Robert Wakefield who became the Professor of Hebrew at Oxford in 1540 gave a lecture in 1524, which he delivered in Cambridge entitled ‘De laudibus et utilitate linuarum’ where he supports the value of Arabic, primarily for biblical studies, asserting that the Book of Job was virtually written in Arabic.

In 1555, Richard Argentine a physician who obtained a Doctor of Medicine degree at Cambridge, delivered a speech advocating the teaching of Arabic at both Oxford and Cambridge. Appropriate to his degree, he stressed the benefit of learning Arabic for those practising medicine.