走進劍橋大學第32期:牛津劍橋如影隨形

所屬教程:走進劍橋大學

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2018年04月25日

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Oxbridge

牛津劍橋如影隨形

Oxbridge is a composite of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge which are most famous in England and the term is now used to refer to them collectively, often with implications of perceived superior intellectual or social status. Oxbridge can be used as a noun referring to either or both universities or as an adjective describing them or their students.

“牛橋”是一個合成詞，是英國兩所最知名的大學牛津大學和劍橋大學的合稱?，F(xiàn)在這個詞常用來代指這兩所大學，通常寓示著更高等的教育或社會地位。“牛橋” 可以作為一個普通名詞使用，指代兩所大學里任何一個學校，也可以用作一個形容詞來修飾這兩所大學或它們的學生。

Although both universities were founded more than seven centuries ago, the term Oxbridge is relatively young. In William Thackeray's novel Pendennis, published in 1849, the main character Pendennis wants to attend the fictional College, Oxbridge, but failed. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, this is the first recorded instance of the word. Virginia Woolf used it, citing Thackeray, in her 1929 essay A Room of One's Own. By 1957 the term was used in the Times Educational Supplement and in Universities Quarterly by 1958. Thackeray's Pendennis also introduced the term Camford as another combination of the university names, but this term has never achieved the same degree of usage as Oxbridge.

盡管兩所大學都建成于7個多世紀以前，“牛橋”這個說法卻相對年輕。英國作家威廉薩克雷1849年完成的小說《潘登尼斯》中的主人公想進入一所叫“牛橋”的大學求學卻沒有被錄取。根據(jù)牛津英語詞典,這是關于這個詞的最早記載。弗吉尼亞伍爾夫曾經在她1929年的散文《一個人的屋子》中引用了這個詞。1957年，泰晤士報的教育增刊用到了這個詞，1958年大學季刊也使用了這個詞。薩克雷在《潘登尼斯》中還創(chuàng)造了這兩所大學的另外一個合成詞“劍津”，但這個詞從來就沒有“牛橋”的使用頻率高。

Oxbridge is often used as shorthand for characteristics that the two institutions share. Firstly, they are the two oldest universities in continuous operation in England. Both were founded more than 800 years ago, and continued as England's only universities until the 19th century. Between them they have educated a large number of Britain’s most prominent scientists, writers and politicians, as well as noted figures in many other fields. Besides, they have established similar institutions and facilities such as printing houses, botanical gardens, museums, and debating societies. In addition, both universities comprise many buildings of great beauty and antiquity，sited on level terrain ideal for cycling, near slow- moying rivers suitable for rowing and punting. At each of the universities there is a college which has a Bridge of Sighs”，although neither resembles the original Bridge of Sighs in Venice.

牛橋通常被用來指代兩所大學共有的特征。首先，他們是英國歷史最為久遠的兩所大學。他們都有超過800年的建校史,直至19世紀，他們仍是英格蘭僅有的兩所大學。英國最著名的科學家、作家和政治家及其他各界幾乎所有的知名人士都出自這兩所大學。此外，他們還有相似的機構和設施，比如出版社、植物園、博物館、辯論社等。兩所大學還都有許多漂亮的古建筑，坐落在地勢平坦的地方，旁邊有靜靜流淌的河流，在這里騎車、劃船，撐篙十分愜意。兩所大學各有一座“嘆息橋”，盡管和威尼斯的嘆息橋重名，但它們截然不同。

Oxford and Cambridge also share a common collegiate structure: each university is composed of more than 30 autonomous colleges, which provide the environments in which groups of students live, work and sleep. Applicants must choose a specific college when applying to Oxford or Cambridge, or allow the university to select one for them, as all undergraduate and graduate students must be a member of one of the university colleges. All Oxbridge colleges are part of the university, and students studying the same subject are given lectures together, irrespective of which college they attend.

牛津和劍橋有著相似的組織結構：它們都由30多所獨立學院組成。學生們可以在這樣的氛圍中一起住宿、工作和休息。申請人在申請這兩所大學的時候必須選擇一個特定的學院，或者讓校方為學生選擇學院，因為所有的本科生和研究生必須成為某個學院的一員。牛橋的每個學院都是大學的一部分，不管在哪個學院，選擇同樣課程的學生都在一起上課。

Competition between Oxford and Cambridge also has a long history, dating back to around 1209 when Cambridge was founded by scholars taking refuge from hostile townsmen in Oxford.

牛津和劍橋之間有很長的競爭史，可以回溯到1209年左右，那個時候一些牛津學者為了躲避反對他們的人而來到劍橋，建立了劍橋大學。