"Rock Chalk, Jayhawk" (a.k.a. the Rock Chalk chant) is a

chant A chant (from French ', from Latin ', "to sing") is the iterative speaking or singing of words or sounds, often primarily on one or two main pitches called reciting tones. Chants may range from a simple melody involving a limited set of notes ...

used at

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

Jayhawks sporting events. The chant is made up of the phrase "Rock chalk, Jayhawk, KU".

History

The chant was first adopted by the university's science club in 1886. Chemistry professor E.H.S. Bailey and his colleagues were returning by train to

Lawrence Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

after a conference. During their travel, they discussed a need of a rousing yell. They came up with "Rah, Rah, Jayhawk, Go KU", repeated three times. By 1889, "Rock Chalk" had replaced the “Rah, Rah!” Rock Chalk is a transposition of “chalk rock,” a type of

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

that exists in the Cretaceous-age bedrocks of central and western parts of the state and which is similar to the

coccolith Coccoliths are individual plates or scales of calcium carbonate formed by coccolithophores (single-celled phytoplankton such as ''Emiliania huxleyi'') and cover the cell surface arranged in the form of a spherical shell, called a ''coccosphere''. ...

-bearing chalk of the

white cliffs of Dover The White Cliffs of Dover is the region of English coastline facing the Strait of Dover and France. The cliff face, which reaches a height of , owes its striking appearance to its composition of chalk accented by streaks of black flint, deposi ...

. (The University itself is located on top of

Mount Oread Mount Oread is a hill in Lawrence, Kansas upon which the University of Kansas, and parts of the city of Lawrence, Kansas are located. It sits on the water divide between the Kansas River and the Wakarusa River rivers. It was named after the long ...

, a ridge of flinty

Carboniferous limestone Carboniferous Limestone is a collective term for the succession of limestones occurring widely throughout Great Britain and Ireland that were deposited during the Dinantian Epoch of the Carboniferous Period. These rocks formed between 363 and ...

used in some of the buildings.) Those responsible for the change are unknown, with Bailey himself crediting the geology department, and others an English professor. Kansas troops used it in the

Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War or Filipino–American War ( es, Guerra filipina-estadounidense, tl, Digmaang Pilipino–Amerikano), previously referred to as the Philippine Insurrection or the Tagalog Insurgency by the United States, was an arm ...

in 1899, the

Boxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, the Boxer Insurrection, or the Yihetuan Movement, was an anti-foreign, anti-colonial, and anti-Christian uprising in China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, by ...

, and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In the 1911 Border War football game, over 1,000 fans gathered in downtown Lawrence to listen to a "broadcast" of the game by telegraph and participated in cheers including the Rock Chalk. In the

1920 Summer Olympics The 1920 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1920; nl, Olympische Zomerspelen van 1920; german: Olympische Sommerspiele 1920), officially known as the Games of the VII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIe olympiade; nl, Spelen van ...

Albert I of Belgium Albert I (8 April 1875 – 17 February 1934) was King of the Belgians from 23 December 1909 until his death in 1934. Born in Brussels as the fifth child and second son of Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders and Princess Marie of Hohenzollern-S ...

asked for a typical American college yell, and gathered athletes replied with the chant. Former United States President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

called the Rock Chalk chant the best college chant he ever heard.

Usage

It is best known as being loudly chanted at

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

games at

Allen Fieldhouse Allen Fieldhouse is an indoor arena on the University of Kansas campus in Lawrence, Kansas. It is home of the Kansas Jayhawks men's and women's basketball teams. The arena is named after Phog Allen, a former player and head coach for the Jayhaw ...

and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

games at

University of Kansas Memorial Stadium David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium is a football stadium located in Lawrence, Kansas, on the campus of the University of Kansas. The stadium was opened in 1921, and is the seventh oldest college football stadium in the country, and is widely rec ...

. During pregame, the refrain of "Rock chalk... Jay-Hawk... KU," is repeated twice slowly, and then three times quickly. It is usually preceded by the Kansas alma mater "Crimson and the Blue,” and followed by the fight song, " I'm a Jayhawk.” Since the early 1990s, Kansas fans have been known to do the slow repetition of "Rock chalk... Jay-Hawk... KU" when the Jayhawks are believed to be safely ahead, and victory is guaranteed.

References

External links

MP3 of the chant
{{Kansas Jayhawks women's basketball navbox Chants Kansas Jayhawks