'Ivy League' is a group of eight universities in the Northeastern United Stated, which have a reputation of high scholastic achievements and social prestige.
Example of use: "We really want Gordon to be the first person in our family to attend one of the Ivy League Universities. That's why he's been taking violin, chess, fencing and French lessons since he was 6 years old."
'Ivy' (or Hadera) is a plant that has the ability to climb and creep extensively for years and cover the walls of buildings. The term 'Ivy League' was coined in 1937, by sports writer Caswell Adams in an article published in the New York Herald. Adams used the term as a reference to the powerful eastern football league, which was assembled by eight universities: Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Penn, Dartmouth, Cornell, Columbia and Brown.