Trivia from the Tour

10 facts I learned today:

1. Oxford is named such because back in Ye Olden Days, a market was held in the town that had oxen, and the oxen had to traverse a river to get there, by using the shallow crossing points called fords.

2. Those who are at Oxford to study are called "gownies," and those who are in Oxford by birth are called "townies." The "gownies" are called such because - surprise - they wear gowns. The length of your gown represents your status; the longer your gown, the higher up in the hierarchy you are. Those with gowns that fall to the knee are undergrads. Those with gowns a little longer are students who were academically brilliant enough to get full scholarships. Beyond them are the graduate students, and finally the professors (called dons). The Chancellor of Oxford gets to wear a gown that's so long it drags on the ground behind him, with gold lace trim.

3. Unless you have a longer gown, you are not allowed on the grass. The porters will yell at you and, beyond that, actually fine you. You have to earn the right to walk on the grass! This only applies to the front quad, though. Students are allowed on the garden grass.

4. Gowns are worn for dinner in the hall, ceremonies, and chapel activities. At other times students can generally wear whatever they want, as long as it's presentable. St. Hilda's, the last college to become co-ed (last year), was the only college that allowed its students to come down to dining hall breakfast in their pajamas!

5. Beyond the gown hierarchy, there is also a system of flowers: A white carnation in your outfit symbolizes that it's the first day of your examinations, a pink one that you're partway done, and a red one that it's your last day.

6. Dances are held on the gardens of the colleges. They're strict formal dress (think actual ball gowns), and they cost upward of 135 pounds to get into. There are candles lighting the path to the garden, and all the other fancy trimmings you could think of.

7. In the dining hall, there are long tables for students to eat at and then, at the head of the room, there's the High Table. Professors and other important people are the only ones allowed to sit at the High Table. Traditonally, third-year students sit closest to the High Table, second-year students toward the middle, and freshers at the very back of the room.

8. When students graduate, the actual graduation ceremony is done completely in Latin.

9. The Bodleian Library - a.k.a. the library I'm going to have membership to soon! - has literally millions of books, 5 buildings, and gets access to the first edition of any book printed in the U.K.

10. Each college has its own chapel, dining hall, and dormitories. The chapel is generally the oldest part of any given college. The chapel at Trinity College, the one we walked through in our tour, was constructed with the pulpit quite low and the pews set not facing the front, but rather toward the center of the room. This chapel construction was to give a feeling of "family," rather than sermonizing, by having the churchgoers facing each other rather than at a priest set higher up.

Picture post coming, I promise.