Notion is a highly specialised form of slang used by pupils at Winchester College. Each slang word or expression is known as a notion.

Some notions are created by shortening phrases - for example, the Dons' Common Room Notice Board became Do Co Ro No Bo; other notions derive from Latin - for example, foricas (Latin for 'lavatory') was shortened to fo. Thus a pupil might comment, "It's fortunate that the Do Co Ro has its own fo."

Some more examples of notions are:

• toll instead of run
• bogle instead of bicycle
• lob instead of cry

It is frowned upon to use standard English if there is a notion available. Until recently, all students underwent a 'notions test' administered by the prefects.

A notion can also be defined as "a manner or tradition peculiar to Winchester College". Hence the activity "morning hills", when the whole school gets up early in the morning to meet on the top of a nearby hill, can also be referred to as a notion.

College notions

Notions (always plural) also used to be an annual event unique to College, the scholars' house, held on a Saturday evening at the end of short half (the autumn term). It marked the point at which the New Men (new entrants to College) traditionally became known as Jun: Men (junior men). During the evening, the scholars would gather by chamber for a meal, cooked by its members. Each chamber would also have a costume theme and, a few weeks in advance, the prefect in charge of each chamber would allocate fictional characters to each member of the chamber, who was then expected to dress up as that character. Examples of themes include 'Harry Potter', 'James Bond', and 'The Greek Gods'. After the meal, there would be a notions test. Unlike those in the commoner houses, this test consisted of a series of esoteric questions, the answers to which the first years were expected to have learnt earlier that afternoon. Most questions were humorous in nature and many referred to people and activities from the beginning of the twentieth century. If a first year got a question wrong he would be liable to have the remnants of the meal thrown at him. After the test (which no-one could actually fail), all seventy Collegemen would gather in Chamber Court to sing College songs.

The following questions are some of the more memorable:

• Who put the apple in the teapot? Somebody else.
• What was found by the coalhole in the coalhole? 5000 tons of processed peas.
• How many feathers are there in a clump? 7; 77; 777; 7777 &c. [until told to stop]

If the Jun Man got a question wrong, he could answer "My pater [mentor from the year above] forgot to tell me," and his pater would be asked instead.

Many traditional College events have been heavily modified, or even completely stopped, in recent years, in order to comply with Health and Safety regulations, and also out of recognition that some of the more distasteful aspects could not be considered 'harmless fun'.

Notions itself last happened in 2001. The last two Notions tests were slightly different from the tradition outlined above: the meal eaten was cooked by the College kitchens (and, owing to its lack of edibility, was more useful as ammunition for food-fights than for its nutritional value). The questions were just the same as before, but some of the College songs were removed as they were offensive - however, a certain degree of unlicensed singing did occur.

Pempe Sunday, which happens on the third sunday of Short Half, was in abeyance from 2000 until 2002, but was restarted in 2003. The new first years are given a list of notional names, and have to find the people to whom those names correspond. Once they have found these people, they then have to find first the College Matriarch and then the College Patriarch, after which they are allowed to throw any top-year into Logie, the stream which runs past the College. (Originally they were allowed to roll them down the steps up to College Hall, but this practice was stopped for obvious reasons). Examples of notional names include "The Keeper of the College Ugly Sister", "The College Co-founder of J&J Incorporated" and "College Dorothy with Pickaxe in Spinal Column".

Epideixes is an event held in VIIth chamber on the night before the first game of X's, and involves the captain of X's asking a list of questions of the form "Who is the..." or "Who does..." (identifying people by their notional names, or activities that they may have perpetrated). The relevant people then run into the centre of the chamber shouting "Co-o-o-llege!". It is still very much as it was, although the questions are now vetted.

References

Winchester Notions: The English Dialect of Winchester College [ISBN 0485115255] (Hardback), or [ISBN 0485121387] (paperback).