Joining a sorority or fraternity is a very common rite of passage for many college students, complete with their rituals and traditions that often seem strange to those on the outside. One apparently common sorority tradition that has flown under the social media radar, until now, is the sorority "cold room."

Recently, TikTok users involved in Greek Life drew attention to these cold rooms, which are communal sleeping areas in women's dorms. The rooms are often kept pitch-black, with blackout curtains blocking light at all hours. TikTokers described temperatures as low as 62 °F, which meant students frequently bundled up in electric blankets or heating pads.

There are several rumors about how cold rooms, also known as "cold air dorm rooms," first came about. It began in the early 1900s when screened-in porches were designed to let in the cool night air. These porches were called simply "sleep porches" at the time.

Sororities used these sleep porches but gradually shifted the communal cold-climate sleeping space indoors. Sometimes they have open windows, other times an air conditioner running at full blast on its lowest temperature setting.

Rows of bunk beds with heated blankets and sleeping bags are crammed into the cold room. The sorority sisters have private "day rooms" for all of their clothes, studying, and sleeping in the cold room.

Part of the reasoning behind the history of cold rooms stems from a rumor about "blue laws."

These rumors date back to the 1960s, which stated that if a house was inhabited by a certain number of women who were unrelated to one another, it was considered a brothel. This rumor is widespread, from New York to Pennsylvania and to schools in the western US.

According to Snopes, "Collegians have been explaining the lack of sorority houses on various campuses through this flawed factlet for many a year. Richard Roeper noted this legend in 1994, calling it 'the most widespread piece of university folklore making the rounds.'"

Julie Rogers from Refinery 29 has a different suggestion for the tradition. She noted that fire safety regulations and concerns about airborne illnesses may have been the origin of the practice. Despite the odd nature of it, Rogers said, "Sleeping in the cold dorm is, hands down, the greatest sleep I've ever gotten in my life, post-womb."

Plenty of TikTokers in sororities are now taking the time to explain cold dorm rooms. They also show off their "day rooms" for anyone curious about the practice. @itsmejadeb offered the suggestion that these cold dorms were simply the only way to cram 90-odd college students into a small space and keep it up to fire code.