Prom. For many, it’s the height of second semester: a night to dress up, eat good food, and party with your friends. Many popular customs have arisen from prom, with the most popular one being the promposal. But where did promposals, and prom in general, even come from?
Proms actually originated from debutante balls, which were common in the 18th and 19th centuries. A debutante ball was a formal event where women would enter society for the first time. They were largely only in high society, and were intended to introduce women as candidates for marriage to the public.
The first American proms were held at Ivy League colleges, with some of the first references to a “prom” being in The Harvard Crimson in 1879. They quickly spread to high schools in the early 1900s, allowing even the common teenager the opportunity to “come out” like they were a member of high society.
While the popularity of proms decreased during the 1960s and 70s, 1980s movies such as “Pretty in Pink” and “Footloose” revived the event, bringing proms back into the mainstream.
“Anti-proms” also emerged in the 2000s, with themes like LGBTQ+ inclusivity.
One of the most popular aspects of prom, other than the dance itself, is the concept of “promposal.”
Promposals themselves didn’t become a thing until the early 2000s. Instead, boys would ask girls to prom in a more traditional, casual manner. With the rise of promposals came extravagant displays of affection. Musical numbers, posters, scavenger hunts, or even skits with their friends are popular methods. While people don’t need a date to go to prom, if they do have a date, a promposal is now a staple of prom culture.
Prom has come a long way from the origins of high-society debuts, and are now fun and creative ways for high school students to enjoy themselves at the end of the year.
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