Kim McRae, age 12, of Pengully, Minn., for her question:
HOW DID GRADUATION CAPS AND GOWNS ORIGINATE?
When graduation exercises are held on college and university campuses across the continent and in many foreign countries, caps and gowns are often worn by those receiving diplomas. Since about 1900 the formal costumes have also become popular for use at high school and even grammar school graduations.. High school caps and gowns are usually blue or blue gray.
Caps and gowns are the traditional and official costume for schools of higher learning in many countries. Today, however, you'll find them being worn only at graduation time and on special academic occasions.
Flowing gowns with hoods were worn as everyday clothing by college students not too long ago. The tradition started in Europe during the 1100s.
The idea behind students and faculty members wearing gowns was simple: It implied that the students were
individuals of learning, dignity and maturity, and that they were not affected by passing fads and changing tastes in clothing. Although styles have changed, and now you only see people wearing gowns on campuses occasionally, Oxford University students in England still wear gowns and hoods to classes each day.
Early American colleges and universities picked up the European tradition regarding dress, and for many years gowns were used daily by all students.
The academic cap is called a mortarboard. A skullcap fits tightly on the head, and attached to it at the very top is a stiff, square piece of cloth covered material. Dangling from the center of the mortarboard is a tassel.
Most caps, gowns and hoods are black. A graduate's various academic degrees are indicated in the way the robe and its sleeves are cut and trimmed. The color of the hood lining indicates the school that conferred the degree. A velvet:binding on the hood indicates the graduate's field of study. In the United States the Intercollegiate Commission set the standards for academic costumes in 1894.
Those with a doctor's degree wear a silk gown with full and rounded sleeves. There's a velvet facing in front and three velvet bars decorating each sleeve. The silk hood is four feet long and has a velvet binding five inches wide.
A person with a master's degree wears a silk or wool gown with full length square sleeves. A crescent shaped piece of material hangs down each sleeve. There's no velvet trim on the gown although the three and a half foot hood has velvet bindings that are three inches wide.
A bachelor wears a worsted gown with long, pointed sleeves. Women wear white collars. Hoods are three feet long with velvet edging two inches wide.