Order of the Arrow

Order of the Arrow
Previous name	Wimachtendienk Wingolauchsik Witahemui (WWW)
Owner	Scouting America
Age range	11–20 (youth) 21 and over (adults)
Headquarters	Irving, Texas
Location	United States, Puerto Rico, Japan, Germany, Philippines
Country	United States
Founded	July 16, 1915; 109 years ago (1915-07-16)
Founders	E. Urner Goodman Carroll A. Edson
Membership	99,014 total members (2023) 250 lodges (2023)[1]
National Chief	Samuel Crowder[2]
National Vice Chief	Ben Jones[2]
National Chairman	Chris A. Grove[2]
National Director	Cortland Bolles[2]
Website www.oa-scouting.org
Scouting portal

The Order of the Arrow (OA) is the honor society of Scouting America,^[3] composed of Scouts and Scouters who best exemplify the Scout Oath and Law in their daily lives as elected by their peers. It was founded as a camp fraternity by E. Urner Goodman, with the assistance of Carroll A. Edson, in 1915. Although it began without national approval, it was eventually admitted as an "Official Experiment" of Scouting America. In 1948, following an extensive review, it became a program of the organization.

Inducted members, known as Arrowmen or Brothers (regardless of gender; as Scouting America and its programs are open to all genders), are organized into local youth-led lodges that harbor fellowship, promote camping, and render service to scout councils and their communities. Each lodge corresponds to a council in the area. Lodges are further broken down into chapters, which correspond to districts within a council. Members wear identifying insignia on their uniforms, most notably the pocket flap that represents their individual lodge and the sash worn at official OA functions. The national organization sponsors several events, awards, and training functions in addition to lodge programming.

Scouting America maintains that the Order of the Arrow is not a secret organization.^[4] It instead utilizes the “attractiveness of the unknown” in its ceremonies to create a perception of mystery among non-members. There are three membership levels, each with its own ceremony: Ordeal, Brotherhood, and Vigil Honor. These ceremonies are recognition of a scout’s leadership qualities, camping skills, and other Scouting ideals as exemplified by their elected peers. Additionally, "safeguarded” (privy only to members and approved, legitimately interested adults) symbols and handshakes are used to impart a sense of community. Since the 1980s, concerned parents, Scout leaders, and religious leaders may review the ceremonies through a process set by the OA, and parents can refuse for their child to take part in the ceremony as membership is voluntary.^[5]

The Order of the Arrow has foundations influenced by Freemasonry and previously used imagery commonly associated with American Indian cultures for its self-invented ceremonies. Native Americans have criticized the OA's various symbols and "rituals" as cultural appropriation based on non-Native stereotypes of American Indians.^[6][7] Its Freemason ties have also been source of debate, in spite of its systematic removal of masonic terminology in the 1930s to avoid offending religious groups.