Glasgow University Dialectic Society

Glasgow University Dialectic Society

Formation	1451
Location	Glasgow
Membership	100
President	Harry Coloe
Honorary Secretary	Joanne Ferguson
Colours
Parent organization	University of Glasgow
Affiliations	Glasgow University Union, Students' Representative Council, Queen Margaret Union
Website	www.gudialectic.co.uk

The Glasgow University Dialectic Society, re-instituted in 1861, is a student society at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, committed to the promotion of debating, logic, ethics and literary discussion at the University. The Society is independent and open to all students of the University, but maintains strong links with debating at Glasgow University Union.

The date of the Society's foundation is contested; the earliest paper records of the Society are dated before 1770, and there are, moreover, mentions within the University records of a society existing and being open to students who took Logic, back when the University still resided within Glasgow Cathedral. Pope John Paul II issued a 'Papal Letter' to the Society upon his visit to Scotland in 1982, which recognised the Society's claim to have been established in 1451. The Society was formally re-instituted in 1861. The Society has led the UK's university debating culture since 1953. In 1955, it won the Observer Mace, now the John Smith Memorial Mace, named after the deceased GUU debater and former leader of the British Labour Party. The GUU has since won the Mace debating championship sixteen more times, far more than any other university. The GUU has also won the World Universities Debating Championships five times, more than any other university or club in the series' history.

Notable former members of the Society include:

The Society organises a variety of events during term-time, including weekly informal Thursday debates at the Queen Margaret Union. In October, the Society holds a New Members' Dinner, followed in March by the Annual Dinner(this year it will be held on 25 February as a special Anniversary Celebration), held shortly before the AGM. There is also an Inter-Board Debate, held between the boards of the four major student bodies (Glasgow University Union, Queen Margaret Union, Students' Representative Council and Glasgow University Sports Association), and the Honorary President's Debate, as well as a St Andrews-tide football game and a Sports Day, the Dialectic Olympics. The Society holds a number of more informal events, especially during Freshers' Week, to attract new members.