Oxbridge is a composite of the University of Oxford The University of Oxford , located in the City of Oxford, Oxfordshire, Great Britain, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. It is also regarded as one of the world's leading academic institutions and best university in the UK according to all recent League tables of British universities. The name is sometimes abbreviated as Oxon and the University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge , located in Cambridge, England, is the second oldest university in the English-speaking world. The name is sometimes abbreviated as Cantab. in post-nominals, a shortened form of Cantabrigiensis (an adjective derived from Cantabrigia, the Latinised form of Cambridge) in England England /ˈɪŋɡlənd/ is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population, while its mainland territory occupies most of the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain. England is bordered by Scotland to the north, Wales to the west and the North Sea, Irish Sea, Celtic Sea,, and the term is now used to refer to them collectively, often with implications of perceived superior intellectual or social status.^[1] Oxbridge can be used as a noun refering to either or both universities or as an adjective describing them or their students.

Meaning

In addition to being a collective term, Oxbridge is often used as shorthand for characteristics that the two institutions share:

• They are the two oldest universities in continuous operation This is a list of all of the oldest extant universities in the world. To be listed on this page, an educational institution must satisfy the definition of a university at the time of founding; it must have been founded before 1500 or be the oldest university in a region; and it must have been operational without a significant interruption ever in England. Both were founded more than 800 years ago,^[2][3] and continued as England's only universities until the 19th century. Between them they have educated a large number of Britain's most prominent scientists, writers and politicians,^[4] as well as noted figures in many other fields.^[5][6]
• Because of their age, they have established similar institutions and facilities such as printing houses (Oxford University Press Oxford University Press is a publishing house which printed its first book in 1478, according to http://www.oup.com/about/history/, and is a department of the University of Oxford in England. It is the largest university press in the world, being larger than all the American university presses combined with Cambridge University Press. One of the and Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is a printer and publisher granted a Royal Letters Patent by Henry VIII in 1534. It is the world's oldest continually operating book publisher. Cambridge is both an academic and educational publishing house, with a regional structure operating in the Americas, in United Kingdom/Europe/Middle-East/Africa, and in Asia-), botanical gardens (University of Oxford Botanic Garden University of Oxford Botanic Garden, the oldest botanic garden in Great Britain, and one of the oldest scientific gardens in the world, was founded in 1621 as a physic garden growing plants for medicinal research. Today it contains over 8,000 different plant species on 1.8 hectares . It is one of the most diverse yet compact collections of plants and Cambridge University Botanic Garden), museums (the Ashmolean The Ashmolean Museum on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is the world's first university museum. Its first building was built in 1678–1683 to house the collection or cabinet of curiosities Elias Ashmole gave Oxford University in 1677 and the Fitzwilliam), legal deposit libraries A national library is a library specifically established by the government of a country to serve as the preeminent repository of information for that country. Unlike public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, or significant works (the Bodleian The Bodleian Library , the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library. Known to Oxford scholars as “Bodley” or simply “the Bod”, under the Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003 it is one of six legal deposit libraries for works and the Cambridge University Library The Cambridge University Library is the centrally-administered library of the University of Cambridge in England. It comprises five separate libraries:), and debating Debate or debating is a formal method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examine the consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examine what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is technique of persuasion. Though logical consistency, factual accuracy societies (the Oxford Union The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to simply as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford, UK, whose membership is drawn primarily but not exclusively from the University of Oxford. Founded in 1823, it is Britain's second oldest University Union , and has gained a worldwide reputation for the cut and thrust of its and the Cambridge Union The Cambridge Union Society, commonly referred to simply as the Cambridge Union, is a debating society in Cambridge, England and is the largest society at the University of Cambridge. Throughout its nearly two centuries of continuous operation, the Union has developed a worldwide reputation as a noted symbol of free speech and open debate).
• Rivalry between Oxford and Cambridge also has a long history, dating back to around 1209 when Cambridge was founded by scholars taking refuge from hostile Oxford townsmen,^[7] and celebrated to this day in varsity matches such as the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race The Boat Race, also known as the University Boat Race and The Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, is a rowing race in England between the Oxford University Boat Club and the Cambridge University Boat Club. It is rowed annually between competing eights each spring on the Thames in London. The event is a popular one, not only with the alumni of the.
• Each has a similar collegiate structure A collegiate university differs from a centralized university in that its colleges are not just halls of residence; rather, they have a substantial amount of responsibility and autonomy in the running of the university. The actual level of self-governance exercised by the colleges varies greatly among institutions, ranging from nearly autonomous, whereby the University is a co-operative of its constituent colleges, which are responsible for supervisions/tutorials A tutorial is one method of transferring knowledge and may be used as a part of learning. More interactive and specific than a book or a lecture; a tutorial seeks to teach by example and supply the information to complete a certain task (the principal teaching method) and pastoral care.
• They are the top-scoring institutions in cross-subject UK university rankings,^[8][9][10] so they are targetted by ambitious pupils, parents and schools. Entrance is competitive and some schools promote themselves based on their achievement of Oxbridge offers.
• Both universities comprise many buildings of great beauty and antiquity, sited on level terrain ideal for cycling, near slow-moving rivers suitable for rowing Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water. The sport can be both recreational, focusing on learning the techniques required, and competitive and punting A punt is a flat-bottomed boat with a square-cut bow, designed for use in small rivers or other shallow water. Punting refers to boating in a punt. The punter generally propels the punt by pushing against the river bed with a pole. A punt should not be confused with a gondola, which is propelled by an oar rather than a pole.
• Oxford and Cambridge have common approaches to undergraduate admissions University admission or college admissions is the process through which students enter tertiary education at universities and colleges. Systems vary widely from country to country, and sometimes from institution to institution. Until the mid-1980s, entry was typically by sitting special entrance exams A final examination is a test given to students at the end of a course of study or training. Although the term can be used in the context of physical training, it most often occurs in the academic world. Most high schools, colleges, and universities run final exams at the end of a particular academic term, typically a quarter or semester, or more.^[11] Applications must be made at least three months early,^[12] and, with only minor exceptions (e.g. Organ Scholars),^[13] are mutually exclusive for first undergraduate degrees so, in any one year, candidates may only apply to Oxford or Cambridge, not both.^[14] Because most candidates are predicted to achieve top grades at A level The Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, universally referred to as an A-Level, is a qualification offered by adult education institutions in England, Northern Ireland and Wales and by a small minority of institutions, typically private, in Scotland. . A-Levels are usually studied over a two year period and are widely recognised around, interviews are usually used to check whether the course is well suited to the applicant's interests and aptitudes,^[15] and to look for evidence of self-motivation, independent thinking, academic potential and ability to learn through the tutorial system.^[16]

The word Oxbridge may also be used pejoratively: as a descriptor of social class The most basic class distinction is between the powerful and the powerless. People in social classes with greater power attempt to cement their own positions in society and maintain their ranking above the lower social classes in the social hierarchy. Social classes with a great deal of power are usually viewed as elites, at least within their own (referring to the professional classes who dominated the intake of both universities at the beginning of the twentieth century),^[17] as shorthand for an elite that "continues to dominate Britain's political and cultural establishment",^[5][18] or to describe a "pressure-cooker" culture that attracts and then fails to support overachievers "who are vulnerable to a kind of self-inflicted stress that can all too often become unbearable"^[19] and high-flying state school students who find "coping with the workload very difficult in terms of balancing work and life" and "feel socially out of [their] depth".^[20]

Origins

Although both universities were founded more than seven centuries ago, the term Oxbridge is relatively young. In William Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray was an English novelist of the 19th century. He was famous for his satirical works, particularly Vanity Fair, a panoramic portrait of English society's novel Pendennis Pendennis is a novel by the English author William Makepeace Thackeray. It is set in 19th century England, particularly in London. The main hero is a young English gentleman Arthur Pendennis who is born in the country and sets out for London to seek his place in life and society. In line with other Thackeray's works, most notably Vanity Fair,, published in 1849, the main character attends the fictional Boniface College, Oxbridge. According to the Oxford English Dictionary According to the publishers, it would take a single person 120 years to type the 59 million words of the OED second edition, 60 years to proofread it, and 540 megabytes to store it electronically. As of 30 November 2005, the Oxford English Dictionary contained approximately 301,100 main entries. Supplementing the entry headwords, there are 157,000, this is the first recorded instance of the word. Virginia Woolf Adeline Virginia Woolf was an English novelist and essayist, regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century used it, citing Thackeray, in her 1929 essay A Room of One's Own A Room of One's Own is an extended essay by Virginia Woolf. First published during 24 October 1929, it was based on a series of lectures she delivered at Newnham College and Girton College, two women's colleges at Cambridge University in October 1928. By 1957 the term was used in the Times Educational Supplement^[21][22] and in Universities Quarterly by 1958.^[23]

When expanded, the universities are almost always referred to as "Oxford and Cambridge", the order in which they were founded. A notable exception is Japan's Cambridge and Oxford Society, probably arising from the fact that the Cambridge Club was founded there first, and also had more members than its Oxford counterpart when they amalgamated in 1905.^[24]

Related terms

Thackeray's Pendennis also introduced the term Camford as another combination of the university names — "he was a Camford man and very nearly got the English Prize Poem" — although this term has never achieved the same degree of usage as Oxbridge.

Other words have been derived from the term Oxbridge. One example is Doxbridge, an annual inter-collegiate sports tournament between some of the colleges of Durham Durham University as the name would suggest, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded as the University of Durham by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837. It was one of the first universities to open in England for more than 600 years, and is claimed to be England's third oldest after Oxford and Cambridge (, Oxford, and Cambridge.^[25] The term Loxbridge (referring to London Based primarily in London, England, United Kingdom, the University of London is a federal mega university made up of 31 affiliates: 19 separate university institutions, and 12 research institutes. As such, the University of London is the largest university in the UK by number of full-time students, with 135,090 campus-based students and over 40,000, Oxford, and Cambridge) is sometimes seen,^[26] and was also adopted as the name of the Ancient History The period following these events includes the Imperial era in China and the period of the Middle Kingdoms in India; The span of recorded history altogether is roughly 5,000 years, with Sumerian cuneiform emerging from the protoliterate period around the 30th century BC being the oldest form of writing discovered so far. This is the beginning of conference now known as AMPAH.^[27] However, such terms are only employed for specific groups, and none has achieved widespread recognition.

References

1. ^ Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. 2002). http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=YGi5GwAACAAJ. "Originally: a fictional university, esp. regarded as a composite of Oxford and Cambridge. Subsequently also (now esp.): the universities of Oxford and Cambridge regarded together, esp. in contrast to other British universities. adj Of, relating to, characteristic of, or reminiscent of Oxbridge (freq. with implication of superior social status"
2. ^ "A brief history of the University". http://www.ox.ac.uk/about_the_university/introducing_oxford/a_brief_history_of_the_university/index.html. Retrieved on 2008-03-29.
3. ^ "A Brief History - Early Records". http://www.cam.ac.uk/univ/history/records.html. Retrieved on 2008-06-27.
4. ^ Famous alumni and students of Cambridge University
5. ^ ^{a b} Carole Cadwalladr (2008-03-16). "It's the clever way to power - Part 1". EducationGuardian.co.uk. http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/mar/16/highereducation.news. Retrieved on 2009-03-22.
6. ^ Carole Cadwalladr (2008-03-16). "It's the clever way to power - Part 2". EducationGuardian.co.uk. http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/mar/16/highereducation.careers. Retrieved on 2009-03-22.
7. ^ "A Brief History: Early records". University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge , located in Cambridge, England, is the second oldest university in the English-speaking world. The name is sometimes abbreviated as Cantab. in post-nominals, a shortened form of Cantabrigiensis (an adjective derived from Cantabrigia, the Latinised form of Cambridge). http://www.cam.ac.uk/univ/history/records.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-22.
8. ^ "University Rankings League Table 2009". Good University Guide. Times Online. http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/tol_gug/gooduniversityguide.php. Retrieved on 2009-02-04.
9. ^ "University Rankings League Table". The Sunday Times University Guide. Times Online. http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/stug/universityguide.php. Retrieved on 2009-02-04.
10. ^ Bernard Kingston (2008-04-28). "League table of UK universities". The Complete University Guide. http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/single.htm?ipg=6524. Retrieved on 2009-02-04.
11. ^ Walford (1986). Life in Public Schools. Taylor & Francis. p. 202. ISBN 9780416371802. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Ms8OAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA202&lpg=PA202. Retrieved on 2009-02-02.
12. ^ "UCAS Students: Important dates for your diary". http://www.ucas.com/students/importantdates. Retrieved on 2009-02-02. "15 October 2008 Last date for receipt of applications to Oxford University, University of Cambridge and courses in medicine, dentistry and veterinary science or veterinary medicine."
13. ^ "Organ Awards Information for Prsospective Candidates". Faculty of Music, University of Oxford The University of Oxford , located in the City of Oxford, Oxfordshire, Great Britain, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. It is also regarded as one of the world's leading academic institutions and best university in the UK according to all recent League tables of British universities. The name is sometimes abbreviated as Oxon. http://www.music.ox.ac.uk/assets/files/Chor_Org_Downloads/OrgAwards2009.pdf. Retrieved on 2009-03-22. "It is possible for a candidate to enter the comparable competition at Cambridge which is scheduled at the same time of year."
14. ^ "UCAS Students FAQs: Oxford or Cambridge". http://www.ucas.com/students/beforeyouapply/faqs/choosingcourses/oxfordorcambridge. Retrieved on 2009-02-02. "Is it possible to apply to both Oxford University and the University of Cambridge?"
15. ^ "Why we use interviews". University of Cambridge. http://www.cam.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/interviews/guide/why.html. Retrieved on 2009-02-02.
16. ^ "Interviews at Oxford". University of Oxford. http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate_courses/how_to_apply/interviews/index.html. Retrieved on 2009-02-02.
17. ^ Robert David Anderson (2004). European universities from the Enlightenment to 1914. OUP Oxford University Press is a publishing house which printed its first book in 1478, according to http://www.oup.com/about/history/, and is a department of the University of Oxford in England. It is the largest university press in the world, being larger than all the American university presses combined with Cambridge University Press. One of the. p. 135. ISBN 9780198206606. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Sf6NeT3045IC&pg=PA135. Retrieved on 2009-03-22.
18. ^ Carole Cadwalladr (16 March 2008), Oxbridge Blues, The Guardian, http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/carole_cadwalladr/2008/03/oxbridge_blues.html
19. ^ Elizabeth Davies (2007-02-21). "The over-pressured hothouse that is Oxbridge". The Independent The Independent is a British newspaper published by Tony O'Reilly's Independent News & Media. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily newspapers. The daily edition was named National Newspaper of the Year at the 2004 British Press. http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/elizabeth-davies-the-overpressured-hothouse-that-is-oxbridge-437155.html. Retrieved on 2009-02-02. "Two recent deaths have brought the issue of Oxbridge students' mental health back to the surface"
20. ^ Charlie Boss (2006-12-02). "Why so many state school pupils drop out of Oxbridge". The Spectator The Spectator is a weekly British magazine first published on 6 July 1828. It is currently owned by the Barclay brothers, who also own The Daily Telegraph. Its principal subject area is politics, about which it generally takes a conservative editorial line, although regular contributors such as Rod Liddle and Martin Bright write from a left-wing. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3724/is_/ai_n17191156. Retrieved on 2009-02-02.
21. ^ G.D. Worswick (1957-05-03). "The anatomy of Oxbridge". Times Educational Supplement.
22. ^ G.D. Worswick (1958-06-06). "Men's Awards at Oxbridge". Times Educational Supplement.
23. ^ A. H. Halsey (1958). "British Universities and Intellectual Life". Universities Quarterly 12 (2): 144. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=c3cuAAAAIAAJ&dq=Halsey+%22BRITISH+UNIVERSITIES+AND+INTELLECTUAL+LIFE%22&q=Oxbridge&pgis=1#search_anchor. Retrieved on 2009-03-22.
24. ^ Giro Koike (1995-04-05). "Why The "Cambridge & Oxford Society"?". http://www.camford.org/Whycamford.htm. Retrieved on 2008-09-08.
25. ^ "The University Sports Tour for Easter 2008". http://www.doxbridge.co.uk/index.html. Retrieved on 2008-04-13.
26. ^ Morgan, K. J. (2004). "The research assessment exercise in English universities, 2001". Higher Education 48: 461–482. doi The Digital Object Identifier System is a managed system for persistent identification of content-related entities on digital networks. These entities may be content items (digital files, physical objects, abstract works), or any related entities in a content transaction (e.g. licenses, parties, etc.). "DOI" is sometimes used to mean the:10.1023/B:HIGH.0000046717.11717.06. http://www.springerlink.com/content/k601035744543035/.
27. ^ "AMPAH 2003: Annual Meeting of Postgraduates in Ancient History (formerly also known as LOxBridge)". http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/classics/postgraduate/ampah/. Retrieved on 2008-04-13.

See also

• Third oldest university in England debate
• List of fictional Oxbridge colleges
• Ivy League The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The term is most commonly used to refer to those eight schools considered as a group. The term also has connotations of academic excellence, selectivity in admissions, and social elitism

External links

• University of Cambridge
• University of Oxford
• The Boat Race
• The Varsity Match

Categories: Oxbridge | English culture Categories: British culture | England | Culture by nationality | European culture | English-language culture | University of Oxford Categories: Oxbridge | Oxford | Education in Oxford | Education in Oxfordshire | Universities in England | History of Oxford | Culture in Oxford | Organisations based in Oxford | Categories named after universities and colleges | University of Cambridge Chancellor: HRH The Duke of Edinburgh • Vice-Chancellor: Prof. Alison Richard

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• Oxbridge
• Oxbridge Rivalry
• Category:Oxbridge
• Oxbridge Scarf Colours

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