To celebrate the university’s 50th anniversary, FIU News is sharing 50 moments in FIU’s history as part of our “50@50″ series.
By Joel Delgado ’12 MS ’17
Early in FIU’s history, before there was ever a student government, President Charles “Chuck” Perry established a committee that would serve as a mediator between the president and the student body.
Then-student Diane Spurlock ’75 was named the chair of the committee and one of the first items the committee was charged with was the naming of the university’s founding buildings. Hoping to reflect the international nature of the university and its student body, the committee helped name some of the university’s first buildings different languages:
- Primera Casa: Spanish for “first house.” Established in 1969, it was the first building constructed at FIU and President Perry addressed the university on the steps of PC the day FIU officially opened on Sept. 14, 1972.
- Deuxième Maison: French for “second house,” the building opened shortly after Primera Casa in response to the need for classroom space and currently is home to the Honors College and a number of other departments. DM recently underwent a courtyard transformation with the opening of the “Sky Lounge” in 2013.
- University House (now the Graham Center): Completed in 1974, the new student center was named by the committee in English and was the third structure completed at FIU. In its earliest days, the student center included the Rathskeller, a large cafeteria and “The Pit.”
- Viertes Haus: German for “fourth house,” it is currently home of the Photo Lab, Stable Isotope Lab and various studios and classrooms.
- Athenaeum (now the Green Library): The early version of the Greek word “Athenaeum” was applied to buildings in ancient Greece which were dedicated to Athena, the goddess of wisdom and the arts. The university’s new library was the fifth structure completed on campus.
- Owa Ehan: Opened in 1977, Owa Ehan means “six houses” (or a “collection of six houses”) in Edo, a language spoken primarily in southern Nigeria. It housed the first kitchen and dining room on campus, seating 45 for the School of Hotel, Food and Travel Services (now the Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Biscayne Bay Campus).
Related: The mystery of Owa Ehan solved
UPDATE: University House was added to the article as the third structure completed on campus. It was initially left out because we aimed to focus on the university’s first academic buildings, but felt the addition was necessary to make the article complete… Owa Ehan does not mean ‘fifth house’ in Swahili.
[…] 50@50: Naming FIU’s founding buildings […]
Dear Friends. I have wondered for 24 years what “Owa Ehan” meant. When I use an on-line translator for Swahili, and I type in “Fifth House,” the phrase that comes up is “Nyumba tano.” Are we sure that “owa ehan” is an expression in Swahili?
Exactly, Owa Ehan is not Swahili.
Perhaps, just as Chinese has different dialects (Mandarin, Cantonese), there may be different dialects to Swahili.
I have same thoughts!!
Memories, indeed.
My time at FIU ranged from Fall ’74 to graduation June 12, 1976. The baccalaureate degree confered was a “BT”, Bachelor of Technology.
Its engraved on my class ring. That’s just got to be rare .
At first, there was “only” the PC building and what was known as the “Student Union” (which also housed other functions). Plus the old airport control tower. When the DM building opened, my classes held there included the constant, strong odor of very fresh concrete.
Oh, and parking was always easy and close.
Lots of land back then!
Thanks for the article on those early days of FIU.
BTW – I’m still working in the exact industry that my degree prepared me for, industrial automation.
[…] 50@50: Naming FIU’s founding buildings […]
I was told the erroneous story when I arrived at FIU fresh from Tanzania in 1992 that Owa Ehan is “fifth house” in Swahili. Apparently the story has moved from urban legend to the university’s official record. Fifth nyumba tano in Swahili. I have no idea what language Owa Ehan is. I’m no linguist, but I’d gu a Native American language. So
Sorry for the unfinished post. I hit the wrong button. As I was saying fifth house is nyumba tano in Swahili. I’d venture a non-expert opinion that Owa Ehan is from a Native American language. In any event, I would suggest that someone fact checks this and corrects the official record.