[b] The quarter system started in Sweden and dates back to the days when the ringing of the church bell was the general method of time keeping.
Academic quarter exists to a varying extent in many universities, especially where the campus is spread out over a larger area, necessitating the fifteen-minute delay for the students to walk from one building to another between classes.
[5] Similarly, the Greek phrase ακαδημαϊκό τέταρτο also refers to an unspoken rule that allows both lecturers and students to join the class with a delay of up to 15 minutes;[6] no law is currently in place to formalize this practice which extends to the school system as well as many workplaces.
At Uppsala, it refers to the thirty minutes between the full hour and the official time when a banquet or other semi-official party or sit-down dinner starts.
[10] At Lund University, times are commonly stated meaning single-quartered during daytime and doubly-quartered in the evening after 6 pm and on weekends.