Hilary term is the second academic term of the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

Oxford University: Regulations on the number and lengths of terms
, University of Oxford, UK. and the

University of Dublin The University of Dublin ( ga, Ollscoil Átha Cliath), corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin, is a university located in Dublin, Ireland. It is the degree-awarding body for Trinity College Dub ...

. It runs from January to March and is so named because the feast day of St Hilary of

Poitiers Poitiers (, , , ; Poitevin: ''Poetàe'') is a city on the River Clain in west-central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and the historical centre of Poitou. In 2017 it had a population of 88,291. Its agglome ...

, 14 January, falls during this term. All terms are dated from this day in the following way: * Michaelmas term — 13 Sundays before to 5 Sundays before the feast day of St Hilary * Hilary term — 1 Sunday to 9 Sundays after the feast day of St Hilary * Trinity term — 15 Sundays to 21 Sundays after the feast day of St Hilary The term originated in the legal system during medieval times. The

courts of England and Wales The courts of England and Wales, supported administratively by His Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service, are the civil and criminal courts responsible for the administration of justice in England and Wales. The United Kingdom does not have ...

and the Courts of Ireland divide the legal year into four terms: Hilary, Easter, Trinity and Michaelmas. At the University of Oxford, following the resolution made by Council on 8 May 2002, Hilary Term begins on and includes 7 January and ends on and includes 25 March or the Saturday before Palm Sunday, whichever is the earlier. In Hilary Term, as in

Michaelmas Term Michaelmas term is the first academic term of the academic year in a number of English-speaking universities and schools in the northern hemisphere, especially in the United Kingdom. Michaelmas term derives its name from the Feast of St Micha ...

and in Trinity Term, there is a period of eight weeks known as Full Term, beginning on a Sunday, within which lectures and other instruction prescribed by statute or regulation are given. The dates on which each Full Term will begin and end in the next academic year but one are published by the Registrar in the University Gazette during Hilary Term.

See also

References

Further reading