Alumni (sg.:alumnus (MASC) oralumna (FEM)) are former students orgraduates of a school, college, or university. The feminine pluralalumnae is sometimes used for groups of women, andalums (sg.:alum) oralumns (sg.:alumn) as gender-neutral alternatives. The word comes fromLatin, meaning nurslings, pupils or foster children, derived fromalere "to nourish".[1]
The term is not synonymous with "graduates": people can be alumni without graduating, e.g.Burt Reynolds was an alumnus ofFlorida State University but did not graduate. The term is sometimes used to refer to former employees, former members of an organization, former contributors, or former inmates.[2][3][4]
TheLatinnounalumnus means "foster son" or "pupil". It is derived from the Latinverbalere "to nourish".[5] Separate, but from the same root, is theadjectivealmus "nourishing", found in the phrasealma mater, a title for a person's home university.[6]
| alumnus | alumna | alumni | alumnae | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | /əˈlʌmnəs/ ə-LUM-nəs | /əˈlʌmnə/ -nə | /əˈlʌmnaɪ/ -nye | /əˈlʌmniː/ -nee, also US:/-naɪ/ -nye |
| Latin (Classical) | [aˈlʊmnʊs] | [aˈlʊmna] | [aˈlʊmniː] | [aˈlʊmnae̯] |
| Latin (Ecclesiastical) | [aˈlumnus] | [aˈlumna] | [aˈlumni] | [aˈlumne] |
In Latin,alumnus is a legal term (Roman law) to describe a child placed infosterage.[9] According toJohn Boswell, the word "is nowhere defined in relation to status, privilege, or obligation."[10] Citing the research ofHenri Leclercq,Teresa Nani, andBeryl Rawson, who studied the many inscriptions aboutalumni, Boswell concluded that it referred toexposed children who were taken into a household where they were "regarded as somewhere between an heir and a slave, partaking in different ways of both categories." Despite the warmth of feelings between the parent and child, "analumnus might be treated both as a beloved child and as a household servant."[11]
An alumnus or alumna is a former student or a graduate of an educational institution (school, college, university).[12] According to theUnited States Department of Education, the termalumnae is used in conjunction with eitherwomen's colleges[13] or a female group of students. The termalumni is used in conjunction with eithermen's colleges, a male group of students, or a mixed group of students:
In accordance with the rules of grammar governing the inflexion of nouns in theRomance languages, the masculine plural alumni is correctly used for groups composed of both sexes:the alumni of Princeton University.[14]
The term is sometimes informally shortened to "alum" (optional plural "alums").[15] This is increasingly being used more formally as a gender-neutral alternative.[5] However, and for this latter purpose, the option "alumn" and "alumns" are also used in some institutions in Australia, Europe and the UK.[16]
The words "alum/alums" and "alumn/alumns" (pronounced with a silent "n") are both pronounced with the accent on the second syllable (al-UM), as opposed to the chemical compoundalum and its plural, "alums" (pron. AL-um).[17]
Many universities have alumni offices that coordinatefundraising and offer benefits to registered alumni. Alumnireunions are popular events at many institutions. These may be organized by alumni offices or byalumni associations, and are often social occasions forfundraising. Full membership of alumni associations is sometimes limited just to graduates rather than all alumni, e.g. atHarvard University.[18] Universities with validation agreements may limit some alumni benefits to graduates who studied at that university rather than at validated institutions.[19]
InBritish English, the terms "old boy" or "old girl" are often preferred for a former pupil of a primary or secondary school, while universities refer to their former students as alumni.[20][21]
Some universities, including theUniversity of Cambridge, theUniversity of California, San Francisco andYale University, include formerpostdoctoral researchers as alumni, in recognition of the trainee status of such positions.[22][23][24] Others, such as theMassachusetts Institute of Technology, consider them 'associate alumni', without full access to alumni benefits.[25]
C17: from Latin: nursling, pupil, foster son, fromalere to nourish
1: A person who has attended or has graduated from a particular school, college, or university. 2: a person who is a former member, employee, contributor, or inmate
Someone who was a student at a particular school, college, or university
Members of the HAA include recipients of all degrees granted by the University and Radcliffe College, as well as the members of all University faculties. Others whose names appear on the alumni records of the University, but who have not received degrees, are associate members and program participants. They may attend meetings and take part in any activities of the HAA but may not vote for Overseers of the University or directors of the HAA.
The dictionary definition ofalumni at Wiktionary
