Oxford Jewish Thought

The motto of the University of Oxford, the oldest university in the English-speaking world, founded around 1167, is Dominus Illuminatio Mea. The motto that appears on the university's coat of arms depicting an open book surrounded by three crowns[1] is taken from the book of Psalms[2] and means: ‘The Lord is my light’. It has been in use at least since the second half of the 16th century[3] when there was a revival of interest in the Hebrew Bible and the Hebrew language, as a sacred language, at Oxford. This revival is reflected by a number of developments during that period. This includes the establishment of the Regius professorship of Hebrew at the University of Oxford by Henry VIII in 1546; the translation of the King James… Read More »