100 Fun & Easy Trivia Questions About Oxford

Section 1: University Life & Lingo

1. What nickname do Oxford students use when referring to Cambridge University?
   Answer: "The Other Place" (It is considered bad luck or just rude to say the "C" word!).

2. What do Oxford students call their teachers/professors?
   Answer: Dons.

3. What is the term for the formal academic dress worn by students during exams?
   Answer: Sub-fusc.

4. What do students call the college staff members who clean their rooms?
   Answer: Scouts.

5. If a student is "sent down," what has happened to them?
   Answer: They have been expelled (or suspended).

6. What is the name of the pigeon hole where students receive their mail?
   Answer: A pidge.

7. What do students call the exams taken at the end of their first year?
   Answer: Prelims or Mods.

8. What is the name of the "party" organized by a college?
   Answer: A Bop (Big Open Party).

9. What is the slang term for a Freshman student?
   Answer: A Fresher.

10. What is the nickname for the Bodleian Library?
    Answer: The Bod.

11. What do you call a student who attends "The Other Place" (Cambridge)?
    Answer: A Tab (short for Cantabrigian).

12. What is the name of the monthly bill students receive from their college?
    Answer: Battels.

13. What is the act of propelling a boat with a long pole called?
    Answer: Punting.

14. What is "Matriculation"?
    Answer: The ceremony where you officially become a member of the university.

15. What do students commonly call the Radcliffe Camera?
    Answer: The Rad Cam.

16. What is a "Blue"?
    Answer: An athlete who competes in a top-level match against Cambridge.

17. What is the Oxford Union famous for?
    Answer: Debating.

18. Which river runs through Oxford (hint: it’s not just the Thames)?
    Answer: The Cherwell (pronounced Char-well).

19. What local name is given to the River Thames as it passes through Oxford?
    Answer: The Isis.

20. What is "Trashing"?
    Answer: The messy tradition of throwing confetti, foam, or food at students who just finished their final exams.

Section 2: Harry Potter & Pop Culture

21. Which Oxford college dining hall inspired the Great Hall in Harry Potter?
    Answer: Christ Church.

22. Which library was used as the "Restricted Section" in the Harry Potter films?
    Answer: Duke Humfrey’s Library (in the Bodleian).

23. Which famous tree at New College was Draco Malfoy turned into a ferret under?
    Answer: The Holm Oak tree.

24. The Divinity School was used as which room in the Harry Potter movies?
    Answer: The Hogwarts Infirmary (Hospital Wing).

25. Which Oxford author wrote Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland?
    Answer: Lewis Carroll.

26. What was Lewis Carroll’s real job at Oxford?
    Answer: He was a Mathematics Don (Lecturer).

27. Which "real" person was Alice in Wonderland named after?
    Answer: Alice Liddell (the daughter of the Dean of Christ Church).

28. In The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials), which college does Lyra live in?
    Answer: Jordan College (a fictional version of Exeter College).

29. Which famous detective TV series is set in Oxford?
    Answer: Inspector Morse (or Lewis / Endeavour).

30. Which Lord of the Rings author was a professor at Oxford?
    Answer: J.R.R. Tolkien.

31. What is the name of the pub where Tolkien and C.S. Lewis used to meet?
    Answer: The Eagle and Child.

32. What was the name of the writing group Tolkien and Lewis belonged to?
    Answer: The Inklings.

33. Which Oxford college did Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) attend as a visiting student?
    Answer: Worcester College.

34. Which James Bond actor studied at Oxford?
    Answer: Rosamund Pike (Die Another Day) or Hugh Grant (not Bond, but in that world!). Correction: It is Rosamund Pike.

35. Which actor who played Mr. Bean has a Master’s degree from Oxford?
    Answer: Rowan Atkinson.

36. Which film starring Hugh Grant features a student obsessed with poetry?
    Answer: Privileged (1982) – though he is famous for Notting Hill, his first film was at Oxford.

37. The "Bridge of Sighs" in Oxford is a replica of a bridge in which Italian city?
    Answer: Venice.

Section 3: Famous Faces (Alumni)

38. Which former US President attended Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar?
    Answer: Bill Clinton.

39. Which famous scientist wrote A Brief History of Time and studied at Oxford?
    Answer: Stephen Hawking.

40. Which British Prime Minister famously studied Chemistry at Oxford?
    Answer: Margaret Thatcher.

41. Who is the youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner, who also studied at Oxford?
    Answer: Malala Yousafzai.

42. Which author wrote The Chronicles of Narnia?
    Answer: C.S. Lewis.

43. Which famous rom-com actor went to New College, Oxford?
    Answer: Hugh Grant.

44. Which creator of the World Wide Web studied at Oxford?
    Answer: Sir Tim Berners-Lee.

45. Which famous children's author of The Cat in the Hat dropped out of Oxford?
    Answer: Dr. Seuss.

46. How many British Prime Ministers have studied at Oxford?
    Answer: Over 28 (including Boris Johnson, Theresa May, David Cameron).

47. Which famous poet wrote The Waste Land and attended Merton College?
    Answer: T.S. Eliot.

48. Which Wilde author and playwright studied at Magdalen College?
    Answer: Oscar Wilde.

49. Which celebrity chef known for River Cottage went to Oxford?
    Answer: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

50. Which Monty Python member attended Oxford?
    Answer: Michael Palin (or Terry Jones).

Section 4: History & Geography

51. Is Oxford older or younger than Cambridge?
    Answer: Older.

52. What century was the University of Oxford founded?
    Answer: The 11th Century (teaching existed in 1096).

53. What is the nickname for the city of Oxford, coined by Matthew Arnold?
    Answer: The City of Dreaming Spires.

54. What is the name of the main square in the city center?
    Answer: Radcliffe Square (or Carfax is the central junction).

55. How many colleges make up Oxford University?
    Answer: 39 (plus 5 Permanent Private Halls).

56. Which is generally considered the oldest college?
    Answer: University College, Balliol, or Merton (it is debated!).

57. Which college was the first to accept women?
    Answer: Lady Margaret Hall.

58. What is the "Carfax Tower"?
    Answer: The remains of a 13th-century church in the center of town.

59. Why is there a statue of a "Martyr" in the middle of the street (St Giles)?
    Answer: The Martyrs' Memorial commemorates three bishops burned at the stake.

60. What famous museum in Oxford is the oldest public museum in the UK?
    Answer: The Ashmolean Museum.

61. Which Oxford landmark was built to house the university press?
    Answer: The Clarendon Building.

62. Where are the Crown Jewels of the University kept?
    Answer: The Ashmolean Museum (some parts) or technically colleges hold their own treasures.

63. What is the "Sheldonian Theatre" used for?
    Answer: Ceremonies like Graduation and Matriculation (not plays!).

64. Which King made Oxford his capital during the Civil War?
    Answer: King Charles I.

65. Did Oxford get bombed during World War II?
    Answer: No, it was largely spared (rumor says Hitler wanted it for his capital).

Section 5: Quirky Traditions & Fun Facts

66. What animal does the college "Corpus Christi" have a golden statue of?
    Answer: A Pelican.

67. Which college owns a herd of deer?
    Answer: Magdalen College.

68. What happens on "May Morning" (May 1st) at 6:00 AM?
    Answer: A choir sings from the top of Magdalen Tower.

69. What unusual animal is kept at the Oxford Museum of Natural History?
    Answer: The most complete remains of a Dodo bird.

70. There is a "Shark" crashing into a house in which Oxford suburb?
    Answer: Headington (The Headington Shark).

71. Which college holds a "Tortoise Race" every year?
    Answer: Corpus Christi College.

72. How long is the "Time Ceremony" at Merton College?
    Answer: 1 hour (students walk backwards to turn back time when clocks change).

73. What is the "Great Tom"?
    Answer: A massive bell at Christ Church college.

74. How many times does Great Tom ring every night at 9:05 PM?
    Answer: 101 times.

75. Why does Great Tom ring at 9:05 PM instead of 9:00 PM?
    Answer: Because Oxford is technically 5 minutes west of Greenwich Mean Time (Oxford Time).

76. What is forbidden to walk on in the college quadrangles (quads)?
    Answer: The grass (unless you are a Don).

77. Which college has a door that is said to inspire the door in Narnia?
    Answer: St Mary’s Passage (The door with the fawn carvings).

78. What is the rivalry between Oxford and Cambridge in sports called?
    Answer: The Varsity Match.

79. Where does the famous Oxford vs Cambridge Boat Race take place?
    Answer: London (on the Thames), not Oxford or Cambridge!

80. What color is associated with Oxford University sports teams?
    Answer: Dark Blue.

81. What color is Cambridge?
    Answer: Light Blue.

82. What is the "Mallard Song" tradition at All Souls College?
    Answer: Once every 100 years, they hunt a legendary giant mallard duck.

83. Which college has a "beer cellar" that is the oldest in Oxford?
    Answer: The cellar at St Edmund Hall (Teddy Hall).

84. What is the name of the oldest botanical garden in the UK, located in Oxford?
    Answer: The Oxford Botanic Garden.

85. What stands on top of the dome of the Radcliffe Camera?
    Answer: Nothing—it’s just a spiked ball/finial.

86. True or False: Oxford University has a central campus.
    Answer: False (it is made up of colleges spread throughout the city).

87. What is the "Covered Market" famous for?
    Answer: Ben’s Cookies and fresh local food.

88. What is the punishment for being caught in a library with coffee?
    Answer: A fine (or a stern look from a librarian!).

89. Which college did the current Emperor of Japan study at?
    Answer: Merton College.

90. What is "High Table"?
    Answer: The table on a raised platform where professors eat dinner, looking down on students.

Section 6: Quick Fire Round

91. Is the University of Oxford a private or public university?
    Answer: Public.

92. What is the speed limit for cars in most of Oxford city center?
    Answer: 20 mph.

93. What is the name of the bus that goes from Oxford to London?
    Answer: The Oxford Tube.

94. What famous "comma" is named after the university?
    Answer: The Oxford Comma.

95. What is the motto of the University?
    Answer: Dominus Illuminatio Mea (The Lord is my Light).

96. Which college is nicknamed "The House"?
    Answer: Christ Church.

97. Can you visit the colleges if you are a tourist?
    Answer: Yes, most of them (for a small fee).

98. What is the name of the bookstore that has 3 miles of shelving underground?
    Answer: Blackwell’s.

99. What insect is the "Nuffield" college crest associated with (jokingly)?
    Answer: None, but the college is modern. (Bonus: The "nose" on the Brasenose crest is a fun symbol).

100. If you graduate from Oxford, are you an Oxonian or a Cantabrigian?
     Answer: An Oxonian.