolshevik]]s and [[Black Dragon Society]]).
Spence also proposes a sub-category of "[[Elite]] Secret Societies" (composed of high-income or socially [[Social influence|influential]] people) and notes that secret societies have a frequent if not universal tendency towards [[factionalism]], [[Intragroup conflict|infighting]], and claiming origins older than can be reliably documented. Spence's definition includes groups traditionally thought of as secret societies ([[Freemasons]] and [[Rosicrucians]]) and other groups not so traditionally classified such as certain organized crime cabals ([[Sicilian Mafia|the Mafia]]), religious groups ([[Order of Assassins]] and [[Thelema]]) and political movements ([[Bolshevik]]s and [[Black Dragon Society]]).


Historian [[Jasper Ridley]] argues that [[Freemasonry]] is, "the world's most powerful secret Society".<ref>{{cite book|author=Jasper Ridley|title=The Freemasons: A History of the World's Most Powerful Secret Society|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h7q3VIZCiwQC|year=2011|publisher=Arcade|isbn=978-1-61145-010-1}} see also Jeffers, H. Paul. ''Freemasons: A History and Exploration of the World's Oldest Secret Society.'' (Citadel Press, 2005).</ref>
Historian [[Jasper Ridley]] says that [[Freemasonry]] is "the world's most powerful secret Society".<ref>{{cite book|author=Jasper Ridley|title=The Freemasons: A History of the World's Most Powerful Secret Society|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h7q3VIZCiwQC|year=2011|publisher=Arcade|isbn=978-1-61145-010-1}} see also Jeffers, H. Paul. ''Freemasons: A History and Exploration of the World's Oldest Secret Society.'' (Citadel Press, 2005).</ref>


The organization "[[Opus Dei]]" ([[Ecclesiastical Latin|Latin]] for "Work of God") is portrayed as a "secret society"<ref>{{Cite book|last=Walsh|first=Michael|title=OPUS DEI: An Investigation into the Secret Society Struggling for Power within the Roman Catholic Church}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Secret Society: Opus Dei - Catholicism's Secret Sect}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Their Kingdom Come: Inside the Secret World of Opus Dei}}</ref> of the [[Catholic Church]]. Critics such as the [[Jesuits|Jesuit]] [[Wlodimir Ledóchowski|Wladimir Ledóchowski]] sometimes refer to Opus Dei as a Catholic (or Christian or "white") form of [[Freemasonry]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Beyond the Threshold|url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/t/tapia-threshold.html|access-date=30 March 2018|website=archive.nytimes.com|archive-date=13 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180813044440/https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/t/tapia-threshold.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|author=Preston, Paul|title=The triumph of democracy in Spain|date=1986|publisher=Methuen|isbn=9780416900101|location=London|pages=28|oclc=14586560}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|author=Harding, Nick|title=Secret societies|date=2005|publisher=Chartwell Books, Inc|isbn=9780785821700|location=Edison, N.J.|pages=107|oclc=78244509}}</ref><ref>{{citation|title=Geheimbünde Freimaurer und Illuminaten, Opus Dei und Schwarze Hand|date=2015|page=54|location=Reinbek|publisher=Rowohlt Taschenbuch|language=de|isbn=9783499630491|surname1=Hesse, Alexander}}</ref><ref>{{citation|title=Die Geheimnisse des Vatikan : Eine andere Geschichte der Papststadt|date=2012|page=415|edition=1., neue Ausg|location=München|publisher=Beck, C H|language=de|isbn=9783406630927|last=Augias|first=Corrado|author-link=Corrado Augias}}</ref> Other critics label Opus Dei as "Holy Mafia"<ref name="Pilapil 1971 211–221">{{Cite journal|last=Pilapil|first=Vicente R.|date=1971|title=Opus Dei in Spain|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40394504|journal=The World Today|volume=27|issue=5|pages=211–221|jstor=40394504|issn=0043-9134|access-date=22 July 2021|archive-date=28 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210628041648/https://www.jstor.org/stable/40394504|url-status=live}}</ref> or "Santa Mafia"<ref>{{Cite news|last=SPIEGEL|first=Peter Hertel, DER|title=Vatikan intern: Der Aufstieg der Santa Mafia|url=https://www.spiegel.de/spiegelspecial/a-350114.html|access-date=2021-06-16|newspaper=Der Spiegel|date=7 April 2005|language=de|archive-date=22 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210722060951/https://www.spiegel.de/spiegelspecial/a-350114.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
The organization "[[Opus Dei]]" ([[Ecclesiastical Latin|Latin]] for "Work of [[God]]") is portrayed as a "secret society"<ref>{{Cite book|last=Walsh|first=Michael|title=OPUS DEI: An Investigation into the Secret Society Struggling for Power within the Roman Catholic Church}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Secret Society: Opus Dei - Catholicism's Secret Sect}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Their Kingdom Come: Inside the Secret World of Opus Dei}}</ref> of the [[Catholic Church]]. Critics such as the [[Jesuits|Jesuit]] [[Wlodimir Ledóchowski|Wladimir Ledóchowski]] sometimes refer to Opus Dei as a Catholic (or [[Christians|Christian]] or "[[White race|white]]") form of [[Freemasonry]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Beyond the Threshold|url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/t/tapia-threshold.html|access-date=30 March 2018|website=archive.nytimes.com|archive-date=13 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180813044440/https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/t/tapia-threshold.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|author=Preston, Paul|title=The triumph of democracy in Spain|date=1986|publisher=Methuen|isbn=9780416900101|location=London|pages=28|oclc=14586560}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|author=Harding, Nick|title=Secret societies|date=2005|publisher=Chartwell Books, Inc|isbn=9780785821700|location=Edison, N.J.|pages=107|oclc=78244509}}</ref><ref>{{citation|title=Geheimbünde Freimaurer und Illuminaten, Opus Dei und Schwarze Hand|date=2015|page=54|location=Reinbek|publisher=Rowohlt Taschenbuch|language=de|isbn=9783499630491|surname1=Hesse, Alexander}}</ref><ref>{{citation|title=Die Geheimnisse des Vatikan : Eine andere Geschichte der Papststadt|date=2012|page=415|edition=1., neue Ausg|location=München|publisher=Beck, C H|language=de|isbn=9783406630927|last=Augias|first=Corrado|author-link=Corrado Augias}}</ref> Other critics label Opus Dei as "Holy Mafia"<ref name="Pilapil 1971 211–221">{{Cite journal|last=Pilapil|first=Vicente R.|date=1971|title=Opus Dei in Spain|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40394504|journal=The World Today|volume=27|issue=5|pages=211–221|jstor=40394504|issn=0043-9134|access-date=22 July 2021|archive-date=28 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210628041648/https://www.jstor.org/stable/40394504|url-status=live}}</ref> or "Santa Mafia"<ref>{{Cite news|last=SPIEGEL|first=Peter Hertel, DER|title=Vatikan intern: Der Aufstieg der Santa Mafia|url=https://www.spiegel.de/spiegelspecial/a-350114.html|access-date=2021-06-16|newspaper=Der Spiegel|date=7 April 2005|language=de|archive-date=22 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210722060951/https://www.spiegel.de/spiegelspecial/a-350114.html|url-status=live}}</ref>


The [[National Christian Association]] (1868–1983) is an example of an organization opposed to secret societies.<ref name="Fuerbringer1927">{{cite book |last1=Fuerbringer |first1=Ludwig |title=The Concordia Cyclopedia: A Handbook of Religious Information, with Special Reference to the History, Doctrine, Work, and Usages of the Lutheran Church |date=1927 |publisher=Concordia Publishing House |location=St. Louis, Missouri |pages=532–33 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nH5OAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA532 |access-date=11 October 2024 |language=en}} {{Source-attribution}}</ref>
The [[National Christian Association]] (1868–1983) is an example of an organization opposed to secret societies.<ref name="Fuerbringer1927">{{cite book |last1=Fuerbringer |first1=Ludwig |title=The Concordia Cyclopedia: A Handbook of Religious Information, with Special Reference to the History, Doctrine, Work, and Usages of the Lutheran Church |date=1927 |publisher=Concordia Publishing House |location=St. Louis, Missouri |pages=532–33 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nH5OAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA532 |access-date=11 October 2024 |language=en}} {{Source-attribution}}</ref>
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===Politics===
===Politics===
Because some secret societies have political aims, they are illegal in several countries. Italy ([[Constitution of Italy#Civil Relations .28Articles 13-28.29|Constitution of Italy, Section 2, Articles 13–28]]) and Poland,<ref>{{cite web|title=The Constitution of the Republic of Poland|date=2 April 1997|url=http://sejm.gov.pl/prawo/konst/angielski/kon1.htm|quote=Article 13: Political parties and other organizations whose programs are based upon totalitarian methods and the modes of activity of nazism, fascism and communism, as well as those whose programs or activities sanction racial or national hatred, the application of violence for the purpose of obtaining power or to influence the State policy, or provide for the secrecy of their own structure or membership, shall be prohibited.|access-date=3 November 2009|archive-date=20 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200420173446/http://www.sejm.gov.pl/prawo/konst/angielski/kon1.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> for example, ban secret political parties and political organizations in their constitutions.
Because some secret societies have [[Politics|political]] aims, they are illegal in several countries. Italy ([[Constitution of Italy#Civil Relations .28Articles 13-28.29|Constitution of Italy, Section 2, Articles 13–28]]) and [[Poland]],<ref>{{cite web|title=The Constitution of the Republic of Poland|date=2 April 1997|url=http://sejm.gov.pl/prawo/konst/angielski/kon1.htm|quote=Article 13: Political parties and other organizations whose programs are based upon totalitarian methods and the modes of activity of nazism, fascism and communism, as well as those whose programs or activities sanction racial or national hatred, the application of violence for the purpose of obtaining power or to influence the State policy, or provide for the secrecy of their own structure or membership, shall be prohibited.|access-date=3 November 2009|archive-date=20 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200420173446/http://www.sejm.gov.pl/prawo/konst/angielski/kon1.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> for example, ban secret political parties and [[Political organisation|political organizations]] in their [[Constitution of Poland|constitutions]].


===Colleges and universities===
===Colleges and universities===
{{See also|Collegiate secret societies in North America}}
{{See also|Collegiate secret societies in North America}}
Many [[collegiate secret societies|student societies]] established on university campuses in the United States have been considered secret societies. Perhaps one of the most famous secret collegiate societies is [[Skull and Bones]] at [[Yale University]].<ref>{{dead link|date=December 2018}}{{cite web |title= Skull And Bones |url= http://thesecretbookgarden.com/skull-and-bones/ |work= The Secret Society Manual |publisher= thesecretbookgarden.com |access-date= 11 May 2012 |archive-date= 19 April 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200419013022/http://thesecretbookgarden.com/skull-and-bones/ |url-status= live }}</ref> The influence of undergraduate secret societies at colleges such as [[Harvard College]], [[Cornell University]], [[Florida State University]], [[Dartmouth College]], [[Emory University]], the [[University of Chicago]],<ref>{{cite journal |title=To The Members of the University of Chicago |journal=The University of Chicago Magazine |date=July 1913 |volume=5 |issue=9 |page=298 |url=https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=rGw9AAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&hl=en&pg=GBS.PP1 |access-date=8 May 2017 |archive-date=30 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210930191457/https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=rGw9AAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&hl=en&pg=GBS.PP1 |url-status=live }}</ref> the [[University of Virginia]], [[Georgetown University]], [[New York University]],<ref>{{cite web |title= Edgar Allan Poe in Greenwich Village |url= https://greenwichvillagehistory.wordpress.com/2011/11/03/edgar-allan-poe-in-greenwich-village/ |work= Researching Greenwich Village History |publisher= greenwichvillagehistory.wordpress.com |access-date= 11 May 2012 |author= Megan Findling |format= article |date= 3 November 2011 |archive-date= 20 February 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160220081502/https://greenwichvillagehistory.wordpress.com/2011/11/03/edgar-allan-poe-in-greenwich-village/ |url-status= live }}</ref> and [[Wellesley College]] has been publicly acknowledged, if anonymously and circumspectly, since the 19th century.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1885/11/5/secret-societies-notable-among-the-features/|title=Secret Societies. &#124; News &#124; The Harvard Crimson|website=www.thecrimson.com|access-date=18 September 2021|archive-date=18 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210918170558/https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1885/11/5/secret-societies-notable-among-the-features/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= Student Government at Wellesley and How It Makes for Loyalty among the College Girls and Faculty |newspaper= The New York Times |date= 12 February 1912 |url= https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40712FD385E13738DDDAC0A94DA405B828DF1D3 |access-date= 12 February 2017 |archive-date= 11 November 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121111123737/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40712FD385E13738DDDAC0A94DA405B828DF1D3 |url-status= live }}</ref>
Many [[collegiate secret societies|student societies]] established on university campuses in the United States have been considered secret societies. Perhaps one of the most famous secret collegiate societies is [[Skull and Bones]] at [[Yale University]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Skull And Bones |url=http://thesecretbookgarden.com/skull-and-bones/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419013022/http://thesecretbookgarden.com/skull-and-bones/ |archive-date=19 April 2020 |access-date=11 May 2012 |work=The Secret Society Manual |publisher=thesecretbookgarden.com}}</ref> The influence of undergraduate secret societies at colleges such as [[Harvard College]], [[Cornell University]], [[Florida State University]], [[Dartmouth College]], [[Emory University]], the [[University of Chicago]],<ref>{{cite journal |title=To The Members of the University of Chicago |journal=The University of Chicago Magazine |date=July 1913 |volume=5 |issue=9 |page=298 |url=https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=rGw9AAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&hl=en&pg=GBS.PP1 |access-date=8 May 2017 |archive-date=30 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210930191457/https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=rGw9AAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&hl=en&pg=GBS.PP1 |url-status=live }}</ref> the [[University of Virginia]], [[Georgetown University]], [[New York University]],<ref>{{cite web |title= Edgar Allan Poe in Greenwich Village |url= https://greenwichvillagehistory.wordpress.com/2011/11/03/edgar-allan-poe-in-greenwich-village/ |work= Researching Greenwich Village History |publisher= greenwichvillagehistory.wordpress.com |access-date= 11 May 2012 |author= Megan Findling |format= article |date= 3 November 2011 |archive-date= 20 February 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160220081502/https://greenwichvillagehistory.wordpress.com/2011/11/03/edgar-allan-poe-in-greenwich-village/ |url-status= live }}</ref> and [[Wellesley College]] has been publicly acknowledged, if anonymously and circumspectly, since the 19th century.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1885/11/5/secret-societies-notable-among-the-features/|title=Secret Societies. &#124; News &#124; The Harvard Crimson|website=www.thecrimson.com|access-date=18 September 2021|archive-date=18 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210918170558/https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1885/11/5/secret-societies-notable-among-the-features/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= Student Government at Wellesley and How It Makes for Loyalty among the College Girls and Faculty |newspaper= The New York Times |date= 12 February 1912 |url= https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40712FD385E13738DDDAC0A94DA405B828DF1D3 |access-date= 12 February 2017 |archive-date= 11 November 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121111123737/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40712FD385E13738DDDAC0A94DA405B828DF1D3 |url-status= live }}</ref>


British universities have a long history of secret societies or quasi-secret clubs, such as [[Pitt Club|The Pitt Club]] at [[Cambridge University]],<ref name="varsity">{{Cite news |first= Mary |last= Bowers |title= Pitt Club under pressure from Council |url= http://www.varsity.co.uk/archive/647.pdf |work= Varsity |page= 5 |date= 17 November 2006 |access-date= 20 August 2009 |archive-date= 26 September 2007 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070926121512/http://www.varsity.co.uk/archive/647.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name="bully"/> [[Bullingdon Club]] at [[Oxford University]],<ref name="bully">{{Cite news |first=Kirsty |last=Gray |title=Oxford's Bully-ingdon Club faces more scandal |url=http://www.varsity.co.uk/news/3318 |newspaper=Varsity |date=11 February 2011 |access-date=25 June 2011 |archive-date=27 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127175121/http://www.varsity.co.uk/news/3318 |url-status=live }}</ref> the [[Kate Kennedy Club]], [[The Kensington Club]] and the [[Praetorian Club]] at the [[University of St Andrews]], and the [[The 16' Club|16' Club]] at [[University of Wales, Trinity Saint David|St David's College]].<ref>D.T.W. Price. ''A History of Saint David's University College, Lampeter''. University of Wales Press, Cardiff. Volume One, to 1898 ({{ISBN|0-7083-0606-3}})</ref> Another British secret society is the [[Cambridge Apostles]], founded as an essay and debating society in 1820. Not all British universities host solely academic secret societies; both [[The Night Climbers of Cambridge]] and [[The Night Climbers of Oxford]] require both brains and brawn.
[[British universities]] have a long history of secret societies or quasi-secret clubs, such as [[Pitt Club|The Pitt Club]] at [[Cambridge University]],<ref name="varsity">{{Cite news |first= Mary |last= Bowers |title= Pitt Club under pressure from Council |url= http://www.varsity.co.uk/archive/647.pdf |work= Varsity |page= 5 |date= 17 November 2006 |access-date= 20 August 2009 |archive-date= 26 September 2007 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070926121512/http://www.varsity.co.uk/archive/647.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name="bully"/> [[Bullingdon Club]] at [[Oxford University]],<ref name="bully">{{Cite news |first=Kirsty |last=Gray |title=Oxford's Bully-ingdon Club faces more scandal |url=http://www.varsity.co.uk/news/3318 |newspaper=Varsity |date=11 February 2011 |access-date=25 June 2011 |archive-date=27 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127175121/http://www.varsity.co.uk/news/3318 |url-status=live }}</ref> the [[Kate Kennedy Club]], [[The Kensington Club]] and the [[Praetorian Club]] at the [[University of St Andrews]], and the [[The 16' Club|16' Club]] at [[University of Wales, Trinity Saint David|St David's College]].<ref>D.T.W. Price. ''A History of Saint David's University College, Lampeter''. University of Wales Press, Cardiff. Volume One, to 1898 ({{ISBN|0-7083-0606-3}})</ref> Another British secret society is the [[Cambridge Apostles]], founded as an essay and debating society in 1820. Not all British universities host solely academic secret societies; both [[The Night Climbers of Cambridge]] and [[The Night Climbers of Oxford]] require both brains and brawn.


In France, [[Vandermonde]] is the secret society of the [[Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.espace-turing.fr/Naissance-de-Alexandre-Theophile.html |title= Naissance de " Alexandre-Théophile Vandermonde ", mathématicien français – Espace " Sciences du Numérique " Alan Turing (LJAD – CNRS/UNS) |website= www.espace-turing.fr |access-date= 20 August 2017 |archive-date= 17 October 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171017021353/http://www.espace-turing.fr/Naissance-de-Alexandre-Theophile.html |url-status= live }}</ref>
In [[France]], [[Vandermonde]] is the secret society of the [[Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.espace-turing.fr/Naissance-de-Alexandre-Theophile.html |title= Naissance de " Alexandre-Théophile Vandermonde ", mathématicien français – Espace " Sciences du Numérique " Alan Turing (LJAD – CNRS/UNS) |website= www.espace-turing.fr |access-date= 20 August 2017 |archive-date= 17 October 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171017021353/http://www.espace-turing.fr/Naissance-de-Alexandre-Theophile.html |url-status= live }}</ref>


Notable examples in Canada include [[Episkopon]] at the [[University of Toronto]]'s [[University of Trinity College|Trinity College]], and the [[The Society of Thoth|Society of Thoth]] at the [[University of British Columbia]].{{citation needed|date=January 2015}}
Notable examples in [[Canada]] include [[Episkopon]] at the [[University of Toronto]]'s [[University of Trinity College|Trinity College]], and the [[The Society of Thoth|Society of Thoth]] at the [[University of British Columbia]].{{citation needed|date=January 2015}}


Secret societies are disallowed in a few colleges. The [[Virginia Military Institute]] has rules that no cadet may join a secret society,<ref>{{cite web |title= Regulations for the Virginia Military Institute, Part II, Revised 5 December 2008, 12–16(b) |url= http://www.vmi.edu/WorkArea/linkit.aspx?LinkIdentifier=id&ItemID=13639 |publisher= vmi.edu }}</ref> and secret societies have been banned at [[Oberlin College]] from 1847<ref>{{cite book |last= Fletcher |first= Robert Samuel |title= A History of Oberlin College from Its Foundation Through the Civil War |publisher= Oberlin College |year= 1943 |url= http://www.gospeltruth.net/oberlinhistory.htm#41 |access-date= 10 April 2012 |archive-date= 14 August 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190814192255/http://www.gospeltruth.net/oberlinhistory.htm#41 |url-status= live }} "Revised codes were issued every few years, but not many important changes were made in them. Provisions with regard to the hours of 'athletic exercises and sport' were added in 1847. In the same revision, there appeared for the first time the 'peculiar' Oberlin rule against secret societies. 'No student,' it runs, 'is permitted to join any secret society or military company.'"</ref> to the present,<ref>{{cite book |title= Student Regulations, Policies, and Procedures, Oberlin College 2011–2012 |work= new.oberlin.edu |page= 34 |year= 2011 |url= http://new.oberlin.edu/students/policies/2011-2012/0-OberlinRulesRegs2011_12.pdf |access-date= 10 April 2012 |archive-date= 26 March 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130326214411/http://new.oberlin.edu/students/policies/2011-2012/0-OberlinRulesRegs2011_12.pdf |url-status= live }} D. Secret Societies: "No secret society is allowed at Oberlin, and no other societies or self-perpetuating organizations are allowed among students, except by permission of the faculty. This is to be understood to include social and rooming-house clubs."</ref> and at [[Princeton University]] since the beginning of the 20th century.
Secret societies are disallowed in a few colleges. The [[Virginia Military Institute]] has rules that no cadet may join a secret society,<ref>{{cite web |title= Regulations for the Virginia Military Institute, Part II, Revised 5 December 2008, 12–16(b) |url= http://www.vmi.edu/WorkArea/linkit.aspx?LinkIdentifier=id&ItemID=13639 |publisher= vmi.edu }}</ref> and secret societies have been banned at [[Oberlin College]] from 1847<ref>{{cite book |last= Fletcher |first= Robert Samuel |title= A History of Oberlin College from Its Foundation Through the Civil War |publisher= Oberlin College |year= 1943 |url= http://www.gospeltruth.net/oberlinhistory.htm#41 |access-date= 10 April 2012 |archive-date= 14 August 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190814192255/http://www.gospeltruth.net/oberlinhistory.htm#41 |url-status= live }} "Revised codes were issued every few years, but not many important changes were made in them. Provisions with regard to the hours of 'athletic exercises and sport' were added in 1847. In the same revision, there appeared for the first time the 'peculiar' Oberlin rule against secret societies. 'No student,' it runs, 'is permitted to join any secret society or military company.'"</ref> to the present,<ref>{{cite book |url=http://new.oberlin.edu/students/policies/2011-2012/0-OberlinRulesRegs2011_12.pdf |title=Student Regulations, Policies, and Procedures, Oberlin College 2011–2012 |date=2011 |work= |publisher=Oberlin College |year=2011 |page=34 |language=e |access-date=10 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130326214411/http://new.oberlin.edu/students/policies/2011-2012/0-OberlinRulesRegs2011_12.pdf |archive-date=26 March 2013 |url-status=dead}} "No secret society is allowed at Oberlin, and no other societies or self-perpetuating organizations are allowed among students, except by permission of the faculty. This is to be understood to include social and rooming-house clubs."</ref> and at [[Princeton University]] since the beginning of the 20th century.


[[Confraternities in Nigeria]] are secret-society-like student groups within higher education, some of which have histories of violence and organized crime. The exact death toll from confraternity activities is unclear. One estimate in 2002 was that 250 people had been killed in campus cult-related murders in the previous decade,<ref name=irin>[http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=33251 "NIGERIA: Focus on the menace of student cults"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611185212/http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=33251 |date=11 June 2011 }}, ''[[The New Humanitarian|IRIN]]'', 1 August 2002</ref> while the Exam Ethics Project lobby group estimated that 115 students and teachers had been killed between 1993 and 2003.<ref name=cults>[http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11849078 "Cults of violence"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081021130746/http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11849078 |date=21 October 2008 }}, ''[[The Economist]]'', 31 July 2008</ref>
[[Confraternities in Nigeria]] are secret-society-like student groups within [[higher education]], some of which have histories of violence and [[organized crime]]. The exact death toll from confraternity activities is unclear. One estimate in 2002 was that 250 people had been killed in campus cult-related murders in the previous decade,<ref name=irin>[http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=33251 "NIGERIA: Focus on the menace of student cults"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611185212/http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=33251 |date=11 June 2011 }}, ''[[The New Humanitarian|IRIN]]'', 1 August 2002</ref> while the Exam Ethics Project lobby group estimated that 115 students and teachers had been killed between 1993 and 2003.<ref name=cults>[http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11849078 "Cults of violence"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081021130746/http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11849078 |date=21 October 2008 }}, ''[[The Economist]]'', 31 July 2008</ref>


The Mandatory Monday Association is thought to operate out of a variety of Australian universities including the [[Australian Defence Force Academy]]. The Association has numerous chapters that meet only on Mondays to discuss business and carry out rituals.<ref>{{Citation|chapter=IV. The Secret Societies|date=31 December 1969|pages=58–132|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=9780231887458|doi=10.7312/fort92186-004|title=Omaha Secret Societies}}</ref>
The Mandatory Monday Association is thought to operate out of a variety of [[Australia|Australian]] universities including the [[Australian Defence Force Academy]]. The Association has numerous chapters that meet only on Mondays to discuss business and carry out rituals.<ref>{{Citation|chapter=IV. The Secret Societies|date=31 December 1969|pages=58–132|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=9780231887458|doi=10.7312/fort92186-004|title=Omaha Secret Societies}}</ref>


The only secret society abolished and then legalized is that of The [[Philomaths]],<ref>Arthur Morius Francis. ''Secret Societies''. Vol. 3: The Collegiate Secret Societies of America. 2015 (file pdf).</ref> which is now a legitimate academic association founded on a strict selection of its members.
The only secret society abolished and then legalized is that of The [[Philomaths]],<ref>Arthur Morius Francis. ''Secret Societies''. Vol. 3: The Collegiate Secret Societies of America. 2015 (file pdf).</ref> which is now a legitimate academic association founded on a strict selection of its members.


===Internet===
===Internet===
While their existence had been speculated for years, Internet-based secret societies first became known to the public in 2012 when [[Cicada 3301]] began recruiting from the public via Internet-based puzzles.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bell |first1=Chris |title= The internet mystery that has the world baffled |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet/10468112/The-internet-mystery-that-has-the-world-baffled.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet/10468112/The-internet-mystery-that-has-the-world-baffled.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date= 23 July 2014 |newspaper= Daily Telegraph |date= 25 November 2013}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1= Ernst |first1= Douglas |title= Secret society seeks world's brightest: Recruits navigate 'darknet' filled with terrorism, drugs |url= http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/nov/26/secret-society-seeks-worlds-smartest-cicada-3301-r/ |access-date= 23 July 2014 |newspaper= The Washington Times |date= 26 November 2013 |archive-date= 25 September 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150925204905/http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/nov/26/secret-society-seeks-worlds-smartest-cicada-3301-r/ |url-status= live }}</ref> The goals of the society remain unknown, but it is believed to be involved in [[cryptography]].<ref>{{cite news |author= NPR staff |title= The Internet's Cicada: A Mystery without an Answer |url= https://www.npr.org/2014/01/05/259959632/the-internets-cicada-a-mystery-without-an-answer |access-date= 13 May 2014 |newspaper= All Things Considered, National Public Radio |date= 5 January 2014 |archive-date= 27 June 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180627144945/https://www.npr.org/2014/01/05/259959632/the-internets-cicada-a-mystery-without-an-answer |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name=metro>{{cite news |last= Scott |first= Sam |title= Cicada 3301: The most elaborate and mysterious puzzle of the internet age |url= http://metro.co.uk/2013/12/16/cicada-3301-the-most-elaborate-and-mysterious-puzzle-of-the-internet-age-4229892/ |access-date= 16 December 2013 |newspaper= Metro |date= 16 December 2013 |archive-date= 12 June 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180612162252/https://metro.co.uk/2013/12/16/cicada-3301-the-most-elaborate-and-mysterious-puzzle-of-the-internet-age-4229892/ |url-status= live }}</ref>
While their existence had been speculated for years, [[Internet]]-based secret societies first became known to the public in 2012 when [[Cicada 3301]] began recruiting from the public via Internet-based puzzles.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bell |first1=Chris |title= The internet mystery that has the world baffled |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet/10468112/The-internet-mystery-that-has-the-world-baffled.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet/10468112/The-internet-mystery-that-has-the-world-baffled.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date= 23 July 2014 |newspaper= Daily Telegraph |date= 25 November 2013}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1= Ernst |first1= Douglas |title= Secret society seeks world's brightest: Recruits navigate 'darknet' filled with terrorism, drugs |url= http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/nov/26/secret-society-seeks-worlds-smartest-cicada-3301-r/ |access-date= 23 July 2014 |newspaper= The Washington Times |date= 26 November 2013 |archive-date= 25 September 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150925204905/http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/nov/26/secret-society-seeks-worlds-smartest-cicada-3301-r/ |url-status= live }}</ref> The goals of the society remain unknown, but it is believed to be involved in [[cryptography]].<ref>{{cite news |author= NPR staff |title= The Internet's Cicada: A Mystery without an Answer |url= https://www.npr.org/2014/01/05/259959632/the-internets-cicada-a-mystery-without-an-answer |access-date= 13 May 2014 |newspaper= All Things Considered, National Public Radio |date= 5 January 2014 |archive-date= 27 June 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180627144945/https://www.npr.org/2014/01/05/259959632/the-internets-cicada-a-mystery-without-an-answer |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name=metro>{{cite news |last= Scott |first= Sam |title= Cicada 3301: The most elaborate and mysterious puzzle of the internet age |url= http://metro.co.uk/2013/12/16/cicada-3301-the-most-elaborate-and-mysterious-puzzle-of-the-internet-age-4229892/ |access-date= 16 December 2013 |newspaper= Metro |date= 16 December 2013 |archive-date= 12 June 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180612162252/https://metro.co.uk/2013/12/16/cicada-3301-the-most-elaborate-and-mysterious-puzzle-of-the-internet-age-4229892/ |url-status= live }}</ref>


== By location ==
==Around the world==


The following contemporary and historic secret societies formed in Africa, by country:
The following contemporary and historic secret societies formed in Africa, by country:


=== Africa ===
===Africa===


==== Cameroon ====
==== Cameroon ====
Line 116: Line 116:
* [[Tiandihui]], Society of the Heaven and the Earth
* [[Tiandihui]], Society of the Heaven and the Earth
* [[Yellow Sand Society]]
* [[Yellow Sand Society]]
* [[White Lotus]]
* [[White Lotus Societies|White Lotus]]
* [[Heavenly Kingdom of Everlasting Satisfaction]]
* [[Heavenly Kingdom of Everlasting Satisfaction]]


Line 123: Line 123:


* [[Paramahansa Mandali]]
* [[Paramahansa Mandali]]
* [[Abhinav Bharat Society|Abhinav Bharat]]
* [[Abhinav Bharat Society|Abhinav Bharti]]
* [[The Society of the Deads]]


==== Japan ====
==== Japan ====
Line 132: Line 131:
* [[Gen'yōsha]]
* [[Gen'yōsha]]
* [[Green Dragon (order)|Green Dragon]]
* [[Green Dragon (order)|Green Dragon]]
* [[Sakurakai]] or Cherry Blossom Society
* [[Sakurakai]]


==== Malaysia ====
==== Malaysia ====
Line 158: Line 157:
Secret societies in Australia include:
Secret societies in Australia include:


* [[Mandatory Monday Association]]
* [[Freemasonry]]<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Mateship & Fraternal Secret Societies in Australia |url=https://www.fraternalsecrets.org/ |access-date=2023-02-08 |website=Fraternal Secrets |language=en-US |archive-date=8 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208152018/https://www.fraternalsecrets.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Freemasonry]]<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Mateship & Fraternal Secret Societies in Australia |url=https://www.fraternalsecrets.org/ |access-date=2023-02-08 |website=Fraternal Secrets |language=en-US |archive-date=8 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208152018/https://www.fraternalsecrets.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Odd Fellows]]<ref name=":0" />
* [[Odd Fellows]]<ref name=":0" />
Line 204: Line 202:
* [[Society of the Rights of Man]]
* [[Society of the Rights of Man]]


==== Germany ====
====Germany====


* [[Ancient Order of Freesmiths]]
* [[Ancient Order of Freesmiths]]
Line 343: Line 341:
* [[Odd Fellows]]
* [[Odd Fellows]]
* [[Order of the Star Spangled Banner]]
* [[Order of the Star Spangled Banner]]
⚫
* [[QAnon]]
* [[D. Graham Burnett#The Order of the Third Bird|The Order of the Third Bird]]
* [[D. Graham Burnett#The Order of the Third Bird|The Order of the Third Bird]]
⚫
* [[QAnon]]
* [[Tong (organization)|Tong]]
* [[Tong (organization)|Tong]]
" [[Skull and Bones]]


==== Mexico ====
==== Mexico ====
Line 358: Line 357:
==Opposition==
==Opposition==
{{See also|Anti-Masonry}}
{{See also|Anti-Masonry}}
The Catholic Church strongly opposed secret societies, especially [[Freemasonry|the Freemasons]]. It did relent somewhat [[Catholic Church in the United States|in the United States]] and allowed membership in [[Labor unions in the United States|labour unions]] and the [[History of the Knights of Columbus|Knights of Columbus]], but not the Masons.<ref>Christopher J. Kauffman, ''Faith and Fraternalism: The History of the Knights of Columbus, 1882–1982'' (1982) p. 8.</ref><ref>Simon Sarlin and Dan Rouyer, "The Anti-Masonic Congress of Trento (1896): International Mobilization and the Circulation of Practices against Freemasonry." ''Contemporanea: Rivista di Storia dell'800 e del '900'' (July-Sep 2021, 24#3, pp. 517-536.</ref> Some [[Christian denomination]]s continue to forbid their members from joining secret societies in the 21st century. For example, the [[Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection]] and [[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-day Adventists]]. <ref name="AWMC2014">{{cite book|title=The Discipline of the Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection (Original Allegheny Conference)|year=2014|publisher=[[Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection]]|location=[[Salem, Ohio|Salem]]|language=en|pages=20–21}}</ref><ref>Ellen G. White, ''"Selected Messages Book 2"'', Chapter 13. (1958)</ref>
The [[Catholic Church]] strongly opposed secret societies, especially [[Freemasonry|the Freemasons]]. It did relent somewhat [[Catholic Church in the United States|in the United States]] and allowed membership in [[Labor unions in the United States|labour unions]] and the [[History of the Knights of Columbus|Knights of Columbus]], but not the Masons.<ref>Christopher J. Kauffman, ''Faith and Fraternalism: The History of the Knights of Columbus, 1882–1982'' (1982) p. 8.</ref><ref>Simon Sarlin and Dan Rouyer, "The Anti-Masonic Congress of Trento (1896): International Mobilization and the Circulation of Practices against Freemasonry." ''Contemporanea: Rivista di Storia dell'800 e del '900'' (July-Sep 2021, 24#3, pp. 517-536.</ref> Some [[Christian denomination]]s continue to forbid their members from joining secret societies in the 21st century. Others example, the [[Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection]] and [[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-day Adventists]]. <ref name="AWMC2014">{{cite book|title=The Discipline of the Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection (Original Allegheny Conference)|year=2014|publisher=[[Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection]]|location=[[Salem, Ohio|Salem]]|language=en|pages=20–21}}</ref><ref>Ellen G. White, ''"Selected Messages Book 2"'', Chapter 13. (1958)</ref>


== See also ==
== See also ==
* [[Cult]]
* [[High school secret societies]]
* [[High school secret societies]]
* [[Magical organization]]


== References ==
== References ==

Latest revision as of 14:39, 9 January 2025

For other uses, see Secret society (disambiguation).

"Secret Society Buildings at Yale College" by Alice Donlevy c. 1880. Pictured are: Psi Upsilon (Beta chapter), 120 High Street. Left center: Skull and Bones (Russell Trust Association), 64 High Street. Right center: Delta Kappa Epsilon (Phi chapter), east side of York Street, south of Elm Street. Bottom: Scroll and Key (Kingsley Trust SSS Nonse Association), 490 College Street.

A secret society is an organization about which the activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence agencies or guerrilla warfare insurgencies, that hide their activities and memberships but maintain a public presence.[1]

The Brethren of Purity were a secret society[1] of Muslim philosophers in Basra, Iraq, in the 9th or 10th century CE.

Definitions

[edit]

The exact qualifications for labeling a group a secret society are disputed, but definitions generally rely on the degree to which the organization insists on secrecy, and might involve the retention and transmission of secret knowledge, the denial of membership or knowledge of the group, the creation of personal bonds between members of the organization, and the use of secret rites or rituals which solidify[clarification needed] members of the group.

Anthropologically and historically, secret societies have been deeply interlinked with the concept of the Männerbund, the all-male "warrior-band" or "warrior-society" of pre-modern cultures (see H. Schurtz, Alterklassen und Männerbünde, Berlin, 1902; A. Van Gennep, The Rites of Passage, Chicago, 1960).

A purported "family tree of secret societies" has been proposed, although it may not be comprehensive.[2]

Alan Axelrod, author of the International Encyclopedia of Secret Societies and Fraternal Orders,[3] defines a secret society as an organization that:

  • is exclusive
  • claims to own special secrets
  • shows a strong inclination to favor its members.

Historian Richard B. Spence[4] of the University of Idaho offered a similar three-pronged definition:

  • The group's existence is usually not kept secret, but some beliefs or practices are concealed from the public and require an oath of secrecy and loyalty to learn.
  • The group promises superior status or knowledge to members.
  • The group's membership is in some way restrictive, such as by race, sex, religious affiliation, or invitation only.

Spence also proposes a sub-category of "Elite Secret Societies" (composed of high-income or socially influential people) and notes that secret societies have a frequent if not universal tendency towards factionalism, infighting, and claiming origins older than can be reliably documented. Spence's definition includes groups traditionally thought of as secret societies (Freemasons and Rosicrucians) and other groups not so traditionally classified such as certain organized crime cabals (the Mafia), religious groups (Order of Assassins and Thelema) and political movements (Bolsheviks and Black Dragon Society).

Historian Jasper Ridley says that Freemasonry is "the world's most powerful secret Society".[5]

The organization "Opus Dei" (Latin for "Work of God") is portrayed as a "secret society"[6][7][8] of the Catholic Church. Critics such as the Jesuit Wladimir Ledóchowski sometimes refer to Opus Dei as a Catholic (or Christian or "white") form of Freemasonry.[9][10][11][12][13] Other critics label Opus Dei as "Holy Mafia"[14] or "Santa Mafia"[15]

The National Christian Association (1868–1983) is an example of an organization opposed to secret societies.[16]

Realms

[edit]

Politics

[edit]

Because some secret societies have political aims, they are illegal in several countries. Italy (Constitution of Italy, Section 2, Articles 13–28) and Poland,[17] for example, ban secret political parties and political organizations in their constitutions.

Colleges and universities

[edit]
See also: Collegiate secret societies in North America

Many student societies established on university campuses in the United States have been considered secret societies. Perhaps one of the most famous secret collegiate societies is Skull and Bones at Yale University.[18] The influence of undergraduate secret societies at colleges such as Harvard College, Cornell University, Florida State University, Dartmouth College, Emory University, the University of Chicago,[19] the University of Virginia, Georgetown University, New York University,[20] and Wellesley College has been publicly acknowledged, if anonymously and circumspectly, since the 19th century.[21][22]

British universities have a long history of secret societies or quasi-secret clubs, such as The Pitt Club at Cambridge University,[23][24] Bullingdon Club at Oxford University,[24] the Kate Kennedy Club, The Kensington Club and the Praetorian Club at the University of St Andrews, and the 16' Club at St David's College.[25] Another British secret society is the Cambridge Apostles, founded as an essay and debating society in 1820. Not all British universities host solely academic secret societies; both The Night Climbers of Cambridge and The Night Climbers of Oxford require both brains and brawn.

In France, Vandermonde is the secret society of the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers.[26]

Notable examples in Canada include Episkopon at the University of Toronto's Trinity College, and the Society of Thoth at the University of British Columbia.[citation needed]

Secret societies are disallowed in a few colleges. The Virginia Military Institute has rules that no cadet may join a secret society,[27] and secret societies have been banned at Oberlin College from 1847[28] to the present,[29] and at Princeton University since the beginning of the 20th century.

Confraternities in Nigeria are secret-society-like student groups within higher education, some of which have histories of violence and organized crime. The exact death toll from confraternity activities is unclear. One estimate in 2002 was that 250 people had been killed in campus cult-related murders in the previous decade,[30] while the Exam Ethics Project lobby group estimated that 115 students and teachers had been killed between 1993 and 2003.[31]

The Mandatory Monday Association is thought to operate out of a variety of Australian universities including the Australian Defence Force Academy. The Association has numerous chapters that meet only on Mondays to discuss business and carry out rituals.[32]

The only secret society abolished and then legalized is that of The Philomaths,[33] which is now a legitimate academic association founded on a strict selection of its members.

Internet

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While their existence had been speculated for years, Internet-based secret societies first became known to the public in 2012 when Cicada 3301 began recruiting from the public via Internet-based puzzles.[34][35] The goals of the society remain unknown, but it is believed to be involved in cryptography.[36][37]

Around the world

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The following contemporary and historic secret societies formed in Africa, by country:

Africa

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Cameroon

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Ghana

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Guinea

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Ivory Coast

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Liberia

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Mali

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Nigeria

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Sierra Leone

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South Africa

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Zimbabwe

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Asia

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China

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Secret societies played a major role in Chinese affairs for centuries. They were a key aspect of the Anti-Qing sentiments of the 20th century. After the collapse of the Qing Dynasty, they were tacitly supported by and actively collaborated with the Nationalist government. Having played prominent roles in history, they were targeted by the anti-secret society campaigns of the newly established government of the People's Republic of China during the 1950s.[38] Examples of Chinese secret societies include:

India

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Secret societies in India include:

Japan

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Secret societies in Japan include:

Malaysia

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Secret societies in Malaysia include:

Philippines

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Secret societies in the Philippines include:

Singapore

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Main articles: Secret societies in Singapore and Secret societies in colonial Singapore

Australia

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Secret societies in Australia include:

Europe

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Several secret societies existing across Europe, including:

Other organizations are listed by country.

Albania

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Bulgaria

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Finland

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France

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Germany

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Greece

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Ireland

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Italy

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Poland

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Portugal

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Russia

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Serbia

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Spain

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United Kingdom

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North America

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Main article: Collegiate secret societies in North America

Canada

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Secret societies in Canada that are non-collegiate include:

Cuba

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United States

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Secret societies in the United States that are non-collegiate include:

" Skull and Bones

Mexico

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South America

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Brazil

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Opposition

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See also: Anti-Masonry

The Catholic Church strongly opposed secret societies, especially the Freemasons. It did relent somewhat in the United States and allowed membership in labour unions and the Knights of Columbus, but not the Masons.[41][42] Some Christian denominations continue to forbid their members from joining secret societies in the 21st century. Others example, the Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection and Seventh-day Adventists. [43][44]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Daraul, Arkon (6 November 2015). A History Of Secret Societies. Pickle Partners Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78625-613-3.
  2. ^ Stevens (1899), p. vii.
  3. ^ Checkmark Books (1998), ISBN 0816038716
  4. ^ Spence, Richard B. The Real History of Secret Societies (2019), The Great Courses
  5. ^ Jasper Ridley (2011). The Freemasons: A History of the World's Most Powerful Secret Society. Arcade. ISBN 978-1-61145-010-1. see also Jeffers, H. Paul. Freemasons: A History and Exploration of the World's Oldest Secret Society. (Citadel Press, 2005).
  6. ^ Walsh, Michael. OPUS DEI: An Investigation into the Secret Society Struggling for Power within the Roman Catholic Church.
  7. ^ Secret Society: Opus Dei - Catholicism's Secret Sect.
  8. ^ Their Kingdom Come: Inside the Secret World of Opus Dei.
  9. ^ "Beyond the Threshold". archive.nytimes.com. Archived from the original on 13 August 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  10. ^ Preston, Paul (1986). The triumph of democracy in Spain. London: Methuen. p. 28. ISBN 9780416900101. OCLC 14586560.
  11. ^ Harding, Nick (2005). Secret societies. Edison, N.J.: Chartwell Books, Inc. p. 107. ISBN 9780785821700. OCLC 78244509.
  12. ^ Hesse, Alexander (2015), Geheimbünde Freimaurer und Illuminaten, Opus Dei und Schwarze Hand (in German), Reinbek: Rowohlt Taschenbuch, p. 54, ISBN 9783499630491
  13. ^ Augias, Corrado (2012), Die Geheimnisse des Vatikan : Eine andere Geschichte der Papststadt (in German) (1., neue Ausg ed.), München: Beck, C H, p. 415, ISBN 9783406630927
  14. ^ Pilapil, Vicente R. (1971). "Opus Dei in Spain". The World Today. 27 (5): 211–221. ISSN 0043-9134. JSTOR 40394504. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  15. ^ SPIEGEL, Peter Hertel, DER (7 April 2005). "Vatikan intern: Der Aufstieg der Santa Mafia". Der Spiegel (in German). Archived from the original on 22 July 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. ^ Fuerbringer, Ludwig (1927). The Concordia Cyclopedia: A Handbook of Religious Information, with Special Reference to the History, Doctrine, Work, and Usages of the Lutheran Church. St. Louis, Missouri: Concordia Publishing House. pp. 532–33. Retrieved 11 October 2024. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  17. ^ "The Constitution of the Republic of Poland". 2 April 1997. Archived from the original on 20 April 2020. Retrieved 3 November 2009. Article 13: Political parties and other organizations whose programs are based upon totalitarian methods and the modes of activity of nazism, fascism and communism, as well as those whose programs or activities sanction racial or national hatred, the application of violence for the purpose of obtaining power or to influence the State policy, or provide for the secrecy of their own structure or membership, shall be prohibited.
  18. ^ "Skull And Bones". The Secret Society Manual. thesecretbookgarden.com. Archived from the original on 19 April 2020. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
  19. ^ "To The Members of the University of Chicago". The University of Chicago Magazine. 5 (9): 298. July 1913. Archived from the original on 30 September 2021. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  20. ^ Megan Findling (3 November 2011). "Edgar Allan Poe in Greenwich Village" (article). Researching Greenwich Village History. greenwichvillagehistory.wordpress.com. Archived from the original on 20 February 2016. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
  21. ^ "Secret Societies. | News | The Harvard Crimson". www.thecrimson.com. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  22. ^ "Student Government at Wellesley and How It Makes for Loyalty among the College Girls and Faculty". The New York Times. 12 February 1912. Archived from the original on 11 November 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
  23. ^ Bowers, Mary (17 November 2006). "Pitt Club under pressure from Council" (PDF). Varsity. p. 5. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 September 2007. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  24. ^ a b Gray, Kirsty (11 February 2011). "Oxford's Bully-ingdon Club faces more scandal". Varsity. Archived from the original on 27 January 2012. Retrieved 25 June 2011.
  25. ^ D.T.W. Price. A History of Saint David's University College, Lampeter. University of Wales Press, Cardiff. Volume One, to 1898 (ISBN 0-7083-0606-3)
  26. ^ "Naissance de " Alexandre-Théophile Vandermonde ", mathématicien français – Espace " Sciences du Numérique " Alan Turing (LJAD – CNRS/UNS)". www.espace-turing.fr. Archived from the original on 17 October 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
  27. ^ "Regulations for the Virginia Military Institute, Part II, Revised 5 December 2008, 12–16(b)". vmi.edu.
  28. ^ Fletcher, Robert Samuel (1943). A History of Oberlin College from Its Foundation Through the Civil War. Oberlin College. Archived from the original on 14 August 2019. Retrieved 10 April 2012. "Revised codes were issued every few years, but not many important changes were made in them. Provisions with regard to the hours of 'athletic exercises and sport' were added in 1847. In the same revision, there appeared for the first time the 'peculiar' Oberlin rule against secret societies. 'No student,' it runs, 'is permitted to join any secret society or military company.'"
  29. ^ Student Regulations, Policies, and Procedures, Oberlin College 2011–2012 (PDF) (in e). Oberlin College. 2011. p. 34. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 March 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2012.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) "No secret society is allowed at Oberlin, and no other societies or self-perpetuating organizations are allowed among students, except by permission of the faculty. This is to be understood to include social and rooming-house clubs."
  30. ^ "NIGERIA: Focus on the menace of student cults" Archived 11 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine, IRIN, 1 August 2002
  31. ^ "Cults of violence" Archived 21 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine, The Economist, 31 July 2008
  32. ^ "IV. The Secret Societies", Omaha Secret Societies, Columbia University Press, 31 December 1969, pp. 58–132, doi:10.7312/fort92186-004, ISBN 9780231887458
  33. ^ Arthur Morius Francis. Secret Societies. Vol. 3: The Collegiate Secret Societies of America. 2015 (file pdf).
  34. ^ Bell, Chris (25 November 2013). "The internet mystery that has the world baffled". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  35. ^ Ernst, Douglas (26 November 2013). "Secret society seeks world's brightest: Recruits navigate 'darknet' filled with terrorism, drugs". The Washington Times. Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  36. ^ NPR staff (5 January 2014). "The Internet's Cicada: A Mystery without an Answer". All Things Considered, National Public Radio. Archived from the original on 27 June 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
  37. ^ Scott, Sam (16 December 2013). "Cicada 3301: The most elaborate and mysterious puzzle of the internet age". Metro. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  38. ^ Purbrick, Martin (2019). "Patriotic Chinese Triads and Secret Societies: From the Imperial Dynasties, to Nationalism, and Communism". Asian Affairs. 50 (3): 305–322. doi:10.1080/03068374.2019.1636515. S2CID 199953554.
  39. ^ a b c "Mateship & Fraternal Secret Societies in Australia". Fraternal Secrets. Archived from the original on 8 February 2023. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  40. ^ a b c "Secret Societies in Canada | The Canadian Encyclopedia". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Archived from the original on 8 February 2023. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  41. ^ Christopher J. Kauffman, Faith and Fraternalism: The History of the Knights of Columbus, 1882–1982 (1982) p. 8.
  42. ^ Simon Sarlin and Dan Rouyer, "The Anti-Masonic Congress of Trento (1896): International Mobilization and the Circulation of Practices against Freemasonry." Contemporanea: Rivista di Storia dell'800 e del '900 (July-Sep 2021, 24#3, pp. 517-536.
  43. ^ The Discipline of the Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection (Original Allegheny Conference). Salem: Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection. 2014. pp. 20–21.
  44. ^ Ellen G. White, "Selected Messages Book 2", Chapter 13. (1958)

Further reading

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Look up secret society in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Secret societies.
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