This week, I helped a patron answer a question related to the writing of one of Indiana University's songs, "Hail to Old IU." For those of you unfamiliar with the song, here is a link to an IU Athletics Department page that includes the lyrics to "Hail to Old IU," a short history about the writing of the song, and a recording of an IU Band performance of "Hail to Old IU."
This particular patron's question related to the verse "Gloriana Frangipana, E'er to her be true." Specifically, the patron was looking for an explanation as to why the word "Frangipana" was included in the lyrics and if it had any special meaning or significance.
For starters, "Frangipana" is a misspelling/mispronunciation of "frangipani," a flower defined as "any of a genus (Plumeria) of shrubs or small trees of the dogbane family that are native to the American tropics and widely cultivated as ornamentals." The changing of pronunciation was intended to make the word rhyme with "Indiana."
As to why this particular word was chosen, here is an IU Fast Facts page which provides an explanation.
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