Oxford time

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Oxford time is the custom of having scheduled events occur five minutes past the specified time. It is a peculiar tradition of timekeeping in Oxford, especially in connection with the University of Oxford.[citation needed]

Astronomical background[]

As a result of the rotation of the Earth, the mean solar time of places that differ from each other in longitude deviates from one another; this deviation amounts to four minutes of time per degree difference in geographical longitude, or one hour per fifteen degrees.[citation needed] For a long time, it was common practice in different cities to actually use this local mean solar time as a basis for timekeeping, so that time differences between different cities could also form within one country. It was not until the 19th century that time zones were introduced, whereby a common legal time was defined for a larger area, such as a state.[1] In Great Britain the mean solar time at the Greenwich meridian was defined as the national standard, against which the mean solar time at Oxford is delayed by five minutes.[2]

Oxford time today[]

Out of tradition, local Oxford mean time is still used as a basis for many events in the city, as opposed to the more common Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) defined by the Greenwich meridian.[citation needed] The consequence of this is that, when measured a clock set to GMT, events begin five minutes after the specified time. This applies, for example, to lectures,[3] the closing of college doors[4]and services in Christ Church Cathedral.[5] Despite superficial similarities, the Oxford period, therefore, has a historical background that differs from that of the academic quarter used in some continental European universities.[6]

Unlike GMT, Oxford time observes British summer time, as civil time in the UK does. This means, for example, that during the period when summer time is in effect, a university lecture scheduled for 9:00 Oxford time would commence at 9:05 British Summer Time (BST), corresponding to 8:05 GMT.

Lewis Carroll's White Rabbit checking his watch

In literature[]

Lewis Carroll, who himself taught at Oxford, took Oxford time as the inspiration for the perennially unpunctual White Rabbit in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.[7]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Derek Howse: Greenwich Time and the Longitude. London: Philip Wilson 1997, pp. 106–111.
  2. ^ Simon Eliot: Machines, Materials, and Money. In: Ian Anders Gadd, William Roger Louis (Eds.): History of Oxford University Press: Volume II. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2013, p. 115.
  3. ^ Dawson, Sarah. "10 Things You Didn't Know About the University of Oxford". Culture Trip.
  4. ^ Mark Mason: Mail Obsession. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson 2015.
  5. ^ Richard Lane, Michael Lee: The History of Christ Church Cathedral School, Oxford. Oxford: Shire 2017, p. 22.
  6. ^ Andreas Witte: International regulation and Governance of Time. Max Planck Yearbook of United Nations Law, 2018, pp. 414–415.
  7. ^ Steves, Rick. "Oxford — Always Five Minutes Late".
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