The Isis is the name given to the part of the River Thames above Iffley Lock which flows through the city of Oxford. The name is especially used in the context of rowing at the University of Oxford. Historically, and especially in Victorian times, gazetteers and cartographers insisted that the river Thames was correctly named the River Isis[1] from its source until Dorchester-on-Thames, where the river meets the River Thame and becomes the "Thame-isis" (from which the Latin (or pre-Roman Celtic) name Tamesis is derived), subsequently abbreviated to Thames; current Ordnance Survey maps still label the Thames as "River Thames or Isis" until Dorchester. Since the early 20th century this distinction has been lost in common usage even in Oxford, and some historians[2] suggest the name Isis is nothing more than part of Tamesis, the Latin name for the Thames.
A number of rowing regattas are held on the Isis, including Eights Week, the most important Oxford University regatta, in the Trinity term (summer), Torpids in the Hilary term (spring) and Christ Church Regatta for novices in the Michaelmas term (autumn). Because the width of the river is restricted at Oxford, rowing eights normally have a staggered start near Donnington Bridge and must then aim to "bump" the eight in front (i.e., catch up and touch or overlap with it sufficiently). The leading eight aims to "row over" (i.e., finish the race without being bumped).
The name Isis is also used for the second rowing crew of Oxford University Boat Club, who race against the second crew of the Cambridge University Boat Club, Goldie, before the annual Boat Race on the Thames in London.
The Isis, like much of the Thames, has long been popular among anglers for its freshwater fish, including trout and crayfish. The Oxford region is home to several angling clubs. W.F. Wallett, a popular Victorian clown, shares in his memoirs his own humorous anecdote about fishing in the Isis with the celebrated circus proprietor Pablo Fanque:
| “ | For a few days I amused myself with Pablo Fanque fishing in the Isis. Pablo was a very expert angler, and would usually catch as many fish as five or six of us within sight of him put together. This suggested a curious device. You must know that Pablo is a coloured man. One of the Oxonians, with more love for angling than skill, thought there must be something captivating in the complexion of Pablo. He resolved to try. One morning, going down to the river an our or two earlier than usual, we were astonished to find the experimental philosophic angler with his face blacked after the most approved style of the Christy Minstrels[3] | ” |
Sculptures of Isis and Tamesis by Anne Seymour Damer can be found on Henley Bridge downstream at Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire.[4]