University of Oxford slang: The Oxford “-er”
The Oxford slang listed below probably started in public schools, and Cambridge has its own variants, such as “bedder" for the person who cleans bedrooms.
People continued to use the slang after they left university: for instance “Brigger” for “Brigadier” was used by Simon Raven, a Cambridge man, during the Second World War.
Some university slang such as bed-sitter, brekker, champers, footer, rugger, and soccer began to be more generally used.
It has also appears to have been adapted for use with other, non-varsity words: for example “preggers” for “pregnant” (in use by 1942).
Right: The illustration on this postcard is by
(Arthur Henry) Graham Hoggarth (1882–1964),
who read Modern History at Keble College and
would probably have used Oxford slang himself
in the early Edwardian period.
It is dated 1906, and in normal English would read:
‘What do you do for exercise nowadays?’
‘Oh! I help whenever there’s a bonfire.’
Punch (18 May 1895):
It is inevitable, if you converse with a young Oxonian of immature intellect, that he will murder the Queen's, or (as he would call it) Quagger's, English by some such expression as “What a beastly sensagger!” or invite you to “stagger for the dagger” (i.e. stay for the day). But competent authorities are inclined to think that this laborious form of undergraduate wit, or “wagger,” is doomed to speedy “extigger.”
Jackson's Oxford Journal (19 August 1899) explains the rule for creating this kind of Oxford slang:
Take any word in common use; knock the end off and add “er.” If it should sound acceptable, it suffers no further mutilation. If it is still harsh and cacophonous, see what it will look like by striking off its head and the casual removal of an intermediate syllable. All these processes appear to have been gone through in order to produce “Soccer” from Association. Rugby was more fortunate. It had only a tail to lose.
Glossary of University of Oxford slang ending in –er |
|
Adders |
Addison's Walk |
Aeger |
Aegrotat (a certificate that a student is too ill to attend an examination) |
All Soggers |
All Souls College |
Bedder |
Bedroom |
Bed-sitter |
Bedroom and sitting-room combined |
Bodder |
The Bodleian Library |
Bonner |
Bonfire |
Brekker |
Breakfast |
Britter |
|
Buller |
Bullingdon Club |
Bumpers |
Bumps race (in rowing) |
Canader |
A Canadian |
Champers/Shampers |
Champagne |
Collegers |
Collections |
Congratters/Gratters |
Congratulations |
Congregagers praggers |
Congregational practice |
Constituter |
A constitutional walk |
Coronaggers |
Coronation* |
Cuppers |
Intercollegiate sports competitions: name still used |
Dagger or Deaner |
Dean |
Degrugger |
Degree |
Divvers or Diviners |
Divinity examination |
Ekker |
Outdoor exercise |
Footer |
Football (although rugby football in Oxford) |
Fresher |
Freshman |
Giler |
St Giles' |
Gladder |
William Ewart Gladstone (whose fourth and last term as Prime Minister was 1892–1894) |
Jaggers |
Jesus College |
Lekker |
Lecture |
Maggers' Memugger |
Martyrs' Memorial |
Mugger |
Master (of a college) |
Padder |
Paddington station (the London destination of trains from Oxford) |
Pragger jogger |
Practical joke |
Pragger Wagger |
Prince of Wales |
Progger or Proggins |
One of the two Proctors |
Quaggers |
The Queen's College |
Radder |
Radcliffe Camera |
Roller |
Roll call (at morning chapel) |
Rudders |
Rudiments of Divinity |
Rugger |
Rugby football |
Sensagger |
Sensation |
Sigger-sogger |
Sing-song |
Sitter |
Sitting room |
Slacker |
Someone who shirks work |
Soccer |
Association football |
Stagger |
Stay (as in the phrase “stagger for the dagger”) |
Staggers |
St Stephen's House |
Stragger |
Stranger |
Testugger |
Testamur (certificate awarded on passing an examination) |
Toggers |
|
Tosher |
An unattached (non-collegiate) student |
Ugger, The |
The Union (the Oxford Union Society) |
Wagger pagger bagger |
Waste paper basket |
Wekker |
Waistcoat |
Wuggins |
Worcester College |
Many personal names were also adapted in this way, such as |
|
* According to Prince Michael of Kent, Coronaggers was a term used by boys at Sunningdale Prep School for the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II (see Daily Telegraph of 30 April 2022)
Left: This postcard shows one of the University's two Proctors (in full academic dress of sub-fusc, bands, and cap & gown) and two of his Bulldogs waiting around the corner of Balliol College to catch a student who is strolling nonchalantly at night along Broad Street.
The printed caption to this card is:
“The ‘Broad’ Way which leads to Destruction”
and the person (Herle) who on 1 June 1904 sent the card has added by hand underneath:
“The ‘Proggins’ and the ‘Bullers’. ”
See also:
Professor Simon Horobin:
“The linguistic life of an Oxford student”
and
