Regius Professor of Hebrew (Oxford)

Edward Pococke, bust in the cathedral of a 17th-century professor Edward Bouverie Pusey, professor for more than fifty years, 1828 to 1882

The Regius Professorship of Hebrew in the University of Oxford is a professorship at the University of Oxford, founded by Henry VIII in 1546.

In 1630, through the influence of William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury, a canonry of Christ Church was perpetually annexed to the professorship.

## List of Regius Professors[edit]

Incomplete list:

* 1546 or 1547 Thomas Harding[1]
* 1548 Richard Bruerne[2]
* 1559 Thomas Neale
* 1569 Thomas Kingsmill[3]
* 1591 John Harding[4]
* 1598 William Thorne[5]
* 1604 John Harding (again)
* 1610 Richard Kilby
* 1621 Edward Meetkerke[6]
* 1626 John Morris
* 1648 Edward Pococke[7]
* 1691 Roger Altham
* 1697 Thomas Hyde[8]
* 1702 Roger Altham (again)
* 1715 Robert Clavering[9]
* 1747 Thomas Hunt
* 1774 Richard Brown[10]
* 1780 George Jubb
* 1787 Benjamin Blayney
* 1802 Joseph White
* 1814 Richard Laurence
* 1822 Alexander Nicoll[11]
* 1828–1882 Edward Bouverie Pusey[12]
* 1883 Samuel Rolles Driver
* 1914 G. A. Cooke
* 1934 Godfrey Rolles Driver (acting)[13]
* 1936 Herbert Danby
* 1954 Cuthbert Aikman Simpson
* 1959 Sir Godfrey Rolles Driver (acting, second term)[13]
* 1960 William Duff McHardy
* 1978–1989 James Barr[14]
* 1992 Hugh G. M. Williamson[15]
* 2014-2020 Jan Joosten[16]

Godfrey Rolles Driver twice served as acting professor during vacancies, in 1934–1935 and 1959–1960. However, he was not eligible to hold the chair outright, as he was a layman and the chair was attached to an Anglican canonry of Christ Church, requiring the holder to be in holy orders.[13] The university statutes were changed in 1960 to allow William McHardy, a Church of Scotland layman, to be appointed.[17]

The term of Jan Joosten was ended on 3 July 2020 in the wake of criminal charges for possessing images of child sexual abuse.[18]

## References[edit]

1. ^ Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Thomas Harding" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
2. ^ Stephen, Leslie, ed. (1886). "Bruerne, Richard" . Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 7\. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
3. ^ Lee, Sidney, ed. (1892). "Kingsmill, Thomas" . Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 31\. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
4. ^ "John Harding (HRDN584J)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
5. ^ Lee, Sidney, ed. (1898). "Thorne, William (1568?-1630)" . Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 56\. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
6. ^ Gordon Goodwin, 'Meetkerke, Edward (1590–1657), divine', in Dictionary of National Biography (London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1894)
7. ^ Lee, Sidney, ed. (1896). "Pococke, Edward" . Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 46\. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
8. ^ "Hyde, Thomas (HD652T)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
9. ^ "No. 5330". The London Gazette. 17–21 May 1715. p. 1.
10. ^ Foster, Joseph (1888–1892). "Brown, Richard (2)" . Alumni Oxonienses: the Members of the University of Oxford, 1715–1886. Oxford: Parker and Co - via Wikisource.
11. ^ Simpson, R. S. "Nicoll, Alexander". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/20171. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
12. ^ 'Pusey, Edward Bouverie', in Encyclopædia Britannica (1911 edition)
13. ^ a b c J. A. Emerton, 'Driver, Sir Godfrey Rolles (1892–1975)' in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford University Press, 2004)
14. ^ H. G. M. Williamson, Obituary of James Barr at guardian.co.uk
15. ^ Hugh Williamson Archived 2013-02-23 at the Wayback Machine, Christ Church, Oxford, at chch.ox.ac.uk
16. ^ https://www.gov.uk/government/news/regius-professor-of-hebrew-oxford-university-jan-joosten https://www.gov.uk/government/news/regius-professor-of-hebrew-oxford-university-jan-joosten
17. ^ "Professor W D McHardy". The Daily Telegraph. 15 May 2000. Archived from the original on 27 February 2016. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
18. ^ "Christ Church, Oxford: Update regarding Professor Jan Joosten". Retrieved 3 July 2020.