Terminology

• Active/Initiated member: a fully initiated member in a fraternity or sorority.
• Associate/Pledge/Candidate/New Member: a non-initiated member of a fraternity or sorority that utilizes a new member program.
• Bid: an invitation to join a fraternity or sorority.
• Big Brother/Big Sister: many chapters utilize a Big Brother/Big Sister program where an older member serves a mentor to a younger member. The younger member may refer to their mentor as their Big Brother/Big Sister.
• Brother: a term used by fraternity members when referring to each other.
• Chapter: refers to an individual fraternity or sorority locally on a campus.
• Fraternity: a Greek organization for men.
• Greek: a member of a fraternity or sorority.
• Hazing: Activities related to the initiation, admission into or affiliation with, or as condition of continued membership in a club, organization, association, fraternity, sorority, or student body that may intentionally or recklessly endanger the mental or physical health or safety of any person; inflict bodily injury; remove or destroy public or private property; and/or assist, direct, or cause participation that in any way demeans, humiliates, ridicules, or degrades regardless of the consent or acquiescence of a participant.
  • Code of Virginia § 18.2-56, as amended, which declares hazing illegal, establishes conditions for civil and criminal liability and outlines the duties of the University when a student has been found guilty of hazing.
• Initiation: a ceremony that brings a member to full membership.
• Interfraternity Council (IFC): the governing council for men's fraternities. They provide governance, programming, resources, and leadership development opportunities for their membership.
• Inter/National Organization: A fraternal organization that is on campuses nation-wide or internationally. 
• Legacy: a perspective member of a fraternity/sorority who is a relative of a member. 
• National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC): a collaborative organization of nine historically African American, international Greek lettered fraternities and sororities. The nine NPHC organizations are sometimes collectively referred to as the “Divine Nine”.
• Membership Intake: collective term for the process of pursuing membership in a National Pan-Hellenic Council or Multicultural Greek Council organization. Each organization will have a more specific term to refer to their individual process.
• Multicultural Greek Council (MGC): the governing council for the culturally based or cultural interest organizations on campus. They provide governance, programming, resources and leadership development for their membership.
• Panhellenic Council (PC): the governing council for Panhellenic sororities. They provide governance, programming, resources, and leadership development opportunities for their membership.
• Potential New Member: a person interested in a being a member of a fraternity or sorority organization.
• Ritual: the values and beliefs by which members of an organization live and is oftentimes depicted in organizational ceremonies.
• Recruitment: the activity by which chapters seek new members.
• Sister: a term used by sorority members when referring to each other.
• Sorority: a Greek organization for women.

Greek Alphabet

Greek Letter Name	Greek Letter Uppercase	Greek Letter Lowercase
Alpha	Α	α
Beta	Β	β
Gamma	Γ	γ
Delta	Δ	δ
Epsilon	Ε	ε
Zeta	Ζ	ζ
Eta	Η	η
Theta	Θ	θ
Iota	Ι	ι
Kappa	Κ	κ
Lambda	Λ	λ
Mu	Μ	μ
Nu	Ν	ν
Xi	Ξ	ξ
Omicron	Ο	ο
Pi	Π	π
Rho	Ρ	ρ
Sigma	Σ	σ / ς
Tau	Τ	τ
Upsilon	Υ	υ
Phi	Φ	φ
Chi	Χ	χ
Psi	Ψ	ψ
Omega	Ω	ω