Hilary term Hilary term Hilary term is the second academic term of the Universities of Oxford and Dublin and also Deepdene School near Portslade in East Sussex. It runs from January to March and is so named because the feast day of St Hilary of Poitiers, 14 January, falls during this term. All terms are dated from this day in the following way: The term originated in the legal system. The courts of England and Wales 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
Michaelmas parts of barley, oats, and rye without using any metal implements. In remembrance of absent friends or those who had died, special "Struans", blessed at an early morning Mass, were given to the poor in their names. Nuts were traditionally cracked on Michaelmas Eve. Folklore in the British Isles suggests that Michaelmas day is the last day that blackberries can be picked. It is said that when St Michael expelled Lucifer, the devil, from heaven, he fell from the skies and landed in a prickly blackberry bush. Satan cursed the fruit, scorched them with his fiery breath, stamped, spat and