Oxford

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Oxford, home of England's oldest university, probably had performances of liturgical drama in medieval times, but the first play to be recorded (at Magdalen) dates from about 1490. In the 1540s undergraduates at several colleges acted plays in Latin. There seems to have been less acting at Oxford than at Cambridge, but in 1566 Queen Elizabeth I was present at a production in Christ Church of Edwardes's Palaemon and Arcyte, based on Chaucer's The Knight's Tale. In 1567 a comedy was produced at Merton with the intriguing title Wylie Beguylie. Unfortunately, as with most other plays of the time, the manuscript is lost, as happened also with the texts of the plays given before Charles I in 1636. Up to this point drama in Oxford seems to have been left entirely to amateurs, and professional visits seem to have been discouraged, though Strange's Men played in an innyard in the city in 1590–1, the King's Men were seen in a tennis-court in 1680, and a professional company under Betterton was in Oxford in 1703. In the 18th century there was little beyond private theatricals, and some quasi-official performances at Commemoration.

The foundation of the Oxford University Dramatic Society (OUDS) in 1885 by a group of undergraduates which included Arthur Bourchier, later an important actor-manager, and Cosmo Gordon Lang, a future Archbishop of Canterbury, and a cousin of the actor-manager Matheson Lang, again made acting an acceptable extra-curricular activity in the university. The first production, given in the Town Hall, was Henry IV, Part One, in which Bourchier played Hotspur and Lang spoke a Prologue. Most of the plays produced in future years were comedies by Shakespeare, given in a college garden or hall.

During the First World War the OUDS was disbanded, but it started up again in 1919 with a production of Hardy's epic poem The Dynasts. The society then pursued its former policy of indoor and outdoor productions. One important venture was the staging in 1931 of Flecker's Hassan, with Peggy Ashcroft as Pervaneh, since the company still refused to admit women members. Meanwhile a new society known as Friends of the OUDS had been formed by Nevill Coghill (1899–1980), later Merton Professor of English Literature, which filled the gap with 12 productions between 1940 and 1946, the last being Ibsen's The Pretenders. The society was then re-formed, and women were admitted to full membership; but in 1950 it was forced by financial troubles to give up its premises, though it now has a club room and office in the Burton—Taylor Theatre (see OXFORD PLAYHOUSE). Its productions continue to reach a high standard. In 1936 Coghill had also founded a new society, the Oxford Experimental Theatre Club (ETC), which unlike OUDS was designed to leave everything connected with the production in the hands of undergraduates. It also chooses plays not within the scope of the older society, particularly those illustrating the current experimental trends in the theatre, even becoming involved in community theatre. The university also has a Visiting Chair of Drama. The Apollo Theatre, formerly the New, which opened in 1934, is not a prime venue for touring companies, except for opera.

Oxford a city in central England on the River Thames; site of Oxford University, the oldest English university, comprising a federation of thirty-nine colleges, the first of which, University College, was formally founded in 1249. The university was established at Oxford soon after 1167, perhaps as a result of a migration of students from Paris. The first women's college, Lady Margaret Hall, was founded in 1878.
Oxford comma a comma immediately preceding the conjunction in a list of items; the name comes from the preferred use of such a comma to avoid ambiguity, in the house style of Oxford University Press.
Oxford English a name for spoken English marked by affected utterance, popularly supposed to be characteristic of members of Oxford University.
Oxford English Dictionary the largest dictionary of the English language, prepared in Oxford and originally issued in instalments (originally as the New English Dictionary) between 1884 and 1928. A second edition was published in 1989, and a third edition is being prepared.
Oxford Group a Christian movement popularized in Oxford in the late 1920s, advocating discussion of personal problems by groups. It was later known as Moral Rearmament.
Oxford Movement a Christian movement started in Oxford in 1833, seeking to restore traditional Catholic teachings and ceremonial within the Church of England. Its leaders were John Keble, Edward Pusey, and (until he became a Roman Catholic) John Henry Newman. It formed the basis of the present Anglo-Catholic (or High Church) tradition.

Oxford city (1991 pop. 113,847) and district, county seat of Oxfordshire , S central England. In addition to its importance as the site of the Univ. of Oxford , the city has significant industries, including the manufacture of automobiles and steel products. Tourism is especially popular. A trading town and frontier fort, it was raided by Danes in the 10th and 11th cent. By the 12th cent., Oxford was the site of a castle, an abbey, and the university. It had foundations of several orders, including the Dominicans and the Gray Friars. During the 13th cent., frequent conflicts arose between the town and the university in which the university, with the support of the church and the king, was usually victorious. During the civil wars, Oxford was the royalist headquarters; it was besieged but not damaged by the parliamentarians. Among its famous historic buildings (apart from the colleges) are the Radcliffe Camera (1737), the Observatory (1772), and Sheldonian Theatre (designed by Christopher Wren ); the churches of St. Mary the Virgin (13th cent.) and St. Michael (11th cent.); and several old inns. The chapel (12th cent.) of Christ Church College is also the cathedral church of the city. The Ashmolean Museum (see under Ashmole, Elias ) and the Bodleian Library are notable. Besides the university, Ruskin College (1899) and the Magdalen College School (c.1480) are in Oxford.

Oxford. The ecclesiastical history of the city appears to begin with St Frideswide (q.v.), whose father founded a convent there in the 8th cent. Throughout the Middle Ages Oxford was in the diocese of Lincoln, but in 1542 Henry VIII created the see of Oxford, with the suppressed Oseney Abbey as the cathedral church; in 1546 he transferred the seat of the bishopric to the college founded on the site of St Frideswide's priory (Christ Church).

The origins of the university go back to the 12th cent., when, in addition to schools attached to parish churches, there is fragmentary evidence of independent masters teaching Arts, Theology, and Civil and Canon Law in schools in the centre of the town. In 1214 the Papal legate drew up a constitution for the schools; from this date the university developed as a corporate institution. Between 1220 and 1230 the Friars came—Dominican, Franciscan, Carmelite, and Augustinian. The colleges grew out of the boarding houses for masters and students; Merton's statutes date from 1264. In 1571 the university was incorporated and from then until 1871 subscription to the Thirty-Nine Articles was required from all its members. Its statutes were remodelled by W. Laud; further changes began in the 19th cent. The University had close links with the Church from the beginning and only in modern times has theology ceased to hold a dominant position.

Oxford 1 Town (1990 pop. 12,588), Worcester co., S Mass.; settled 1687 by French Protestants, inc. 1693. It is chiefly residential, with some light manufacturing. Clara Barton was born in the town.

2 City (1990 pop. 9,984), seat of Lafayette co., N central Miss.; inc. 1837. In a farm area, the city is a trading center and has some light manufacturing, but it is principally a university town, the seat of the Univ. of Mississippi ( "Ole Miss" ). In 1962, Oxford was the scene of rioting and conflict when the first black student was enrolled in the university. The city was the home of the novelist William Faulkner and the setting for some of his works. Although the town was burned by Union forces in 1864, many antebellum houses remain. The Mary Buie Museum houses one of the largest doll collections in the United States.

3 Village (1990 pop. 18,937), Butler co., SW Ohio, near the Ind. line, in a farm area; laid out 1810, inc. 1830. It is a residential college town, the seat of Miami Univ. Nearby is a pioneer farm (1835; now a museum).

Oxford City and county district in s central England, on the River Thames; the county town of Oxfordshire. Established as a trading centre and fort, it was raided by the Danes in the 10th and 11th centuries. During the English Civil War the city was a Royalist stronghold. Industries: motor vehicles, steel products, electrical goods, printing and publishing. Pop. (1994) 132,758.

Oxford, Canada, New Zealand, UK, USA UK (England): formerly Oxnaforda and Oxeneford ‘Ford for Oxen’ from the Old English oxa, with the genitive plural oxna, and ford. The county, Oxfordshire, takes its name from the city with the additional scīr. OXFAM, the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief, was founded in the city in 1942.

Oxford Oxon. Oxnaforda 10th cent., Oxeneford 1086 (DB). ‘Ford used by oxen’. OE oxa (genitive plural oxna) + ford. Oxfordshire (OE scīr ‘district’) is first referred to in the 11th cent.

ox·ford / ˈäksfərd/ • n. 1. (also oxford shoe) a type of lace-up shoe with a low heel. 2. (also oxford cloth) a heavy cotton cloth chiefly used to make shirts.

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