Oxbridge

Oxbridge is a portmanteau name for the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, the two oldest in the United Kingdom and the English-speaking universe. Due to their similarities in terms of culture, prestige and history, there was a natural need to refer to both institutions with a single term. Although occasionally an alternative portmanteau, 'Camford', has been suggested, 'Oxbridge' remains by far the more popular term for the two universities. When formally referring to the two institutions, both names are usually used, as in The Cambridge & Oxford Society of Tokyo http://www.camford.org/, and the United Oxford & Cambridge University Club.

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Although both Oxford and Cambridge were founded more than seven centuries ago, the name 'Oxbridge' is relatively young. In William Thackeray's bildungsroman, Pendennis, published in 1849, the main character attends Boniface College, Oxbridge. This is one of the first recorded instances of the word, but it did not enter common usage until the middle of the 20th century.

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Other portmanteau names are occasionally derived from the term 'Oxbridge', either adding or replacing universities in the portmanteau - for example, Doxbridge refers to Oxford, Cambridge and the University of Durham, and is most notably in use as the name of an annual sports tournament involving the three institutions. None of these newer terms, however, has achieved as widespread usage as the term 'Oxbridge', which is a "household name" in the UK.

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It is the practise of members of Cambridge and Oxford Universities to refer to each other's University or city as 'The Other Place'.

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Portmanteau: :For other uses, see (disambiguation)....

Universities: REDIRECT university...

Oxford: : This article is about the city of Oxford in England. See also other meanings, including other cities....