Contacts | Program of Study | Major Requirements | Summary of Requirements: Language and Culture Track | Summary of Requirements: Archaeology Track | Grading | Advising | BA Research Project | Minor Program in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations | Program Requirements for the Minor | Courses

Department Website: http://nelc.uchicago.edu

Program of Study

Majors in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC) at the University of Chicago pursue rigorous knowledge about a region of the world that is known as “the cradle of civilization” and the home of several important religious and cultural traditions, as well as one of the most important geopolitical areas of our contemporary world. NELC majors acquire languages; learn how archaeologists, economists, historians, linguists, literary scholars, and careful readers of legal, religious, economic, and other kinds of texts critically evaluate evidence; and acquire, largely in small class settings, analytical writing, thinking, and research skills that will help prepare them for a variety of careers.

Geographically centered on the Nile to Oxus and Danube to Indus region, NELC also embraces North Africa and Islamic Spain, as well as Central Asia and the Balkans in its ambit, from the early Bronze Age to the recent era of revolutions. Students can gain expertise in a wide variety of languages, including the living spoken tongues of the modern Middle East and Central Asia (Arabic, Armenian, modern Hebrew, Kazakh, Persian, Turkish, and Uzbek) or languages that open gateways onto the ancient past and the scriptures of contemporary religious traditions (Aramaic, Babylonian, Biblical Hebrew, Coptic, Egyptian Hieroglyphics, Elamite, Ge’ez, Hittite, Middle and Old Persian, Ottoman, Syriac, Ugaritic, etc.).

In an interdisciplinary area studies department like NELC, majors learn about the region through primary sources (material, oral, or textual) and scholarly analysis, structuring their curriculum around various disciplines and methodologies, including stratigraphy and paleobotany, comparative literature, cultural and civilizational studies, economics and numismatics, gender studies, history (economic, political, religious, and social), human rights, public policy, and digital humanities approaches. 

Areas of specialization within NELC include:

  • Arabic Studies
  • Armenian Studies
  • Archaeology and Art of the Ancient Near East
  • Classical Hebrew Language and Civilization
  • Cuneiform Studies (including Assyriology, Hittitology, and Sumerology)
  • Egyptian Languages and Civilization
  • History (Ancient Near East, Islamic History, Modern Middle Eastern History)
  • Islamic Thought (including Law, Sufism)
  • Israeli and Jewish Studies (including Biblical and Modern Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac)
  • Persian and Iranian Studies (Culture, Language, Literature, History, Religion)
  • Semitic Languages and Literatures (Comparative Semitics, Northwest Semitics)
  • Turkish and Ottoman Studies (Culture, History, Languages, Literatures)

Students who major in NELC who are interested in learning one or more of the languages we teach as a means of access to the cultures of the ancient Near East and/or the modern Middle East can do so in the Language and Culture Track of the NELC major, while students who are more interested in developing their knowledge of the material cultures of the Near East and of the concepts and techniques of archaeology can do so in the Archaeology Track of the NELC major. In consultation with the Director of Undergraduate Studies, each student chooses an area of specialization and devises a program of study that provides a sound basis for graduate work in that area or for a career in business, education, government, journalism, law, museology, public policy, public service, or a variety of other disciplines and professions.

Major Requirements

Requirements for the NELC major vary quite substantially between the Language and Culture Track on the one hand, and the Archaeology Track on the other hand. Specific requirements for each track are described below. The Director of Undergraduate Studies and the Department Administrator are available to answer questions, discuss programs of study, and support students as they make their way through the major in NELC. Students are encouraged to track their progress through requirements by using our major worksheet (available on the NELC website). NELC strongly encourages students to study abroad if they are able. Civilization sequences offered in the Study Abroad programs at Istanbul, Marrakesh, Cairo, and Jerusalem (300 units in one quarter) fulfill the requirements of the NELC major in terms of civilization courses. Language courses taken abroad can also be counted towards the major, after evaluation by the NELC coordinator for the language and approval by the Director of Undergraduate Studies. Students should consult the website of the Study Abroad program study-abroad.uchicago.edu for further details.

Thirteen courses and a Research Project are required for a NELC major.

Summary of Requirements: Language and Culture Track

Two or three quarters of one of the following civilization sequences: *200-300
NEHC 20011
  &  20012
  &  20013
  &  20014
  &  20015
  &  20016
  &  20017
Ancient Empires I: The Hittite Empire
   and Ancient Empires II: The Ottoman Empire
   and Ancient Empires III :The Egyptian Empire of the New Kingdom
   and Ancient Empires IV: the Achaemenid Empire
   and Ancient Empires V: The Umayyad
   and Ancient Empires VI: The Assyrian Empire
   and Ancient Empires VII: Sumerians and Akkadians
Islamicate Civilization I-II-III
Ancient Near Eastern Thought and Literature I-II-III
Islamic History and Society I-II-III
Islamic Thought and Literature I-II-III
Jewish Civilization I: Ancient Beginnings to Medieval Period
   and Jewish Civilization II: Early Modern Period to 21st Century
   and Jewish Civilization III - Philosophical Responses to the Holocaust +
Six courses in one Near Eastern language, or three courses each in two of the Near Eastern languages (e.g., Arabic, Armenian, Babylonian, Egyptian, Hebrew, Kazakh, Persian, Turkish, Uzbek) **600
Three or four elective courses in the student’s area of specialization ++300-400
NEHC 29899Research Colloquium100
Total Units1300

Summary of Requirements: Archaeology Track

One archaeological methods course100
Introduction to Archaeology
One course in geographic information science 100
Ancient Landscapes I
Introduction to Geocomputation
Three methodologically oriented courses, chosen from among the following: *300
Ceramic Analysis in Archaeology
Introduction to Zooarchaeology
Ancient Landscapes II
Archaeological Data Sets
Bioarchaeology and Forensic Anthropology: Approaches to the Past
Human Origins: Milestones in Human Evolution and the Fossil Record
Three courses in the archaeology, history, or culture of the region(s) of interest offered by NELC or another department, for example: +300
Archaeology of the Ancient Near East I-II-III-VI
Introduction to Islamic Archaeology
Archaeology of Anyang: Bronzes, Inscriptions, and World Heritage
Archaeology of Bronze Age China
Two courses in a relevant foreign language, ancient or modern, chosen in consultation with the NELC Director of Undergraduate Studies.200
One course in statistical methods100
Statistical Methods and Applications **
Data Analysis I: Introduction to Statistics
NEAA 20091Field Archaeology ++100
NEHC 29899Research Colloquium100
Total Units1300

Grading

All courses used to meet requirements in the major must be taken for quality grades with the exception of the NEHC 29899 Research Colloquium, which is taken for P/F grading.

Advising

As soon as they declare their major in NELC, students must consult the Director of Undergraduate Studies to plan their programs of study. In Autumn Quarter of their fourth year, all NELC students must see the Director of Undergraduate Studies with an updated degree program and transcript.

BA Research Project

NELC majors are required to elaborate a substantial Research Project during their fourth year. In most cases, students choose to write a BA thesis, in the form of an original academic essay of approximately 30 to 50 pages. Upon agreement with instructors and the Director of Undergraduate Studies, the NELC major Research Project also allows for less traditional forms of knowledge production, such as (but not exclusively limited to) artistic expressions supported by a research question, various forms of research-oriented endeavors using computational methods (including geographic information systems), etc.

The timeline below assumes a Spring Quarter graduation. Students who expect to graduate in other quarters should consult the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

Year 3: Spring Quarter

NELC majors in their third year should discuss possible topics for their Research Project with NELC faculty members with whom they have worked or who have expertise in their topic. This may grow out of a paper written from a course or may be an entirely new project.

After choosing a topic and narrowing down its focus, students are responsible to request a member of the NELC faculty to serve as their research adviser, who will help them further conceive the scope and aims of the project and provide guidance about methods and sources for carrying out their research.

Students must formally file the Research Topic Registration Form with their faculty adviser’s signature with the NELC department office before the end of their third year (by Monday of ninth week of Spring Quarter).

Year 4: Autumn Quarter

Students are required to register for NEHC 29899 Research Colloquium in Autumn Quarter of their fourth year. NEHC 29899 is a workshop course designed to survey the fields represented by NELC and to assist students in researching and finalizing their Research Projects. The instructor works closely with students and their faculty advisers to assist in all aspects of conceiving, researching, and writing. A passing grade (P) for NEHC 29899 depends on full attendance and participation throughout the quarter and is required to graduate with a NELC major. Students who pursue a double major and take an equivalent seminar in their other major may petition the Director of Undergraduate Studies in NELC to have this seminar be counted in lieu of NEHC 29899.

Year 4: Winter Quarter 

NELC majors are encouraged to enroll with the Director of Undergraduate Studies for an optional one-quarter independent study course NEHC 29995 Research Project. This will allow time in their schedules over Winter Quarter to work on and revise their projects under the guidance of the instructor in charge of the Autumn Research Colloquium. Students will receive a quality grade for this course, equivalent to the final Research Project grade, reported in the Spring Quarter.

Year 4: Spring Quarter

The completed Research Project must be submitted to the NELC office by Monday of third week in Spring Quarter. For theses, students should email a PDF copy of their research to the Department Administrator (students should discuss with their faculty adviser whether they prefer a paper copy); for digital projects and other non-traditional projects, students are responsible for discussing in advance with their faculty adviser and the Department Administrator the format under which their work should be submitted. The Department Administrator will distribute the Research Projects to the faculty adviser. Students who fail to meet the deadline will not be eligible for honors and may not be able to graduate in that quarter.

The faculty adviser will grade the Research Project and submit grades and honors recommendations to the Director of Undergraduate Studies by Monday of fifth week in Spring Quarter.

Double Majors

Students intending to double major may, with the permission of the NELC Director of Undergraduate Studies, write a single Research Project that is designed to meet the requirements of both majors. Approval from both Directors of Undergraduate Studies is required. A consent form, to be signed by the Directors of Undergraduate Studies, is available from the College adviser. It must be completed and returned to the College adviser by the end of Autumn Quarter of the student’s year of graduation.

Research Funding

Students are encouraged to begin the reading and research for their Research Project in the summer before their fourth year. Research grants are available to undergraduates. Please discuss the availability of grants with the Department Administrator and/or Director of Undergraduate Studies early in the third year and visit the department website for updated information.

Honors

Students who complete their course work and their Research Project with distinction are considered for honors. To be eligible for honors, students must have an overall GPA of 3.25 or higher, they must have a NELC GPA of 3.5 or higher, and they must have earned a grade of A on the Research Project.

Prizes

The department awards the Justin Palmer Prize annually to the Research Project judged to be the most outstanding. The Director of Undergraduate Studies makes this determination in consultation with the department chair and faculty members. This monetary prize is made possible by a generous gift from the family of Justin Palmer, AB’04, who completed a minor in NELC.


Minor Program in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations

Students in the College with an interest in the languages, cultures, and archaeology of the Middle East or of the ancient Near East may pursue a minor in NELC. Completion of this minor certifies that students' undergraduate course work at the University of Chicago has prepared them with language skills, field-specific knowledge and methods, and cultural competency that can give them an advantage on the job market for a wide variety of careers—in business, in medicine or law, in the public sector, or in museums and cultural heritage.

Students who wish to take a minor in NELC must meet with the Director of Undergraduate Studies before the end of Spring Quarter of their third year to declare their intention to complete the minor. Students must submit the Consent to Complete a Minor Program form to their College adviser by the deadline above. The Director of Undergraduate Studies and the Department Administrator are available to answer questions, discuss programs of study, and support students as they make their way through the minor in NELC. Students are encouraged to track their progress through requirements by using our minor worksheet, which can be found on the NELC website

Program Requirements for the Minor

Students may choose one of three tracks: Language, Culture, or Archaeology. The first two tracks require a two- or three-quarter NELC civilization sequence which can be taken on campus or in one of the Study Abroad programs focusing on the Middle East (see Major Requirements for more detail on civilization sequences). In addition, the Language Track requires three courses of one NELC language at any level. Students using a NELC sequence to satisfy the general education requirement in civilization studies may seek approval from the department to substitute additional language course work in place of the civilization requirement in the minor. The Culture Track allows students to focus on such topics as history, religion, or literature in translation and does not have a language requirement. The Archaeology Track requires NEAA 20100 Introduction to Archaeology, one introductory course in geographical systems analysis (either NEAA 20061 Ancient Landscapes I or GISC 28100 Introduction to Geocomputation), two methodologically oriented courses (see Major Requirements for more detail on these courses), and two elective courses in the archaeology, history, or culture of the region(s) of interest offered by NELC or another department.

The six courses in the minor may not be double counted with a student's major(s) or with other minors, and they may not be counted toward general education requirements. Courses in the minor must be taken for quality grades.

Language Track Sample Minor

NEHC 20004-20005-20006Ancient Near Eastern Thought and Literature I-II-III300
HEBR 10101-10102-10103Elementary Classical Hebrew I-II-III300
Total Units600

Language Track Sample Minor

ARAB 20101-20102-20103Intermediate Arabic I-II-III300
NEHC 20601-20602-20603Islamic Thought and Literature I-II-III300
Total Units600

Culture Track Sample Minor

NEHC 20011
  &  20012
  &  20013
Ancient Empires I: The Hittite Empire
   and Ancient Empires II: The Ottoman Empire
   and Ancient Empires III :The Egyptian Empire of the New Kingdom
300
NEHC 20004-20005-20006Ancient Near Eastern Thought and Literature I-II-III300
Total Units600

Archaeology Track Sample Minor

NEAA 20100Introduction to Archaeology100
NEAA 10020Ceramic Analysis in Archaeology100
NEAA 20035Introduction to Zooarchaeology100
NEAA 20003Archaeology of the Ancient Near East III: Levant100
NEAA 20006Archaeology of the Ancient Near East VI: Egypt100
GISC 28100Introduction to Geocomputation100
Total Units600

Akkadian Courses

AKKD 10501-10502-10503. Introduction to Babylonian I-II-III.

Introduction to Babylonian

AKKD 10501. Introduction to Babylonian I. 100 Units.

Introduction to the grammar of Akkadian, specifically to the Old Babylonian dialect. The class covers the first half of the Old Babylonian grammar, an introduction to the cuneiform script, and easy translation exercises.

Instructor(s): Susanne Paulus     Terms Offered: Autumn

AKKD 10502. Introduction to Babylonian II. 100 Units.

This course is the second quarter of the annual introductory sequence to the Babylonian language and the Cuneiform script. Students will further explore the grammar of Babylonian in its Old Babylonian dialect (19th-16th c. BCE) and read ancient inscriptions (especially the Laws of Hammu-rabi) in the Old Babylonian monumental script. They will also be introduced to the Old Babylonian cursive used in letters and the documents of everyday life.

Instructor(s): Herve Reculeau     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): AKKD 10501 or equivalent

AKKD 10503. Introduction to Old Babylonian III. 100 Units.

This course is the third quarter of the annual introductory sequence to the Babylonian language and the Cuneiform script. After covering the grammar in the first two quarters, students will further their mastering of the Classical and Late Old Babylonian dialect of Akkadian and the associated monumental and cursive scripts by reading through a varieties of text genres: Letters, Royal Inscriptions, Legal Texts, and excerpts of Literature.

Instructor(s): Ryan Winters     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): AKKD 10502 or equivalent

AKKD 20352. Neo-Babylonian Legal Texts. 100 Units.

Neo-Babylonian Legal Texts

Instructor(s): Martha Roth     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): 2 years Akkadian or permission of instructor
Equivalent Course(s): AKKD 30350

AKKD 20604. Intermediate Akkadian - The Standard Babylonian Gilgamesh Epic. 100 Units.

This course expands and cements students' knowledge of the Akkadian language through readings from the most famous work of literature from ancient Mesopotamia, the Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh. Our focus will be on deepening proficiency in grammar and reading cuneiform signs, on developing understanding of the literary dialect of Standard Babylonian, and on the pleasures of collectively reading this profound, perplexing, and beautiful text. We will also consider a range of issues relevant to the study of Babylonian literature: critical use of sign lists, dictionaries, and other Assyriological resources; questions of translation; and matters of cuneiform textual criticism, particularly those that arise from the study of texts known from multiple manuscripts.

Instructor(s): Jane Gordon     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): One year of Akkadian
Equivalent Course(s): AKKD 30604

Ancient Anatolian Languages Courses

AANL 20120. Advanced Hittite: Literary Texts. 100 Units.

This course focuses on Hittite literary texts. The texts are read in cuneiform and placed in their social-historical context. The reading hones the student's philological skills. We will study both translated literature, such as the Gilgamesh epic, and indigenous literature. Hittite indigenous literature has often been dismissed as unsophisticated, but recent research has led to a reevaluation. Guided by this research we will further explore the literariness of indigenous literature and its relationship to translated literature. We will also engage with recent work on the influence of Hittite literature on Greek literature.

Instructor(s): Petra Goedegebuure     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Elementary Hittite I, II, III
Equivalent Course(s): AANL 30120

AANL 20301. Late Hieroglyphic Luwian (ca. 1200-700BCE) 100 Units.

This course introduces the student to the grammar and writing system of the Hieroglyphic Luwian language of the first millennium BC (1000 to 700). Once the grammar is discussed, older and younger texts of that period are read, including the Karatepe Bilingual.

Instructor(s): Goedegebuure, Petra     Terms Offered: Spring

Arabic Courses

ARAB 10101-10102-10103. Elementary Arabic I-II-III.

This sequence concentrates on the acquisition of speaking, reading, and aural skills in modern formal Arabic. The class meets for five days a week, 50 minutes each day.

ARAB 10101. Elementary Arabic I. 100 Units.

Elementary Arabic is a 3-course, year-long sequence intended for complete beginners. It targets both literacy in the formal, standard, written form of Arabic (fuSHa), and also integrates the spoken dialect ('ammiyyah) when needed. Through in-class practice and intensive homework projects, students will gain a solid foundation in the four skills (reading, writing, speaking, listening). At the end of the sequence, students will gain basic functional fluency on a variety of personal topics (self, family, studies, location, daily activities, etc.). These courses adopt a project-based approach to learning, and therefore meet three times a week for 80 minutes.

Instructor(s): Aidan Kaplan, Osama Abu Eledam, Zainab Hermes     Terms Offered: Autumn

ARAB 10102. Elementary Arabic II. 100 Units.

This sequence concentrates on the acquisition of speaking, reading, and aural skills in modern formal Arabic.

Instructor(s): Aidan Kaplan, Osama Au Eledam, Zainab Hermes,      Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 10101 or equivalent

ARAB 10103. Elementary Arabic III. 100 Units.

This sequence concentrates on the acquisition of speaking, reading, and aural skills in modern formal Arabic.

Instructor(s): Zainab Hermes, Aidan Kaplan, Osama Abu Eledam     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 10102 or equivalent

ARAB 10123. Summer Intensive Arabic Level 1. 300 Units.

Summer Intensive Arabic Level I is an eight-week course designed to introduce complete novices to the fundamentals of Arabic in the four language skills (speaking, listening, reading, and writing). Classes are small and use the Alif Baa' and al-Kitaab textbook (2nd edition), supplemented by authentic materials, both to learn the language and to experience the culture. Cultural proficiency is an integral part of the language instruction (forms of address, youth phrases, phrases used among intimate friends,etc.). Students will spend 4-5 hours per day practicing using Arabic in classroom activities and should plan on studying an additional 3-4 hours most afternoons and evenings. In addition to class time, a full day trip to an Arab neighborhood in Chicago provides an opportunity to use Arabic in an authentic cultural context. Cultural exposure will also be supplemented through guest speakers, songs, and films. At the conclusion of the course, students can expect to have mastered the sounds and shapes of the Arabic alphabet and to be able to speak about themselves and their world in Modern Standard Arabic, as well as to engage in conversations about familiar topics with native speakers, to comprehend basic texts, and to use some common phrases in colloquial Egyptian and Shaami.

Instructor(s): Staff     Terms Offered: Summer

ARAB 10250. Colloquial Levantine Arabic. 100 Units.

Spoken Levantine Arabic is a proficiency-based course designed to develop the linguistic skills necessary for personal day-to-day life. The course focuses on spoken rather than Standard written Arabic, and will therefore target primarily the oral/aural skills. Through the knowledge of Modern Standard Arabic and the introduction of colloquial vocabulary, expressions and grammar, the course will build the students' competence in spoken Arabic. Students will also be introduced to the Levantine culture of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Palestine.

Instructor(s): O. abu-Eledam     Terms Offered: Autumn

ARAB 10257. Colloquial Levantine Arabic II. 100 Units.

Colloquial Levantine Arabic is a proficiency-based course designed to develop the linguistic skills necessary for personal day-to-day life. The course focuses on spoken rather than Standard written Arabic, and will therefore target primarily the oral/aural skills. Through the knowledge of Modern Standard Arabic and the introduction of colloquial vocabulary, expressions and grammar, the course will build the students' competence in spoken Arabic. Students will also be introduced to the Levantine culture.

Instructor(s): Osama Abu-Eledam     Terms Offered: Winter

ARAB 15001. Elementary Arabic in Rome. 100 Units.

TBD

ARAB 15002. Elementary Arabic in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

ARAB 15003. Intermediate Arabic in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

ARAB 15004. Intermediate Arabic in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

ARAB 15005. Advanced Arabic in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

ARAB 15006. Advanced Arabic in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

ARAB 15007. Elementary Arabic in Cairo. 100 Units.

Elementary Arabic in Cairo

ARAB 15008. Elementary Arabic in Cairo. 100 Units.

Elementary Arabic in Cairo

ARAB 15009. Intermediate Arabic in Cairo. 100 Units.

Intermediate Arabic in Cairo

ARAB 15010. Intermediate Arabic in Cairo. 100 Units.

Intermediate Arabic in Cairo

ARAB 15011. Advanced Arabic in Cairo. 100 Units.

Advanced Arabic in Cairo

ARAB 15012. Advanced Arabic in Cairo. 100 Units.

Advanced Arabic in Cairo

ARAB 15013. Elementary Arabic in Morocco. 100 Units.

ARAB 15014. Elementary Arabic in Morocco. 100 Units.

ARAB 15015. Intermediate Arabic in Morocco. 100 Units.

ARAB 15016. Intermediate Arabic in Morocco. 100 Units.

ARAB 15017. Advanced Arabic in Morocco. 100 Units.

ARAB 15018. Advanced Arabic in Morocco. 100 Units.

ARAB 15019. Elementary Arabic in Granada. 100 Units.

ARAB 15020. Elementary Arabic in Granada. 100 Units.

ARAB 15021. Intermediate Arabic in Granada. 100 Units.

ARAB 15022. Intermediate Arabic in Granada. 100 Units.

ARAB 15023. Advanced Arabic in Granada. 100 Units.

ARAB 15024. Advanced Arabic in Granada. 100 Units.

ARAB 20100. Intermediate Modern Arabic for CPS Students. 100 Units.

StarTalk Arabic-Year 2

ARAB 20101-20102-20103. Intermediate Arabic I-II-III.

This sequence concentrates on speaking, reading, and aural skills at the intermediate level of modern formal Arabic.

ARAB 20101. Intermediate Arabic I. 100 Units.

The first quarter of Intermediate Arabic

Instructor(s): Aidan Kaplan, Zainab Hermes,      Terms Offered: Autumn Spring Winter
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 10103 or equivalent

ARAB 20102. Intermediate Arabic II. 100 Units.

The second quarter of Intermediate Arabic

Instructor(s): Aidan Kaplan, Hala Abdel Mobdy     Terms Offered: Spring Winter
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 20101 or equivalent

ARAB 20103. Intermediate Arabic III. 100 Units.

ARAB 20103 is the spring quarter continuation of the Intermediate Arabic sequence that began with ARAB 20101 last fall, and continued with ARAB 20102 in the winter. We will continue to work through the second half of Al-Kitaab Part 2. As in any language course, we address all four of the fundamental skills: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. A particular focus of this sequence, however, is ensuring that students have a solid, comprehensive understanding of the rules of Arabic syntax. In addition to readings and exercises from the textbook, we will increasingly make use of articles from Arabic-language news media.

Instructor(s): Hala Abdel Mobdy, Osama Abu Eledam      Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 20102 or equivalent

ARAB 20110. Arabic for Special Purposes: Arabic for STEM. 100 Units.

Arabic for STEM is an advanced Arabic course that aims to develop students' ability to communicate about science, technology, engineering, and math in Arabic. Over the course of the term, students build towards two parallel goals: (1) to be able to provide science and math tutoring in Arabic at the elementary or high school level, and (2) for STEM majors, to be able to discuss their studies in Arabic, or, for non-STEM majors, to be able to discuss current technical topics of interest in Arabic. Students work towards these goals by studying a series of modules, for example: mathematics & statistics, chemistry & climate change, physics & space exploration, and data & artificial intelligence.

Instructor(s): Aidan Kaplan     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): 3 years of Arabic

ARAB 20111. Arabic for Special Purposes: Arabic for Business. 100 Units.

For both graduates and undergraduates. Arabic for business is designed to improve your everyday spoken and written Arabic and specially to promote fluency in business communication. This course explores the language of Arabic business as used in readings, correspondence, and documents. It prepares students for successful communication in the Arabic-speaking business world. The course builds upon students' existing knowledge with an emphasis on practical, real-life business applications of Arabic language vocabulary, structure and functionality. Additionally, its aim is to provide students with the basic cross-cultural understanding, and the accuracy in spoken and written communication necessary to effectively participate in the Arabic speaking business world.

Instructor(s): Osama Abu Eledam     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): 3 years of Arabic

ARAB 20112. Arabic for Academic Reading. 100 Units.

Arabic for academic reading.

Instructor(s): Noha Foster      Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): equivalent of 3 years of Arabic

ARAB 20113. Food Culture in the Arab World. 100 Units.

Food Culture in the Arab World

Instructor(s): Noha Forster     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): 3 years of Arabic

ARAB 20114. Introduction to Arabic Linguistics. 100 Units.

This course is an introduction to Arabic linguistics, the scientific study of language and its structure.

Instructor(s): Zainab Hermes     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): 2 years of Arabic

ARAB 20115. Colloquial Egyptian Arabic Language and Culture I. 100 Units.

Colloquial Egyptian Arabic Language and Culture I

Instructor(s): Zainab Hermes     Terms Offered: Winter

ARAB 20116. Colloquial Egyptian Arabic Language and Culture II. 100 Units.

Colloquial Egyptian Arabic Language and Culture

ARAB 20123. Summer Intensive Arabic Level II. 300 Units.

Summer Intensive Arabic Level 2 is designed for students who have completed the equivalent of Alif Baa' and al-Kitaab Part One. In this 8-week summer course in Arabic, instructors will make full use of the abundant online resources and real-time interactions with native speakers to achieve the course objective of intermediate high proficiency in the four skills. Students will improve and refine their language skills using al-Kitaab part 2 (3rd edition), along with authentic film and video clips, social media posts, songs, stories, poems, and articles. Cultural proficiency is an integral part of the language instruction, as students immerse themselves in readings (literary and journalistic) and engage in conversations with their classmates and with guest lecturers/presenters. Students will also extend their language and cultural skills by working on songs and film extracts. The class will help students develop their ability to initiate and sustain discussion on topics of general interest and to present information and simple narratives in Modern Standard Arabic; to understand a wide range of written genres in Arabic, including formal writing, journalistic texts, and less formal styles; to write and speak with increasing accuracy and fluency; and to carry out basic research with non-technical texts.

Instructor(s): Staff     Terms Offered: Summer

ARAB 20601. High Intermediate Modern Standard Arabic I. 100 Units.

High Intermediate Arabic, the modern track, provides students with a full academic year to activate the language and grammar studied in the first two years, while expanding their cultural and literary knowledge of the Arab world. This three-quarter sequence is taught in Arabic and focuses on all four language skills. The purpose of this sequence is conceived of functionally (what can students do) rather than with an eye to finishing a given textbook. It will have reached its objective if each student leaves with a clearly improved ability to produce oral and written Arabic in a variety of contexts (personal and professional correspondence, description, prescription, comparison narration, argumentation, etc.), to listen and understand spoken MSA, and to read a variety of texts (short stories, a novel, media writing, poetry, social media, opinion pieces, etc.) and a deepened understanding of the diversity of the Arab experience. An important component of the course is taking the learning outside the classroom: through visits to an Arab neighborhood, interviews of Arabs in Chicago, producing a play.

Instructor(s): Hala Abdel Mobdy     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 20103 or equivalent
Note(s): Open to qualified undergraduates with consent of the instructor

ARAB 20602. High Intermediate Modern Standard Arabic II. 100 Units.

Arabic Through Debate: Taking debate as its central fulcrum, the course will develop all four language skills: debaters must read on the proposition topic, prepare their arguments in writing, speak clearly to an audience, and listen carefully to their team mates and to the arguments of the opposing team. In the process, they will be immersed in Arab culture (targeted expressions and historical references, of-the-moment issues, etc.). Course Objectives a) Expanding student vocabulary and structures into the abstract, analytic realm, i.e., placing them solidly in the advanced ACTFL levels (see descriptions of ACTFL standards/levels: https://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/public/ACTFLProficiencyGuidelines2012_FINAL.pdf b) Improving student speech techniques: pronunciation, intonation/voice modulation, pausing, emphasis, gesturing, visual communication c) Improving listening and writing skills and expanding them to include topics of general and academic interest d) Through a thoughtful selection of debate propositions, exposing students to some salient social, cultural, and political themes of importance to the Arab public e) Sharpening the logical argumentative skills of students

Instructor(s): Hala Abdel Mobdy     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 20601 or equivalent

ARAB 20603. High Intermediate Modern Standard Arabic III. 100 Units.

Arabic Through Extensive Reading In this course, students will read a whole work, most often, but not exclusively, a novel or play. Nevertheless, the course advances student proficiency in all 4 skills. Naturally, reading is a central activity of this course. Students in the Intermediate High range* can expect to either feel more solidly comfortable in that level, or to go beyond it to the Advanced level. Students will improve their writing through a number of essays/reflections on the novel. The course is taught in Arabic, so, students will be negotiating meaning amongst themselves by discussing the novel. In addition, the presentational mode will be exercised in a series of prepared class presentations. To improve their listening skills, students will work on video materials connected to the novel, testing their abilities through worksheets. While no new grammar will be introduced in a formal manner, as students read the novel and use the writing book, they will be reviewing grammar studied earlier. In addition to the novel, students will benefit from guest speakers in our classroom.

Instructor(s): Noha Forster     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 20602 or equivalent

ARAB 20658. Narrating Conflict in Modern Arabic Literature. 100 Units.

This course is an exploration of conflict in the Arab world through literature, film and new media. In this course, we will discuss the influence of independence movements, wars, and revolts on Arabic literature: how do writers write about, or film, conflict? How does conflict affect language itself? How do these texts engage with issues of trauma and bearing witness? To answer these questions, we will look at a number of key moments of conflict in the Arab world, including the Arab-Israeli conflicts, the Algerian war of independence, the 2011 Egyptian revolution, the Lebanese and Iraq wars, and the ongoing war in Syria. Rather than follow a historical chronology of these events, we will read these texts thematically, beginning with texts that seek to present themselves as direct, sometimes eye-witness, accounts and then moving on to narratives that complicate the relationship between conflict and its narration.

Instructor(s): Stephanie Kraver     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 20658, NEHC 30658, ARAB 30658

ARAB 20701. High Intermediate Classical Arabic I. 100 Units.

The high intermediate (third year) classical Arabic class is intended for students who have learned the essentials of modern fuṣḥā and who are beginning to read with some fluency. The goal is that by the end of the year, they will have mastered the essential features of classical grammar, as it differs from modern standard practice; that they will have significantly expanded their vocabulary, particularly as related to classical texts; that they will have read excerpts from a range of classical genres and will be able to tackle new texts on their own. Students with an interest in exploring the textual world of classical and medieval Islam will develop the necessary skills to engage with primary Arabic texts with increased confidence.

Instructor(s): Mehmetcan Akpinar     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 20103 or equivalent

ARAB 20702. High Intermediate Classical Arabic II. 100 Units.

Second quarter of Classical High Intermediate Arabic

Instructor(s): Mehmetcan Akpinar     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 20701 or equivalent

ARAB 20703. High Intermediate Classical Arabic III. 100 Units.

Third quarter of Classical High Intermediate Arabic

Instructor(s): Mehmetcan Akpinar     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): ARAB 20702 or equivalent

ARAB 29001. Arabic Through Film. 100 Units.

This course immerses the student in Arabic through the genre of film, specifically, Egyptian film, a potent and pervasive medium since Arabs started making films in the 1920s, but more pervasive with the advent of television in the early 1960s. Proceeding chronologically, we examine the Egyptian film through distinct stages, from the early musicals and romantic comedies of the forties and fifties, to the slew of post-1952 films offering new notions of the nation, of citizens, of womanhood, to the films of the 1970s with their commentary on the new capitalist society Sadat espoused, to the nuanced realism and focus on individual angst of the 1980s and 90s, to the gritty realism of the pre and post Arab Spring period.

Instructor(s): Hala Abdelmonem     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite: 2 years of MSA or equivalent

Aramaic Courses

ARAM 10101-10102-10103. Biblical Aramaic; Old Aramaic Inscriptions; Imperial Aramaic.

Three quarter sequence in Aramaic spanning Biblical Aramaic (Autumn), Old Aramaic (Winter), and Imperial Aramaic (Spring).

ARAM 10101. Biblical Aramaic. 100 Units.

This course provides a thorough introduction to the grammar of the Aramaic portions of the Hebrew Bible during the first few weeks. The remainder of the course is spent reading texts from the books of Daniel and Ezra.

Instructor(s): S. Creason     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 10103 or equivalent.
Note(s): Instructor Consent Required
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 11000

ARAM 10102. Old Aramaic Inscriptions. 100 Units.

Selected monumental inscriptions from the Old Aramaic period (c. 1000-600 BCE) are read with special attention to the dialectal differences among various subgroups of texts.

Instructor(s): S. Creason     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): ARAM 10101 or equivalent.
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 11100

ARAM 10103. Imperial Aramaic. 100 Units.

Selected letters and contracts from the Imperial Aramaic period (c. 600-200 BCE) are read with special attention to the historical development of the grammar of Aramaic during this time period.

Instructor(s): S. Creason     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): ARAM 10102 or equivalent.
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 11200

ARAM 20302. Targum-II. 100 Units.

This course consists primarily of reading selected portions of Clarke's edition of Targum Pseudo-Jonathan and Diez-Macho's edition of Targum Neofiti in comparison with the massoretic Hebrew text. A brief introduction to Late Jewish Literary Aramaic, the dialect of these translations, will be given during the first few sessions of the course with emphasis on the ways in which this dialect differs from other dialects of Aramaic. Some reading in the secondary literature of the targums will be assigned. The prerequisite for this course is knowledge of some dialect of Aramaic, preferably Biblical Aramaic.

Terms Offered: Spring

ARAM 20303. Targum-III. 100 Units.

This course consists primarily of reading selected portions the Aramaic Targums of the Latter Prophets and the Writings in comparison with the massoretic Hebrew text. A brief introduction to these targums will be given during the first two sessions of the course. Some reading in the secondary literature of the Targums will be assigned. The prerequisite for this course is knowledge of Jewish Literary Aramaic and previous experience in the reading of Targum texts.

Instructor(s): Stuart Creason     Terms Offered: Winter

Armenian Courses

ARME 10101-10102-10103. Elementary Modern Armenian I-II-III.

This three-quarter sequence utilizes the most advanced computer technology and audio-visual aids enabling the students to master a core vocabulary, the alphabet and basic grammatical structures and to achieve a reasonable level of proficiency in modern formal and spoken Armenian (one of the oldest Indo-European languages). A considerable amount of historical-political and social-cultural issues about Armenia are skillfully built into the course for students who have intention to conduct research in Armenian Studies or to pursue work in Armenia.

ARME 10101. Elementary Modern Armenian I. 100 Units.

This three-quarter sequence focuses on the acquisition of basic speaking, listening, reading and writing skills in modern formal and spoken Armenian. The course utilizes the most advanced computer technology and audio-visual aids enabling students to master the alphabet, a core vocabulary, and some basic grammatical structures in order to communicate their basic survivor's needs in Armenian, understand simple texts and to achieve a minimal level of proficiency in modern formal and spoken Armenian. A considerable amount of historical-political and social-cultural issues about Armenia are skillfully built into the course for students who have intention to conduct research in Armenian Studies or related fields, to visit or to pursue work in Armenia. A language competency exam is offered at the end of spring quarter for those taking this course as college language requirement.

Instructor(s): H. Haroutunian     Terms Offered: Autumn

ARME 10102. Elementary Modern Armenian II. 100 Units.

This three-quarter sequence focuses on the acquisition of basic speaking, listening, reading and writing skills in modern formal and spoken Armenian. The course utilizes the most advanced computer technology and audio-visual aids enabling students to master the alphabet, a core vocabulary, and some basic grammatical structures in order to communicate their basic survivor's needs in Armenian, understand simple texts and to achieve a minimal level of proficiency in modern formal and spoken Armenian. A considerable amount of historical-political and social-cultural issues about Armenia are skillfully built into the course for students who have intention to conduct research in Armenian Studies or related fields, to visit or to pursue work in Armenia. A language competency exam is offered at the end of spring quarter for those taking this course as college language requirement.

Instructor(s): H. Haroutunian     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): ARME 10101

ARME 10103. Elementary Modern Armenian III. 100 Units.

This three-quarter sequence focuses on the acquisition of basic speaking, listening, reading and writing skills in modern formal and spoken Armenian. The course utilizes the most advanced computer technology and audio-visual aids enabling students to master the alphabet, a core vocabulary, and some basic grammatical structures in order to communicate their basic survivor's needs in Armenian, understand simple texts and to achieve a minimal level of proficiency in modern formal and spoken Armenian. A considerable amount of historical-political and social-cultural issues about Armenia are skillfully built into the course for students who have intention to conduct research in Armenian Studies or related fields, to visit or to pursue work in Armenia. A language competency exam is offered at the end of spring quarter for those taking this course as college language requirement.

Instructor(s): H. Haroutunian     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): ARME 10102 or equivalent

ARME 20101-20102-20103. Intermediate Modern Armenian I-II-III.

The goal of this three-quarter sequence is to enable students to reach an advanced level of proficiency in the Armenian language. This sequence covers a rich vocabulary and complex grammatical structures in modern formal and colloquial Armenian. Reading assignments include a selection of original Armenian literature and excerpts from mass media.

ARME 20101. Intermediate Modern Armenian I. 100 Units.

The course is aiming to enable students to reach a reasonable level of proficiency in the Armenian language. The curriculum is heavily based on real life situations. Each class session includes a healthy balance of real-life like conversations (shopping, placing an order in a restaurant, asking directions, talking with natives, getting around in the city, banking, etc.), readings (dialogues, jokes, stories, news, etc.) and writings (essays on selected topics, filling forms, etc.). The students can also communicate in Armenian well beyond basic needs about the daily life and obtain some level of fluency in their professional interests. This sequence covers a wider-range vocabulary and more complex grammatical structures in modern formal and colloquial Armenian. Reading assignments also include a selection of simple original Armenian literature. A considerable amount of historical-political and social-cultural issues about Armenia are skillfully built into the course for students who have intention to conduct research in Armenian Studies or related fields, or to pursue work in Armenia.

Instructor(s): H. Haroutunian     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): ARME 10103 or equivalent

ARME 20102. Intermediate Modern Armenian II. 100 Units.

The course is aiming to enable students to reach a reasonable level of proficiency in the Armenian language. The curriculum is heavily based on real life situations. Each class session includes a healthy balance of real-life like conversations (shopping, placing an order in a restaurant, asking directions, talking with natives, getting around in the city, banking, etc.), readings (dialogues, jokes, stories, news, etc.) and writings (essays on selected topics, filling forms, etc.). The students can also communicate in Armenian well beyond basic needs about the daily life and obtain some level of fluency in their professional interests. This sequence covers a wider-range vocabulary and more complex grammatical structures in modern formal and colloquial Armenian. Reading assignments also include a selection of simple original Armenian literature. A considerable amount of historical-political and social-cultural issues about Armenia are skillfully built into the course for students who have intention to conduct research in Armenian Studies or related fields, or to pursue work in Armenia.

Instructor(s): H. Haroutunian     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): ARME 20101 or equivalent

ARME 20103. Intermediate Modern Armenian III. 100 Units.

The course is aiming to enable students to reach a reasonable level of proficiency in the Armenian language. The curriculum is heavily based on real life situations. Each class session includes a healthy balance of real-life like conversations (shopping, placing an order in a restaurant, asking directions, talking with natives, getting around in the city, banking, etc.), readings (dialogues, jokes, stories, news, etc.) and writings (essays on selected topics, filling forms, etc.). The students can also communicate in Armenian well beyond basic needs about the daily life and obtain some level of fluency in their professional interests. This sequence covers a wider-range vocabulary and more complex grammatical structures in modern formal and colloquial Armenian. Reading assignments also include a selection of simple original Armenian literature. A considerable amount of historical-political and social-cultural issues about Armenia are skillfully built into the course for students who have intention to conduct research in Armenian Studies or related fields, or to pursue work in Armenia.

Instructor(s): H. Haroutunian     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): ARME 20102 or equivalent

Egyptian Courses

EGPT 10101-10102. Introduction to Middle Egyptian Hieroglyphs I-II.

This sequence examines hieroglyphic writing and the grammar of the language of classical Egyptian literature.

EGPT 10101. Introduction to Middle Egyptian Hieroglyphs I. 100 Units.

This course and its sequel EGPT 10102 provide an introduction to the hieroglyphic writing system, vocabulary and grammar of Middle Egyptian, the 'classic' phase of the Egyptian language developed during the Middle Kingdom (circa 2025-1773 BCE) and used until the disappearance of hieroglyphs over two thousand years later.

Instructor(s): Margret Geoga     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): None
Equivalent Course(s): ANCM 30500

EGPT 10102. Introduction to Middle Egyptian Hieroglyphs II. 100 Units.

This course completes an introduction to the hieroglyphic writing system, vocabulary and grammar of Middle Egyptian, the 'classic' phase of the Egyptian language developed during the Middle Kingdom (circa 2025-1773 BCE) and used until the disappearance of hieroglyphs over two thousand years later. It also begins an introduction to ancient Egyptian culture and society through a close reading of its 'classic' literature.

Instructor(s): Margret Geoga     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): EGPT 10101 or consent of the instructor
Equivalent Course(s): ANCM 30501

EGPT 10103. Middle Egyptian Texts I. 100 Units.

Reading of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic texts

Instructor(s): Margret Geoga     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): EGPT 10101-10102 or consent of the instructor
Equivalent Course(s): ANCM 30502

EGPT 20101. Middle Egyptian Texts II. 100 Units.

Second quarter reading course of ME texts

Instructor(s): Brian Muhs     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): EGPT 10101-10102-10103 or consent of the instructor

EGPT 20102. Introduction to Hieratic. 100 Units.

This course introduces the cursive literary and administrative script of Middle Egyptian (corresponding to the Middle Kingdom period in Egypt) and is intended to provide familiarity with a variety of texts written in hieratic (e.g., literary tales, religious compositions, wisdom literature, letters, accounts, graffiti).

Instructor(s): Catie Witt     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): EGPT 20101

EGPT 20110. Introduction to Old Egyptian. 100 Units.

This course provides an introduction to the hieroglyphic writing system, vocabulary and grammar of Old Egyptian, the phase of the Egyptian language used during the Old Kingdom (circa 2686-2181 BCE). It also provides an introduction to the culture and society of Egypt's 'Pyramid Age' through a close reading of monumental texts from private tombs, royal and private stelae, administrative decrees, economic documents, and Pyramid texts. Some attention is given to Old Egyptian texts written in cursive Hieratic.

Instructor(s): Brian Muhs, Caitlin Kropp     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): EGPT 10101-10103 or equivalent

Ge'ez Courses

GEEZ 20700. Advanced Readings in Classical Ethiopic (Ge'ez) 100 Units.

In this course we will read excerpts from literature written in Classical Ethiopic (Ge'ez), such as Enoch, Jubilees, Kebra Nagast, Beauty of Creation, and others, and review some basic grammatical structures of the language. Students will need a good grasp of the basic grammar of Ge'ez in order to take the class.

Instructor(s): Rebecca Hasselbach-Andee     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Elementary Geez 1-3 or equivalent
Equivalent Course(s): LING 32700, BIBL 30700, LING 22700, GEEZ 30700, RLST 17700

Hebrew Courses

HEBR 10501-10502-10503. Introductory Modern Hebrew I-II-III.

This three quarter course introduces students to reading, writing, and speaking modern Hebrew. All four language skills are emphasized: comprehension of written and oral materials; reading of nondiacritical text; writing of directed sentences, paragraphs, and compositions; and speaking. Students learn the Hebrew root pattern system and the seven basic verb conjugations in both the past and present tenses, as well as simple future. At the end of the year, students can conduct short conversations in Hebrew, read materials designed to their level, and write short essay.

HEBR 10501. Introductory Modern Hebrew I. 100 Units.

The beginner's course is the first of three sequential courses offered to students at the university. The course aims to introduce students to reading, writing and speaking Modern Hebrew. Toward that end all four-language skills are emphasized: comprehension of written and oral materials; reading of non-diacritical text; writing of directed sentences, paragraphs, and compositions; speaking. You will learn the Hebrew root pattern system, and by the end of the year you will have mastered the five (active) basic verb conjugations in both the past and present tenses (as well as simple future). This grammatical knowledge is complemented by an 800+ word vocabulary, which is presented with an eye toward the major syntactic structures, including the proper use of prepositions. At the end of the year, you will conduct short conversations in Hebrew; read materials designed to this level and write short compositions. The in-class quotient of the course will be heavily based on active listening and speaking practice, with much use of various print, video, and web-based media. This course will require students to commit to undertaking intensive methods of instruction, which require their active participation in class and considerable attention to the language outside of class.

Instructor(s): Ari Almog     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 25000

HEBR 10502. Introductory Modern Hebrew II. 100 Units.

The beginner's course is the first of three sequential courses offered to students at the university. The course aims to introduce students to reading, writing and speaking Modern Hebrew. Toward that end all four-language skills are emphasized: comprehension of written and oral materials; reading of non-diacritical text; writing of directed sentences, paragraphs, and compositions; speaking. You will learn the Hebrew root pattern system, and by the end of the year you will have mastered the five (active) basic verb conjugations in both the past and present tenses (as well as simple future). This grammatical knowledge is complemented by an 800+ word vocabulary, which is presented with an eye toward the major syntactic structures, including the proper use of prepositions. At the end of the year, you will conduct short conversations in Hebrew; read materials designed to this level and write short compositions. The in-class quotient of the course will be heavily based on active listening and speaking practice, with much use of various print, video, and web-based media. This course will require students to commit to undertaking intensive methods of instruction, which require their active participation in class and considerable attention to the language outside of class.

Instructor(s): Ehud HarEven     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 10501 or equivalent
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 25100

HEBR 10503. Introductory Modern Hebrew III. 100 Units.

The beginner's course is the first of three sequential courses offered to students at the university. The course aims to introduce students to reading, writing and speaking Modern Hebrew. Toward that end all four-language skills are emphasized: comprehension of written and oral materials; reading of non-diacritical text; writing of directed sentences, paragraphs, and compositions; speaking. You will learn the Hebrew root pattern system, and by the end of the year you will have mastered the five (active) basic verb conjugations in both the past and present tenses (as well as simple future). This grammatical knowledge is complemented by an 800+ word vocabulary, which is presented with an eye toward the major syntactic structures, including the proper use of prepositions. At the end of the year, you will conduct short conversations in Hebrew; read materials designed to this level and write short compositions. The in-class quotient of the course will be heavily based on active listening and speaking practice, with much use of various print, video, and web-based media. This course will require students to commit to undertaking intensive methods of instruction, which require their active participation in class and considerable attention to the language outside of class.

Instructor(s): Ari Almog     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 10502 or equivalent
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 25200

HEBR 15001. Elementary Hebrew in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

HEBR 15002. Elementary Hebrew in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

HEBR 15003. Intermediate Hebrew in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

HEBR 15004. Intermediate Hebrew in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

HEBR 15005. Advanced Hebrew in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

HEBR 15006. Advanced Hebrew in Jerusalem. 100 Units.

HEBR 20001. Hebrew Letters and Inscriptions. 100 Units.

Acquisition of the ability to read Hebrew and Transjordanian inscriptions of the pre-exilic period

Instructor(s): D. Pardee     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Intermediate Classical Hebrew I-III or equivalent
Note(s): This course is offered in alternate years.

HEBR 20002. Phoenician Inscriptions. 100 Units.

This course involves reading and analysis of the inscriptions, primarily on stone and primarily from the Phoenician homeland, that belong to the early and middle first millennium BC.

Instructor(s): D. Pardee     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 20001
Note(s): This course is offered in alternate years.

HEBR 20003. Punic Inscriptions. 100 Units.

Initiation to the reading and interpretation of Punic inscriptions. Texts resulting from the Phoenician expansion into the Western Mediterranean (primarily North Africa) are studied.

Instructor(s): D. Pardee     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 20002
Note(s): This course is offered in alternate years.

HEBR 20100. Graphic Novels: Modern Hebrew Reading course. 100 Units.

The graphic novel is a relatively new genre in Hebrew literature. Books in the genre combine a story with the scope of a novel or a novella with comic strips or full illustrations. The evolution of the genre in the world, far beyond superhero comic books, and the openness of the Israeli audience, created a significant boom in the field in Israel since the early 2000s. This course is a guided reading of some of the most popular graphic novels in Modern Hebrew, which expose important aspects of contemporary Israel. Authors whose work we will read include: Rutu Modan, Ilana Zeffren, Asaf Hanukah, Etgar Keret, Michel Kichka, Yosi & Yarden Vasa and Yuval Noah Harai.

Instructor(s): Ehud Har-Even     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Intermediate Modern Hebrew (second year HEBR) or its equivalent (At least two years of official Modern Hebrew studies ) with a minimum grade of “C”.
Equivalent Course(s): HEBR 30100, JWSC 20720

HEBR 20104-20105-20106. Intermediate Classical Hebrew I-II-III.

A continuation of Elementary Classical Hebrew. The first quarter consists of reviewing grammar, and of reading and analyzing further prose texts. The last two quarters are devoted to an introduction to Hebrew poetry with readings from Psalms, Proverbs, and the prophets.

HEBR 20104. Intermediate Classical Hebrew I. 100 Units.

Review basic Hebrew grammar, emphasis on morphology and basic syntax - Review/acquire historical morphology - Acquire facility in reading Biblical Hebrew prose

Instructor(s): D. Pardee     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 10103 or equivalent
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 22300

HEBR 20105. Intermediate Classical Hebrew II. 100 Units.

Continue acquisition of basic Biblical Hebrew; Continue acquisition of basic notions of historical grammar; Acquire the rudiments of analysis of Biblical Hebrew poetry.

Instructor(s): D. Pardee     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 20104 or equivalent
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 22400

HEBR 20106. Intermediate Classical Hebrew III. 100 Units.

Continue acquisition of basic Biblical Hebrew, emphasis on syntax; Increase familiarity with Biblical Hebrew poetry, emphasis on prophets; Continue acquisition of basic historical morphology; Reading ancient manuscripts.

Instructor(s): D. Pardee     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 20105 or equivalent
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 22500

HEBR 20501-20502-20503. Intermediate Modern Hebrew I-II-III.

The main objective of this sequence is to provide students with the skills necessary to approach modern Hebrew prose, both fiction and nonfiction. In order to achieve this task, students are provided with a systematic examination of the complete verb structure. Many syntactic structures are introduced (e.g., simple clauses, coordinate and compound sentences). At this level, students not only write and speak extensively but are also required to analyze grammatically and contextually all of material assigned.

HEBR 20501. Intermediate Modern Hebrew I. 100 Units.

The course, which builds upon Introductory Modern Hebrew (first year HEB) focuses on the acquisition of proficiency and communicative skills in Modern Hebrew. The purpose of this class is to expand and strengthen beginners' Hebrew skills so that they become more self-assured, communicative, and versatile when they listen to, read, speak, and write Hebrew. It emphasizes both communicative and cultural themes and focuses on developing a rich and active vocabulary in several language domains.

Instructor(s): Ehud Har-Even     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 10503 or equivalent
Note(s): The course is devised for students who have previously taken either modern or biblical Hebrew courses.
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 25300

HEBR 20502. Intermediate Modern Hebrew II. 100 Units.

This course is designed for students who possess a basic knowledge of modern‭ ‬and/or Biblical Hebrew‭ (‬either the first year course or the placement exam‭ ‬are prerequisites‭). ‬The main objective is to provide students with the‭ ‬skills necessary to approach Modern Hebrew prose‭, ‬both fiction and‭ ‬non-fiction‭. Students learn to use the dictionary‭, ‬and approach unfamiliar‭ ‬texts and vocabulary‭. Many syntactic structures are introduced‭, ‬including‭ ‬simple clauses‭, ‬coordinate and compound sentences‭. ‬Throughout the year‭, ‬students read‭, ‬write‭, ‬and speak extensively and are required to analyze the‭ ‬grammatical structures of assigned materials‭.

Instructor(s): Ehud Har-Even     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 20501 or equivalent
Note(s): The course is devised for students who have previously taken either modern or biblical Hebrew courses.
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 25400

HEBR 20503. Intermediate Modern Hebrew III. 100 Units.

The course, which builds upon Introductory Modern Hebrew (first year HEB) focuses on the acquisition of proficiency and communicative skills in Modern Hebrew. The purpose of this class is to expand and strengthen beginners' Hebrew skills so that they become more self-assured, communicative, and versatile when they listen to, read, speak, and write Hebrew. It emphasizes both communicative and cultural themes and focuses on developing a rich and active vocabulary in several language domains.

Instructor(s): Ehud Har-Even     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): HEBR 20502 or equivalent
Note(s): The course is devised for students who have previously taken either modern or biblical Hebrew courses.
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 25500

HEBR 29900. Reading Course: Modern Hebrew. 100 Units.

This course assumes that students have full mastery of the grammatical and lexical content of the advanced level. The main objective is literary fluency. By the end of the course, students should have an excellent command of Hebrew. The course concentrates on the written language, especially scientific writing, as well as elements of Biblical Hebrew, literature from earlier periods and sophisticated journalistic writing. Students read the various Israeli daily newspapers as well as Israeli literature, scientific articles and legal documents (with the help of a dictionary) of varying lengths. They have a good command of synonyms and idiomatic Hebrew, and also understand the subtle differences between words. Their already substantial vocabularies now include many words from a wide variety of genres. Students considerably improve their ability to write long essays in Hebrew on a wide range of topics, incorporating idiomatic language.

Instructor(s): Ehud Har-Even     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Students should have at least four years of Modern Hebrew studies and/or passing grade of a reading exam and/or graduated the Reading Hebrew for Research Purposes.
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 48900, HEBR 49900, JWSC 29920

Kazakh Courses

KAZK 10501. Intro to Turkic Languages I. 100 Units.

The first quarter of a two-section course in which Elementary Kazakh and Elementary Uzbek will be offered as one class, with the option for students to study one or the other, or both simultaneously.

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): TURK 10501, UZBK 10501

KAZK 10502. Introduction to Turkic Languages II. 100 Units.

The second quarter of a two-section course in which Elementary Kazakh and Elementary Uzbek will be offered as one class, with the option for students to study one or the other, or both simultaneously.

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10501
Equivalent Course(s): TURK 10502, UZBK 10502

KAZK 29700. Independent Study: Kazakh. 100 Units.

Independent Study: Kazakh - Continuation of Introduction to Turkic Languages

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10502

Near Eastern Art and Archeology Courses

NEAA 10020. Ceramic Analysis in Archaeology. 100 Units.

This course introduces the theoretical foundations and analytical techniques that allow archaeologists to use ceramics to make inferences about ancient societies. Ethnographic, experimental, and physical science approaches are explored to develop a realistic, integrated understanding of the nature of ceramics as a form of material culture. Practical training in the use of the ceramic labs is included.

Instructor(s): James Osborne     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): NEAA 40020, ANTH 36200, ANTH 26200

NEAA 20001. Introduction to the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East I - Mesopotamia. 100 Units.

This course will give an overview of the archaeology of ancient Mesopotamia. We will examine the material remains of various cultures in and around ancient Mesopotamia and engage with themes of social complexity, urbanism, collapse, and continuity/change through time. Students in this survey course will gain basic knowledge of the archaeological data used to create a picture of life in the Mesopotamian region in ancient times. This course fulfills the requirements of a survey course in Mesopotamia civilization as defined by the Ancient PhD programs in NELC and the MA program in the CMES.

Instructor(s): Augusta McMahon     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): NEAA 30001

NEAA 20007. Bioethics and Ancient DNA. 100 Units.

The first ancient human genome was sequenced just over 10 years ago. From a single genome in 2010 to what has been hailed as a "scientific revolution" today, the field of archaeogenetics has expanded rapidly. In this course, we will explore how the field is grappling with emerging issues related to ethical and responsible research, including sampling practices, collaborative community partnerships, and accessibility of research findings to the broader public. How have researchers successfully leveraged multiple voices, perspectives, and priorities engaged with ancient DNA to explore the human past? What are the possibilities of engagement beyond the practical and project-based level? How do these new alliances formed around archaeogenetics inform the ethics of sampling, participation, and interpretation? In this course, we will thoughtfully and critically engage with aDNA research in the present to envision possible futures for the field.

Instructor(s): Hannah Moots     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): KNOW 20007, NEAA 30007, KNOW 30007

NEAA 20044. Sardis and its Neighbors: Western Anatolia during the Iron Age. 100 Units.

This class is an in-depth study of western Anatolia's most important archaeological site during the early first millennium BCE: Sardis, the capital city of the kingdom of Lydia. In addition to learning the archaeology of this site in detail, we will also use it as a foundation to explore neighboring excavations in the region, including Troy, Miletos, Beycesultan, and others.

Instructor(s): James Osborne     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CLAS 30023, NEAA 30044

NEAA 20061-20062. Ancient Landscapes I-II.

The landscape of the Near East contains a detailed and subtle record of environmental, social, and economic processes that have obtained over thousands of years. Landscape analysis is therefore proving to be fundamental to an understanding of the processes that underpinned the development of ancient Near Eastern society. This sequence provides an overview of the ancient cultural landscapes of this heartland of early civilization from the early stages of complex societies in the fifth and sixth millennia B.C. to the close of the Early Islamic period around the tenth century A.D.

NEAA 20061. Ancient Landscapes I. 100 Units.

This is a two-course sequence that introduces students to theory and method in landscape studies and the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) to analyze archaeological, anthropological, historical, and environmental data. Course one covers the theoretical and methodological background necessary to understand spatial approaches to landscape and the fundamentals of using ESRI's ArcGIS software, and further guides students in developing a research proposal. Course two covers more advanced GIS-based analysis (using vector, raster, and satellite remote sensing data) and guides students in carrying out their own spatial research project. In both courses, techniques are introduced through the discussion of case studies (focused on the archaeology of the Middle East) and through demonstration of software skills. During supervised laboratory times, the various techniques and analyses covered will be applied to sample archaeological data and also to data from a region/topic chosen by the student.

Instructor(s): Mehrnoush Soroush     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): ANTH 36710, ANTH 26710, GISC 30061, NEAA 30061, GISC 20061, CEGU 20061, CEGU 30061

NEAA 20062. Ancient Landscapes II. 100 Units.

This is a two-course sequence that introduces students to theory and method in landscape studies and the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) to analyze archaeological, anthropological, historical, and environmental data. Course one covers the theoretical and methodological background necessary to understand spatial approaches to landscape and the fundamentals of using ESRI's ArcGIS software, and further guides students in developing a research proposal. Course two covers more advanced GIS-based analysis (using vector, raster, and satellite remote sensing data) and guides students in carrying out their own spatial research project. In both courses, techniques are introduced through the discussion of case studies (focused on the archaeology of the Middle East) and through demonstration of software skills. During supervised laboratory times, the various techniques and analyses covered will be applied to sample archaeological data and also to data from a region/topic chosen by the student.

Instructor(s): Mehrnoush Soroush     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): NEAA 20061
Equivalent Course(s): CEGU 20062, GISC 30062, ANTH 36711, CEGU 30062, ANTH 26711, GISC 20062, NEAA 30062

NEAA 20091. Field Archaeology. 100 Units.

This course entails four weeks of full-time, hands-on training in field archaeology in an excavation directed by a University of Chicago faculty member. At the Tell Keisan site in Israel, students will learn techniques of excavation and digital recording of the finds; attend evening lectures; and participate in weekend field trips. Academic requirements include the completion of assigned readings and a final written examination. For more information about this archaeological field opportunity in Summer 2020, see http://keisan.uchicago.edu. Students who are enrolled in this course will pay a Summer Session tuition fee in addition to the cost of participation in the dig. UChicago College students are eligible to apply for College Research Scholar grants to fund their participation.

Instructor(s): David Schloen
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 20091, CLAS 30091, CLCV 20091, ANTH 26612

NEAA 20100. Introduction to Archaeology. 100 Units.

Archaeology is the study of the material evidence of past human activity. This course, which is offered every year in the Autumn Quarter, explores the history of archaeology as a discipline and the methods used by archaeologists to obtain evidence about past human activity via excavations, surface surveys, and remote-sensing technologies such as satellite imagery and ground-penetrating radar, with emphasis on archaeological fieldwork in the Middle East. This course also surveys the latest methods used to date, classify, and analyze various kinds of evidence after it has been obtained. And since archaeological data is always collected and interpreted within an intellectual framework of theoretical conceptions concerning human society, culture, and history, this course provides a brief overview of "archaeological theory," i.e., the uses made by archaeologists of a wide range of different social theories that may lead to quite different interpretations of the same data. This topic is explored in more depth in a companion course on "Social Theory and Ancient Studies" (NEHC 20010/30010), which is offered in alternate years in the Winter Quarter.

Instructor(s): Samantha Suppes     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): NEAA 30100

NEAA 20163. Sensory Archaeology of Mesopotamia. 100 Units.

This course will critically analyse past human sensory experiences, based in case studies of ancient Mesopotamia from the 5th through 1st millennia BCE. These case studies will vary in scale from portable material culture through vast natural landscapes. The case studies will include the effects of materials, objects and both built and natural spaces on vision, smell, touch, hearing and taste. Building on this traditional five-sense framework, we will also aim to reconstruct and analyse synaesthetic experiences (multi-sensory or combined senses) and will further explore the more enigmatic senses of fear or awe, of comfort, and of place and belonging. We will engage both empirical analyses and socio-cultural perspectives via synthesis of practical data and critical reading of ancient texts (in translation). The aims of the course are to expand students' interpretive toolkit and to encourage thinking about archaeological data from the ground up (rather than top down), via lived experiences and sensual and emotional perceptions. This course is intended as a seminar for graduate students (MA and PhD); advanced undergraduates may request to attend but should have some prior knowledge of Mesopotamia.

Instructor(s): Augusta McMahon     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): NEAA 30163

NEAA 20203. The Art & Archaeology of Egyptian Funerary Traditions - the Early Dynastic through early New Kingdom. 100 Units.

This course will examine ancient Egypt's funerary traditions as expressed in its art, architecture, and archaeology, focusing on the Early Dynastic-early New Kingdom periods (ca. 3000-1350 BCE). In doing so, it will look at the relationships between royal and non-royal burials in both their physical manifestations and ideological traditions. It will look at different types of tombs, burial components, and decorative scenes. Course readings and lectures will examine individual cemeteries and spatial relationships within and between them, artistic scene types (including meaning, location, and chronological trends), and architectural developments in tomb layout and construction to critically discuss Egypt's complex funerary landscape, social dynamics, and funerary beliefs. In addition to recent scholarship, this course will make use of early excavation reports and records, as well as material in the museum galleries of the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures. Students will select a broad area of research interest early in the quarter and then track and refine their topic as the quarter progresses. It is expected that students will bring their research into class discussion and will present an assigned class reading relevant to their topic. Students are required to produce an annotated bibliography for the midterm and written paper for the final exam. This course fulfills the requirements of a survey course in Anatolian civilization as defined by the Ancient PhD progra

Equivalent Course(s): NEAA 30203

NEAA 20322. Ancient Levant-II: The Iron Age and Persian Period. 100 Units.

This course surveys the archaeology and history of the Levant from the end of the Bronze Age around 1100 BCE to the Roman conquest of the region in 64-63 BCE.

Equivalent Course(s): NEAA 30322

NEAA 20329. Ancient Levant-1. 100 Units.

This course surveys the archaeology and history of the Levant from the time of its earliest human habitation in the Stone Age to the end of the Bronze Age around 1100 BCE.

Instructor(s): David Schloen     Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): This course fulfills the requirements of a survey course in Levant civilization as defined by the Ancient PhD programs in NELC and the MA program in the CMES.
Equivalent Course(s): NEAA 30321

NEAA 20380. Arabia from Prehistory to Islam. 100 Units.

This course will explore the longue durée development of Arabia from the beginning of the Holocene until about the 15th century CE. Focussing very largely on Eastern Arabia, it will examine themes such as the nature of life and settlement in a semi- to hyper-arid environment, marginality at the edge of empire, nomadic and sedentary lifestyles, irrigation methods, and maritime trade and globalisation. Loosely based around a chronological narrative, the course will be organised through a series of case studies (supported by general background lectures) that may cover, for example, the Neolithic, the Bronze Age (Magan, Dilmun, the 4.2ky event), Iron Age, the late pre-Islamic period, the early Islamic period, and the Hormuzi period. The course will also examine the area's interaction with, amongst others, Mesopotamia, the Indus, Iran, the Graeco-Roman and Parthian worlds, and the Indian Ocean economy. This course fulfills the requirements of a survey course in Anatolian civilization as defined by the Ancient PhD programs in NELC and the MA program in the CMES.

Equivalent Course(s): NEAA 40380

Near Eastern History and Civilizations Courses

NEHC 10101. Introduction to the Middle East. 100 Units.

Prior knowledge of the Middle East not required. This course aims to facilitate a general understanding of some key factors that have shaped life in this region, with primary emphasis on modern conditions and their background, and to provide exposure to some of the region's rich cultural diversity. This course can serve as a basis for the further study of the history, politics, and civilizations of the Middle East.

Instructor(s): Kyle Longworth      Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 15801

NEHC 12006. Jewish Spaces and Places, Imagined and Real. 100 Units.

What makes a ghetto, a ghetto? What defines a Jewish neighborhood? What determined the architectural form of synagogues? Taught in Special Collections in Regenstein Library and making extensive use of the textual and visual sources there, this course will analyze how Jews (in all their diversity) and non-Jews defined Jewish spaces and places. Sources will include: Jewish law and customary practice, cookbooks, etiquette guides, prints, films, novels, maps, memoirs, architectural drawings and photographs, and tourist guides. We may also take a field trip to the Oak Woods Cemetery. The focus will be on Europe in the 19th and 20th centuries, but we will also venture back into the early modern period and across the Mediterranean to Palestine/Israel and North Africa and the Atlantic to the Caribbean and the Americas. We will study both actually existing structures and texts and visual culture in which Jewish places and spaces are imagined or vilified. Parallel to our work with primary sources we will read in the recent, very rich, scholarly literature on this topic. This is not a survey course; we will undertake a series of intensive case-studies through which we will address the larger issues. Assignments include: presentations (individual or collaborative), short papers, Canvas postings, and there will also be the option of making a digital map or an on-line exhibition. This is a limited-enrollment, discussion-based course. No previous knowledge of Jewish history is expected.

Instructor(s): Leora Auslander     Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): In order for a Spring course to qualify as a civilization course for the general education requirement, the student must also take Jewish Civilization I and II. A Spring course, however, may also be taken as an independent elective.
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 12006, HIST 11703, RLST 22015

NEHC 17203. Twentieth-Century Jewish History. 100 Units.

Jewish history, politics, and culture across a century of profound and violent transformations in Europe, the United States, the Middle East. Topics include the impacts on Jewish life of World War I, the Russian Revolution, and the last stages of European empire; nationalism, socialism, and religious politics in Jewish life; birth of Jewish secular culture and secular-religious struggles within Jewish life; the remaking of American Jewry; Zionism, Jewish settlement and nation-building in Palestine, and the emergence of the Jewish-Palestinian conflict; antisemitism, Nazism and the Holocaust in Europe; the creation of the State of Israel, Palestinian dispossession, and the trajectories and tensions of Jewish nationhood and Israeli society-building; the postwar reordering of Jewish life amid Cold War, Israeli statehood, conflict in the Middle East, and unprecedented communal integration in the United States; trajectories of Jewish identity and religion in a century of tremendous creativity and bitter Jewish disagreements. Much attention to contemporary history including the dramatic changes and conflicts within Israel and trajectories of conflict and crisis in Israel and Palestine under Israeli domination. Lectures with ample space for discussion. No prior study of Jewish history expected.

Instructor(s): K. Moss     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 17203, JWSC 17203

NEHC 20004-20005-20006. Ancient Near Eastern Thought and Literature I-II-III.

This sequence surveys the thought and literature of the Near East. Each course in the sequence focuses on a particular culture or civilization. Texts in English. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies. Taking these courses in sequence is not required.

NEHC 20004. Ancient Near Eastern Thought and Literature I: Mesopotamian Literature. 100 Units.

This course gives an overview of the richness of Mesopotamian Literature (modern Iraq) written in the 3rd-1st millennium BC. We will read myths and epics written on clay tablets in the Sumerian and Akkadian language in English translation and discuss content and style, but also the religious, cultural and historic implications. Particular focus will be on the development of stories over time, the historical context of the literature and mythological figures. The texts treated cover not only the famous Epic of Gilgamesh, but also various legends of Sumerian and Akkadian kings, stories about Creation and World Order, and destruction. The topics covered range from the quest for immortality, epic heroes and monsters, sexuality and love.

Instructor(s): Susanne Paulus     Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): SOSC 20004

NEHC 20005. Ancient Near Eastern Thought & Literature II: Anatolian Lit. 100 Units.

The goal of this class is to get an overview of Hittite literature, as "defined" by the Hittites themselves, in the wider historical-cultural context of the Ancient Near East. Some of the most important questions we can ask ourselves in reading ancient texts are: why were they written down, why were they kept, for whom were they intended, and what do the answers to these questions (apart from the primary content of the texts themselves) tell us about - in our case - Hittite society?

Instructor(s): Petra Goedegebuure     Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): SOSC 20005

NEHC 20006. Ancient Near Eastern Thought & Literature III: Ancient Egyptian Literature. 100 Units.

This course employs English translations of ancient Egyptian literary texts to explore the genres, conventions and techniques of ancient Egyptian literature. Discussions of texts examine how the ancient Egyptians conceptualized and constructed their equivalent of literature, as well as the fuzzy boundaries and subtle interplay between autobiography, history, myth and fiction.

Instructor(s): Margret Geoga     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): SOSC 20006

NEHC 20011. Ancient Empires I: The Hittite Empire. 100 Units.

This course introduces students to the Hittite Empire of ancient Anatolia. In existence from roughly 1750-1200 BCE, and spanning across modern Turkey and beyond, the Hittite Empire is one of the oldest and largest empires of the ancient world. We will be examining their history and their political and cultural accomplishments through analysis of their written records - composed in Hittite, the world's first recorded Indo-European language - and their archaeological remains. In the process, we will also be examining the concept of "empire" itself: What is an empire, and how do anthropologists, archaeologists, and historians study this unique kind of political formation?

Instructor(s): James Osborne     Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): SOSC 20011, CLCV 25700, HIST 15602

NEHC 20012. Ancient Empires II: The Ottoman Empire. 100 Units.

The Ottomans ruled in Anatolia, the Middle East, South East Europe and North Africa for over six hundred years. The objective of this course is to understand the society and culture of this bygone Empire whose legacy continues, in one way or another, in some twenty-five contemporary successor states from the Balkans to the Arabian Peninsula. The course is designed as an introduction to the Ottoman World with a focus on the cultural history of the Ottoman society. It explores identities and mentalities, customs and rituals, status of minorities, mystical orders and religious establishments, literacy and the use of the public sphere.

Instructor(s): Hakan Karateke      Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): CLCV 25800, MDVL 20012, SOSC 20012, HIST 15603

NEHC 20013. Ancient Empires III :The Egyptian Empire of the New Kingdom. 100 Units.

For most of the duration of the New Kingdom (1550-1069 BC), the ancient Egyptians were able to establish a vast empire and becoming one of the key powers within the Near East. This course will investigate in detail the development of Egyptian foreign policies and military expansion which affected parts of the Near East and Nubia. We will examine and discuss topics such as ideology, imperial identity, political struggle and motivation for conquest and control of wider regions surrounding the Egyptian state as well as the relationship with other powers and their perspective on Egyptian rulers as for example described in the Amarna letters.

Instructor(s): Brian Muhs     Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): SOSC 20013, CLCV 25900, HIST 15604

NEHC 20014. Ancient Empires IV: the Achaemenid Empire. 100 Units.

This course introduces students to the Achaemenid Empire, also known as the First Persian Empire (ca. 550-330 BCE). We will be examining the political history and cultural accomplishments of the Achaemenids who, from their homeland in modern-day Iran, quickly rose to become one of the largest empires of the ancient world, ruling from North Africa to North India at their height. We will also be examining the history of Greek-Persian encounters and the image of the Achaemenids in Greek and Biblical literature. The students will visit the Oriental Institutes' archive and object collection to learn more about the University of Chicago's unique position in the exploration, excavation, and restoration of the Persian Empire's royal architecture and administrative system through the Persian Expedition carried out in the 1930s.

Instructor(s): Mehrnoush Soroush     Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): CLCV 21722, HIST 25602

NEHC 20015. Ancient Empires V: The Umayyad. 100 Units.

The Umayyads ruled over the last "great empire" of late antiquity: the early Islamic empire, spanning from the Atlas to the Hindu Kush, from the Atlantic to the Amu Darya, and embracing regions with different cultural and political traditions. This course introduces to the history of the Umayyad caliphate, focusing on some of the visible legacies its inhabitants left behind: texts, objects, and monumental buildings that are still standing in cities of the Middle East and Europe. But we will also reflect upon less material legacies: for example, cities with a long-lasting urban culture, infrastructures for communicating across a vast empire, the consolidation of religious traditions, and exchanges and cohabitation of different religious groups.

Instructor(s): Cecilia Palombo     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 25706, RLST 20315

NEHC 20016. Ancient Empires VI: The Assyrian Empire. 100 Units.

This course will examine the concept and definition of empire and the practices of imperial control through a case study of Mesopotamia's best-known empire, the Neo-Assyrian (first half of the 1st millennium BCE). At its peak, the Assyrians ruled a vast area covering most of modern Iraq and Syria, plus parts of Iran, Turkey and the Levant, with aspirations to control Egypt. The gradual expansion of this empire from late 2nd millennium BCE beginnings and its extremely rapid collapse in ca. 612 BCE provide an excellent example of the tensions within trajectories of empire. The course themes include warfare and political strategies, identity and ethnicity, imperial bureaucracy, and the practical and ideological purposes of infrastructure building. Evidence examined will include texts (in translation) and the archaeological record at various scales, from settlements through artworks. We will also examine paradoxes, such as the contrast between textual claims of hegemony and limited archaeological evidence for this, and the power of visual propaganda versus its select audience.

Instructor(s): Augusta McMahon     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 20405

NEHC 20017. Ancient Empires VII: Sumerians and Akkadians. 100 Units.

The course introduces students to the first 'empires' in the ancient Middle East. We will study the earliest attempts under both Sumerian and Akkadian leadership at unifying the old Sumerian city states in what is today southern Iraq in the mid-third millennium BCE. Our focus will then be on the two successful empires that arose from these attempts, namely the one founded by Sargon of Akkade in ca. 2300 BCE and the one ruled by the Third Dynasty of Ur from 2092-2003 BCE. While exploring a rich variety of sources, both textual and from archaeological contexts, we will pay particular attention to understanding expansionist efforts, strategies of empire building, the establishment of a centralized state bureaucracy, ideologies of kingship, ethnicity and identity, as well as rebellions against the new political system and theories about why these early empires began to crumble after only a few generations. Since these new forms of dominion were tested and developed for the first time in this formative period and kings of these dynasties acquired a special status in Mesopotamian cultural memory, this course provides a solid base for understanding the later development of ancient Middle Eastern history but can also be studied for the sake of understanding early empire formation.

Instructor(s): Jana Matuszak     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 20406

NEHC 20019. Mesopotamian Law. 100 Units.

Ancient Mesopotamia--the home of the Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians who wrote in cuneiform script on durable clay tablets--was the locus of many of history's firsts. No development, however, may be as important as the formations of legal systems and legal principles revealed in contracts, trial records, and law collections (codes), among which The Laws of Hammurabi (r. 1792-1750 BC) stands as most important for understanding the subsequent legal practice and thought of Mesopotamia's cultural heirs in the Middle East and Europe until today. This course will explore the rich source materials of the Laws and relevant judicial and administration documents (all in English translations) to investigate topics of legal, social, and economic practice, including family formation and dissolution, crime and punishment (sympathetic or talionic eye for an eye, pecuniary, corporal), and procedure (contracts, trials, ordeals).

Instructor(s): Martha Roth     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): SIGN 26022, NEHC 30019

NEHC 20024. Everyday Life in the Early Islamic Period. 100 Units.

How did people live in the early Islamic period? How did they work and study? What do we know about their relations with family members, loved ones, and neighbors? How did they relate to the administration and to people who ruled them? Did they get together to celebrate religious festivals? Did they have parties? What sources do we have to learn about their habits, routines, and feelings? What can we learn about every-day struggles, and how much do these differ from our own? This course aims to introduce undergraduate and early graduate students to the study of social history through a combination of literary and documentary sources from the early centuries of Islam. We will learn about both opportunities and limits of studying history from the "bottom-up."

Instructor(s): CECILIA PALOMBO     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 25705, RLST 20324, HIST 35705, NEHC 30024, ISLM 30024

NEHC 20034. From the Harem to Helem: Gender and Sexuality in the Modern Middle East. 100 Units.

This course will provide a historical and theoretical survey of issues pertaining to gender and sexuality in the modern Middle East. First, we will outline the colonial legacies of gender politics and gendered discourses in modern Middle Eastern history. We will discuss orientalist constructions of the harem and the veil (Allouche, Laila Ahmed, Lila Abu-Loghod), and their contested afterlives across the Middle East. We will also explore colonial (homo)sexuality, and attendant critiques (Najmabadi, Massad). We will pay especial attention to local discourses about gender and sexuality, and trouble facile assumptions of "writing back" while attending to the various specificities of local discourses of everyday life across various sites of the Middle East. Eschewing reductive traps for more nuanced explorations of the specifics of life in Beirut, Cairo, Istanbul, or Tehran - as well as to rural areas - we will show how gender and sexuality are constructed and practiced in these locales. In addition to foundational scholarly texts in the field, we will also engage with an array of cultural texts (films, novels, poetry, comics) and - where possible - have conversations with activists who are working in these sites via Skype/teleconferencing.

Instructor(s): Stephanie Kraver     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): GNSE 30112, NEHC 30034, GNSE 20112

NEHC 20040. Eat, Pray, Tax: How the Middle East Shaped the World. 100 Units.

Fundamental elements of today's world originate in the Middle East. The region saw the beginning of agriculture, the emergence of the first state, the invention of the alphabet and the codex, and the birth of the great monotheistic religions. This course explores these momentous developments. It traces their origins, effects, and interconnections through history, anthropology, and sociology as well as a range of excursions and hands-on activities designed to allow students to engage with the topics both intellectually and experientially.

NEHC 20050. Introduction to Hadith Literature. 100 Units.

This course offers an introduction to hadith literature, which encompasses traditions about the life of the prophet Muhammad, his speeches and deeds. The aim is to familiarize students with the basic terminology, the different genres of hadith literature, the development of the classical hadith scholarship, the most important hadith collections, as well as studies on hadith criticism. We will examine the methods of collecting and transmitting the hadiths in Islamic history, their evaluation and assessment by Muslim scholars, the role of hadiths in law, theology and Sufism, and the modern academic debates on the authenticity of the hadiths. Additionally, the course will engage with the genesis of Twelve Shiite and Zaidi hadith.

Instructor(s): Mehmetcan Akpinar     Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): This course meets the HS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 11050, ISLM 30050, NEHC 30050

NEHC 20112. Islamic City and Its Parts. 100 Units.

This course is designed for graduate or upper-level undergraduate students interested in the social history of the Mediterranean, late Antiquity, the Middle Ages and Early modernity. We will have survey and explore the history of urban classes, guilds, religious communities, waqf and urbanism, everyday life, disasters and celebrations in "Islamic" cities. The course will begin by examining the primary sources on the subject. We will also cover a growing corpus of secondary sources on life in Islamic cities. Among the questions we will ask are what are the forces of growth and decline of Islamic cities, what groups and classes of people lived in cities, what did cityscapes look like and what kinds of businesses and concerns occupied people's daily lives.

Instructor(s): Mustafa Kaya     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): ISLM 30112, NEHC 30112, RLST 21112

NEHC 20113. Revolution and Piety in Islam. 100 Units.

This course examines religious responses to major political upheavals in Islamic history, from the Abbasid revolution to the age of European expansion. Topics include the Mongol destruction of the caliphate in 1258 and the opening and closing of confessional boundaries; the formation of regional Muslim empires in the 16th century; Ibn Arabi, Ibn Taymiyya, and Ibn Khaldun; the development of alternative spiritualities, mysticism, and messianism in the fifteenth century; trans-confessionalism, antinomianism, and the articulation of sacral sovereignties in the sixteenth century; the pious responses to European colonialism . All work in English.

Equivalent Course(s): HIST 25710, HIST 35710, RLST 21113, ISLM 30113, NEHC 30113

NEHC 20130. Textual Amulets in the Ancient Mediterranean. 100 Units.

Amulets with inscribed texts were used broadly by individuals and households and across ancient Mediterranean cultures for protection against evils, for curing disease, and for obtaining advantage over adversaries in all walks of life. In this course, we will survey a broad range of such amulets coming from the Levant, Mesopotamia, the Phoenician-Punic world, Greece and southern Italy, and inscribed on such varied materials as sheets of gold and silver, papyri, ostraca and gems, while scrutinizing their material aspects, their cultural context, and their shared and distinctive features.

Instructor(s): Carolina Lopez-Ruiz, Sofia Torallas-Tovar, Christopher Faraone     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Classical or Near Eastern languages recommended but not required.
Note(s): THis course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): CLCV 27923, RLST 20130, CLAS 37923, HREL 40130, NEHC 40130

NEHC 20157. History of Modern Iran: 1890-1988. 100 Units.

This course will examine important political developments from the end of the Qajar period to the end of the Iran-Iraq War. The course is a colloquium and will have a heavy discussion element.

Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 30157

NEHC 20160. Central Asia Past and Present/From Alexander the Great to Al Qaeda. 100 Units.

Central Asia Past and Present serves as a multi-disciplinary course, spanning anthropology, history and political science. This course introduces students to the fluid, political-geographic concept of Central Asia as well as to the historical and cultural dimensions of this particular and oft-redefined world. My understanding of Central Asia comes from studies of ex-Soviet Central Asia, which includes five independent countries (since 1991) within central Eurasia--the former U.S.S.R. Thus the course encompasses Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan in addition to parts of northern Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and western China (Xinjiang/Sinkiang). Students will familiarize themselves with universal and divergent factors among the Central Asian peoples based on phenomena such as human migrations, cross-cultural influences, historical events, and the economic organization of peoples based on local ecology and natural boundaries. Working together and as individuals, we will study maps and atlases to gain a fuller understanding of historical movements and settlements of the Central Asian peoples.

Instructor(s): R. Zanca
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 30160, ANTH 32206, ANTH 23616

NEHC 20201-20202-20203. Islamicate Civilization I-II-III.

This sequence surveys the intellectual, cultural, religious, and political development of the Islamic world (Middle East and North Africa), from its origins in pre-Islamic Arabia to the late 20th century. The sequence is required for MA students in CMES and counts toward completion of the NELC major and minor. It is recommended that the course be taken in sequence.

NEHC 20201. Islamicate Civilization I: 600-950. 100 Units.

This course is an introduction to the history and the study of early Islamicate societies, from the rise of Islam in late antiquity to the early Abbasid period (ca. 600-950 CE), considering various religious and social groups. We will look at the same historical arc from multiple perspectives: political events, such as the Muslim conquests and the rise of ruling dynasties, but also other factors that impacted people's lives in the early centuries of Islamic rule-the environment they inhabited and transformed, documents they created, social institutions, and economic activities. What broad developments characterized the early Islamic period? Who brought those changes about? And how are they studied today?

Instructor(s): CECILIA PALOMBO     Terms Offered: Autumn. This course will not be offered for the 2021-2022 academic year.
Note(s): The Islamicate Civilization sequence does not fulfill the General Ed requirements
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 20201, HIST 35621, MDVL 20201, HIST 15611, NEHC 30201, ISLM 30201

NEHC 20202. Islamicate Civilization II: 950-1750. 100 Units.

This course, a continuation of Islamicate Civilization I, surveys intellectual, cultural, religious and political developments in the Islamic world from Andalusia to the South Asian sub-continent during the periods from ca. 950 to 1750. We trace the arrival and incorporation of the Steppe Peoples (Turks and Mongols) into the central Islamic lands; the splintering of the Abbasid Caliphate and the impact on political theory; the flowering of literature of Arabic, Turkic and Persian expression; the evolution of religious and legal scholarship and devotional life; transformations in the intellectual and philosophical traditions; the emergence of Shi`i states (Buyids and Fatimids); the Crusades and Mongol conquests; the Mamluks and Timurids, and the "gunpowder empires" of the Ottomans, Safavids, and Moghuls; the dynamics of gender and class relations; etc. This class partially fulfills the requirement for MA students in CMES, as well as for NELC majors and PhD students.

Instructor(s): Mustafa Kaya     Terms Offered: Winter. This course will not be offered for the 2021-2022 academic year.
Prerequisite(s): Islamicate Civilization I (NEHC 20201) or Islamic Thought & Literature-1 (NEHC 20601), or the equivalent
Note(s): The Islamicate Civilization sequence does not fulfill the General Ed requirements
Equivalent Course(s): ISLM 30202, NEHC 30202, MDVL 20202, HIST 15612, HIST 35622, RLST 20202

NEHC 20203. Islamicate Civilization III: 1750-Present. 100 Units.

This course covers the period from ca. 1750 to the present, focusing on Western military, economic, and ideological encroachment; the impact of such ideas as nationalism and liberalism; efforts at reform in the Islamic states; the emergence of the "modern" Middle East after World War I; the struggle for liberation from Western colonial and imperial control; the Middle Eastern states in the cold war era; and local and regional conflicts.

Instructor(s): Carl Shook     Terms Offered: Spring. This course will not be offered for the 2021-2022 academic year.
Prerequisite(s): Islamicate Civilization II (NEHC 20202) or Islamic Thought & Literature-2 (NEHC 20602), or the equivalent
Note(s): The Islamicate Civilization sequence does not fulfill the General Ed requirements
Equivalent Course(s): ISLM 30203, NEHC 30203, HIST 15613, RLST 20203, HIST 35623

NEHC 20210. Greek and Near Eastern Creation Stories. 100 Units.

This course will offer a comparative view of Greek traditions about the origin of the world (cosmogony) and the origin of the gods (theogony), and the multiple layers on which they were entangled with Near Eastern narratives. On the Greek side, we will focus on Hesiod, Homer, and the Orphic poems. Near Eastern sources will include Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Hittite, Phoenician, and Hebrew texts. The reading of primary sources will be done in translation (though students are always encouraged to check the texts in the original language for closer reading and discussion, if training allows). We will engage with secondary bibliography, especially works that take a comparative approach or discuss the comparative method. We will discuss the methodological challenges and advantages of comparative mythology and the phenomenon of cultural exchange, as revealed in these mythical and literary connection.

Instructor(s): Carolina López-Ruiz     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): CLCV 20222, RLST 20210

NEHC 20228. History of Jews in the Middle East. 100 Units.

This class examines the history of Jews in the Middle East from the early modern period, when many Jewish refugees fleeing Spain and Portugal settled in the Ottoman Empire, to the modern Period, when Jews debated and challenged colonialist, reformist, nationalist, leftist, and secular ideologies. Reading novels, memoirs, and new works in the fields of Jewish and Middle Eastern Studies, we will examine how early modernity and modernity gave birth to new identity formations and new frames of belonging. We will visit the unknown histories of early modern Jews who produced translations and explications of the Hebrew Bible in Arabic, of Jews and Muslims who fought together Christian missionary activities, of Arab Jewish feminists, and of Jewish communists who established anti-Zionist societies in the Middle East.

Equivalent Course(s): RLST 20228, HIST 25810, JWSC 23405

NEHC 20271. Islamic Education in West Africa. 100 Units.

This course will critically explore the history of Islamic scholarship and the transmission of religious knowledge and scholarly authority in West African Muslim societies from the late medieval period to the present day. We will examine a variety of knowledge traditions, textual and pedagogical approaches, epistemologies, and embodied practices of Muslim scholars and students of the region in order to understand what it means to seek, transmit, and create knowledge in the context of West African Muslim societies. In addition to relevant secondary literature, we will read passages from some of the texts taught in these places. Intermediate Arabic is recommended, but not required for this course.

Instructor(s): Abubakar Abdulkadir     Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): This course meets the HS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 33271, RLST 20271, KNOW 33271, ISLM 33271

NEHC 20303. Comics and the (Arab) City. 100 Units.

The city has often been connected to the practice of making comics, and Arab cities are no exception. In this course, we will build on theorizations of comics and of urban studies - and comics and the urban - and apply this theoretical foundation to an exploration of various cities in Arab comics in translation (or in English). How does the visual and verbal language of comics expand our understanding of urban life in the modern Arab world? What cities and urban experiences dominate in comic renderings, and why?

Instructor(s): Ghenwa Hayek     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 30303

NEHC 20471. Readings in Maimonides' Guide of the Perplexed. 100 Units.

A careful study of select passages in Maimonides' Guide of the Perplexed, focusing on the method of the work and its major philosophical-theological themes, including: divine attributes, creation vs. eternity, prophecy, the problem of evil and divine providence, law and ethics, the final aim of human existence.

Instructor(s): James T. Robinson     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): MDVL 25400, JWSC 21107, ISLM 45400, HREL 45401, RLST 21107, HIJD 45400, NEHC 40470, RLVC 45400, FNDL 24106

NEHC 20504. Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. 100 Units.

The course introduces the Jewish/Hebrew Bible as a literary treasury with a material history. We will survey the genres and the different works, review scholarly theories about the texts and about ideas in them, and situate them in the history of Israel and Judea and in the culture of ancient Southwest Asia. We will also engage theories of history, literature, and narrative. The course includes a weekly Discussion Section for mixed-modes activities and conceptual discussions.

Instructor(s): Simeon Chavel     Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students. This course counts as a Gateway course for RLST majors/minors.
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 31000, JWSC 20120, HIJD 31004, NEHC 30504, FNDL 11004, RLST 11004

NEHC 20552. Slavery and Social Justice in the Hebrew Bible. 100 Units.

What is a "just" society? And how do we know if justice has been achieved? This course is both an overview of the concept of a "just society" and a thematic survey of the narratives of the Hebrew Bible (the Jewish Tanak, the Christian Old Testament) through the lens of social justice. In this course we will examine several perspectives within the Hebrew Bible on what makes a just society, with particular emphasis on the narratives and legal corpora of the Pentateuch, the historical narratives of the former prophets, and the sayings and exhortations of the "writing" prophets. We will aim to understand more clearly what the ancient Israelites would have likely understood by the notion of a "just society," and how those understandings may differ from our own. Through our discussions, students will develop their skills in close-reading of texts and literary analysis of biblical narratives. In this course we will study several social issues and their reflections in biblical texts. Among the possibilities are: slavery, the treatment of the poor, the rights of the community vs. the individual, the treatment of the disabled, homicide, war, revenge, animal rights and environmentalism, inheritance, and immigration.

Instructor(s): David Harris     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 20550, RLST 23550

NEHC 20568. Balkan Folklore. 100 Units.

Vampires, fire-breathing dragons, vengeful mountain nymphs. 7/8 and other uneven dance beats, heart-rending laments, and a living epic tradition. This course is an overview of Balkan folklore from historical, political, and anthropological perspectives. We seek to understand folk tradition as a dynamic process and consider the function of different folklore genres in the imagining and maintenance of community and the socialization of the individual. We also experience this living tradition firsthand through visits of a Chicago-based folk dance ensemble, "Balkan Dance."

Instructor(s): Angelina Ilieva     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): CMLT 33301, NEHC 30568, REES 29009, ANTH 25908, REES 39009, ANTH 35908, CMLT 23301

NEHC 20570. Mughal India: Tradition & Transition. 100 Units.

The focus of this course is on the period of Mughal rule during the late sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries, especially on selected issues that have been at the center of historiographical debate in the past decades.

Instructor(s): M. Alam     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Advanced standing or consent of instructor. Prior knowledge of appropriate history and secondary literature required.
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 26602, NEHC 30570, SALC 27701, HIST 36602, SALC 37701

NEHC 20573. The Burden of History: A Nation and Its Lost Paradise. 100 Units.

What makes it possible for the imagined communities called nations to command the emotional attachments that they do? This course considers some possible answers to Benedict Anderson's question on the basis of material from the Balkans. We will examine the transformation of the scenario of paradise, loss, and redemption into a template for a national identity narrative through which South East European nations retell their Ottoman past. With the help of Žižek's theory of the subject as constituted by trauma and Kant's notion of the sublime, we will contemplate the national fixation on the trauma of loss and the dynamic between victimhood and sublimity.

Instructor(s): Angelina Ilieva     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): REES 39013, CMLT 23401, REES 29013, CMLT 33401, NEHC 30573, HIST 34005, HIST 24005

NEHC 20601-20602-20603. Islamic Thought and Literature I-II-III.

This sequence explores the thought and literature of the Islamic world from the coming of Islam in the seventh century C.E. through the development and spread of its civilization in the medieval period and into the modern world. Including historical framework to establish chronology and geography, the course focuses on key aspects of Islamic intellectual history: scripture, law, theology, philosophy, literature, mysticism, political thought, historical writing, and archaeology. In addition to lectures and secondary background readings, students read and discuss samples of key primary texts, with a view to exploring Islamic civilization in the direct voices of the people who participated in creating it. All readings are in English translation. No prior background in the subject is required. This course sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies. Taking these courses in sequence is recommended but not required.

NEHC 20601. Islamic Thought and Literature I. 100 Units.

This sequence explores the thought and literature of the Islamic world from the coming of Islam in the seventh century C.E. through the development and spread of its civilization in the medieval period and into the modern world. Including historical framework to establish chronology and geography, the course focuses on key aspects of Islamic intellectual history: scripture, law, theology, philosophy, literature, mysticism, political thought, historical writing, and archaeology. In addition to lectures and secondary background readings, students read and discuss samples of key primary texts, with a view to exploring Islamic civilization in the direct voices of the people who participated in creating it. All readings are in English translation. No prior background in the subject is required. This course sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.

Instructor(s): Flowers, Adam     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): SOSC 22000, MDVL 20601, HIST 25610, RLST 20401

NEHC 20602. Islamic Thought and Literature II. 100 Units.

This course covers the period from ca. 950 to 1700, surveying works of literature, theology, philosophy, sufism, politics, history, etc., written in Arabic, Persian and Turkish, as well as the art, architecture and music of the Islamicate traditions. Through primary texts, secondary sources and lectures, we will trace the cultural, social, religious, political and institutional evolution through the period of the Fatimids, the Crusades, the Mongol invasions, and the "gunpowder empires" (Ottomans, Safavids, Mughals).

Instructor(s): Adam Flower - Firas Alkhateeb     Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): Taking these courses in sequence is recommended but not required. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 25615, SOSC 22100, RLST 20402, MDVL 20602

NEHC 20603. Islamic Thought and Literature III. 100 Units.

This course covers the period from ca. 1700 to the present. It explores Muslim intellectuals' engagement with tradition and modernity in the realms of religion, politics, literature, and law. We discuss debates concerning the role of religion in a modern society, perceptions of Europe and European influence, the challenges of maintain religious and cultural authenticity, and Muslim views of nation-states and nationalism in the Middle East. We also give consideration to the modern developments of transnational jihadism and the Arab Spring. This course sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies.

Instructor(s): Holly Shissler - Tobias Scheunchen     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 25616, RLST 20403, SOSC 22200

NEHC 20606. Introduction to Qur'an Manuscripts. 100 Units.

The study of the Qur'an in the academy is primarily a literary endeavor. While a rich scripture and standard of world literature the Qur'an also exhibits a long and complex manuscript tradition. Despite beginning as an oral text, from the earliest periods of Islamic history, the Qur'an was revered, studied, and written. This course will chart the historical development of the Qur'an's manuscript traditions, analyze the efficacy of manuscripts as a source for early Islamic history, and consider scripture as objects of religious devotion.

Equivalent Course(s): RLST 20606, NEHC 30606, ISLM 30606

NEHC 20612. Critical Arabic Philology. 100 Units.

This course introduces students to the indigenous tools and techniques devised for the critical study of texts within the classical Arabic-Islamic scholarly tradition, comparing and contrasting them with modern critical philology. We begin with an examination of two modern accounts of philology from the early 1930s, put forward by a German Orientalist and a Yemeni corrector working in India, respectively. Parallel to these readings, students edit collaboratively sections of a medieval manuscript in order to gain a direct insight into the problems of deciphering and editing manuscripts. We then examine the explicit textual methodologies developed in the field of Hadith collection and reproduction. The course ends with discussion of a fourteenth-century philological analysis that uncovered a historical forgery of a document allegedly written by Muḥammad.

Instructor(s): Ahmed El Shamsy     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): 3 years of Arabic
Equivalent Course(s): ISLM 40612, NEHC 30612

NEHC 20613. Dreams in the Ancient World. 100 Units.

Dreams belong to the universals of human existence as human beings have always dreamt and will continue to dream across time and cultures. The questions where do dreams come from and how to unravel a dream have always preoccupied the human mind. In this course we will focus on dreams in the Greco-Roman and Greco-Egyptian cultural environments. We will cover dreams from three complementary perspectives: dreams as experience, dream interpretation and dream theory. The reading materials will include: (a) a selection of dream narratives from different sources, literary texts as well as documentary accounts of dreams; (b) texts which document the forms and contexts of dream interpretation in the Greco-Roman and Greco-Egyptian cultures and (c) texts which represent attempts to approach dreams from a more general perspective by among others explaining their genesis and defining dream-types.

Instructor(s): S. Torallas.      Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): ANCM 44519, CLAS 34519, CLCV 24519, HREL 34519, NEHC 30613, RLST 24503

NEHC 20630. Introduction to Islamic Philosophy. 100 Units.

This course offers an introduction to the terms and concepts current in Arabic philosophical writings in the classical period of Islamic thought (roughly 9th to 17th century). It begins with the movement to translate Greek texts into Arabic and the debate among Muslims about the validity of philosophy versus revelation. From a close reading of key works (in English) by important philosophers such as al-Kindī, al-Rāzī, al-Sijistānī, al-Fārābī, Ibn Sīnā (Avicenna), al-Ghazzālī, Ibn Bājja, Ibn Tufayl, Ibn Rushd (Averroes), Suhrawardī, and Mullā Ṣadrā, a series of lectures will follow the career of philosophy in the Islamic world, first as a 'foreign' science and then, later, as selectively rejected but also substantially accepted as a natural component of sophisticated discourse.

Instructor(s): Paul Walker     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 30630, ISLM 30630, RLST 23630

NEHC 20658. Narrating Conflict in Modern Arabic Literature. 100 Units.

This course is an exploration of conflict in the Arab world through literature, film and new media. In this course, we will discuss the influence of independence movements, wars, and revolts on Arabic literature: how do writers write about, or film, conflict? How does conflict affect language itself? How do these texts engage with issues of trauma and bearing witness? To answer these questions, we will look at a number of key moments of conflict in the Arab world, including the Arab-Israeli conflicts, the Algerian war of independence, the 2011 Egyptian revolution, the Lebanese and Iraq wars, and the ongoing war in Syria. Rather than follow a historical chronology of these events, we will read these texts thematically, beginning with texts that seek to present themselves as direct, sometimes eye-witness, accounts and then moving on to narratives that complicate the relationship between conflict and its narration.

Instructor(s): Stephanie Kraver     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): ARAB 20658, NEHC 30658, ARAB 30658

NEHC 20676. Perpetration of Mass Violence: Motivations and Dynamics of Participation in the Armenian Genoci. 100 Units.

The systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire was planned and executed by a cadre of individuals. Although in recent decades historians have explored the biographies of leading figures in the Committee of Union and Progress and explored their roles in the destruction of the Christian population of the Ottoman Empire, there is little systematic research on the motivations of and interactions among perpetrators. Furthermore, most active participants in the genocide on the local level are little known today. In this course, we will explore motivations of perpetrators and different forms of perpetration of violence during the Armenian genocide in a comparative perspective. We will investigate the lives and legacies of genocide perpetrators as well as their post-genocide careers who actively participated in the annihilation of Armenians and plunder of their wealth and cultural heritage. Our aim is to reconstruct the background, motivations, and actions of the perpetrators at the national, local and provincial levels, a largely understudied dimension of Armenian genocide history. Through social network analysis and micro-historical portraits, this course aims to shed light on the political and socio-economic factors that reinforced the foundations of a genocide in the making and demonstrate how the policies of Ottoman central authorities found fertile ground in provinces and districts across the empire.

Equivalent Course(s): HIST 32003, NEHC 30676, HIST 22003

NEHC 20766. Shamans and Oral Poets of Central Asia. 100 Units.

Anthropological/Ethnographic Survey of Pre-Modern Central Asian Cultures. This course explores the rituals, oral literature, and music associated with the nomadic cultures of Central Eurasia.

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): ANTH 25906, NEHC 30766

NEHC 20808. Biography of the Prophet Muhammad. 100 Units.

This introductory course offers an overview of Prophet Muhammad's life as portrayed in the early and medieval Arabic narrative tradition and through the lens of modern scholarship. We will discuss a diverse range of topics, such as life in pre-Islamic Arabia, the Prophet's early life before prophethood, the first revelations, the Meccan period, his migration to Medina, his religio-political leadership and the military expeditions during the Medinan period, his reported miracles, etc. At the same time, students will gain an overview of the sira/maghaz' literature, i.e., the texts devoted to the life of the Prophet Muhammad in the Muslim tradition. Modern methodological questions which concern the reliability of the narrative traditions in reconstructing the biography of the "historical Muhammad" and a wide range of approaches developed in Western academia to overcome problems related to the source material will also be addressed.

Instructor(s): Mehmetcan Akpinar     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): No background in Islamic studies or Arabic language required.
Note(s): This course meets the HS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): ISLM 30808, MDVL 20808, RLST 20808, NEHC 30808

NEHC 20822. Topics in Ottoman Cultural History. 100 Units.

This course focuses on the recent trends and developments in Ottoman Studies. We examine topics and methodologies in works published in recent years and explore the ensuing debates.

Instructor(s): Hakan Karateke     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 30822

NEHC 20838. Further Topics in Late Ottoman History-1. 100 Units.

This course will introduce students to a number of important topics in Eighteenth and nineteenth century Ottoman history, such as the nature of the great local notables, the growing importance of proteges, and the bureaucratic reform.

Instructor(s): H. Shissler     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Open to Graduate students and undergraduates with some knowledge of Middle Eastern History.
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 30838

NEHC 20866. The Economy by Other Means": New Approaches to the Economy of the Late and Post-Ottoman Middle East. 100 Units.

Questions around political economy and capitalism are once again gaining prominence in Ottoman and Middle East studies. Whereas these questions have been fundamental to the traditional confines of economic history and political economy, this new engagement takes its cue from a different and diverse pool of fields. As one observer recently put it, an emerging body of literature engages with "the economy by other means." This course takes stock of these still-uncharted means by bringing together and examining a selection of recently published books treating economic themes in the late Ottoman Empire and in the post-Ottoman Middle East up to the midtwentieth century. How do these books challenge, build on, and/or conform to the contours of economic modes of analysis? What do they contribute to our understanding of capitalism in the Middle East? What are the new archives they create for the study of economic life? How do they destabilize the conceptual repertoire of political economy? More importantly, in what ways do they change our view of the late Ottoman and modern Middle East? This course will take us from malaria in Anatolia to "men of capital" in Mandate Palestine; from legal battles on family inheritance in Ottoman Syria to the "colonial economism" of the British occupation of Egypt; from the late Ottoman culture of productivity to the rise of the Arabic novel during nahda.

Instructor(s): Murat Bozluolcay     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 35803, KNOW 30866, KNOW 20866, NEHC 30866, HIST 25809

NEHC 20911. Prophets in Jewish and Islamic Traditions. 100 Units.

In this course, we will study the tales of the prophets as found in the Bible, the Qur'an, and Jewish and Islamic interpretive traditions. By examining and enjoying the narratives of individual prophets, we will develop an understanding of prophecy as a broad religious phenomenon. The course offers opportunities for comparative enquiry into two sacred scriptures-the Bible and the Qur'an-and the rich interpretive literature that Jewish and Islamic communities created in order to understand them. All readings will be in English translation. Assignments include three short essays, an oral presentation, and a final exam.

Instructor(s): J. Andruss     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 20910, RLST 20910

NEHC 21002. Greece and the Balkans in the Age of Nationalism. 100 Units.

This course is an introduction to the history of Southeastern Europe since the 1790s. Each week's work will examine a key topic in the Balkan affairs through a combination of lectures, readings and discussion of associated issues. The class will not follow the history of any one Balkan country comprehensively. Instead, the course will direct students' attention to relevant developments which address questions like these: 1. How does Balkan history related to European history? 2. What is a nation, a nationality, and an ethnic group? 3. What has nationalism meant in the Balkans? The curse emphasizes the history of Greece, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania and Yugoslavia, with some attention to events in the Ottoman Empire, the Habsburg Monarchy and Hungary as appropriate. The course aims to offer a historical background that will enable students to better understand the recent history of Greece and the Balkans.

Instructor(s): Stefanos Katsikas     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): MOGK 31001, REES 21001, MOGK 21001, HIST 23613

NEHC 21451. Rhoades Seminar: Reading Ancient Egyptian Art. 100 Units.

For millennia ancient Egyptian artists constructed visual narratives on tomb chapel walls, temple structures, and other material remains - such as stelae - that provide glimpses of lived experiences in the land that gave rise to this ancient African culture. Focusing on two-dimensional representations produced in Egypt (ancient Kemet) between approximately 3000-1069 BCE, this course will consider the functions of such pictorial accounts within their original contexts and explore approaches to reading and interpreting them. We will investigate topics including depictions of "daily life" on the Nile, royal sojourns to foreign lands, and the imagined landscapes of the underworld, deconstructing scenes and the ancient artistic conventions used to produce them. Particular emphasis will be placed on how the natural environment of North Africa is reflected in the arts of ancient Egypt, from detailed renderings of indigenous flora and fauna to interpretations of the physical landscape. Sources will include ancient texts in translation and firsthand examination of Egyptian artifacts in Chicagoland museums, including the ISAC Museum.

Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 31451, ARTH 31451, ARTH 21451

NEHC 21780. Poetry of the Hebrew Bible. 100 Units.

The course will survey poetic genres of the Hebrew Bible, their elements and tropes, scholarship on biblical poetry specifically, and approaches to poetry in general.

Instructor(s): Simeon Chavel     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): PQ: Introductory Biblical Hebrew I–III (BIBL 33900–34000 + Text course) or equivalent.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 41780, HIJD 41780, RLST 21780, NEHC 41780

NEHC 21865. Zion and Zaphon: Biblical Texts and Memory Studies. 100 Units.

The course will engage memory studies to analyze how ancient authors responded to the campaigns of Assyria against Judea and Israel in the 8th-7th cents BCE. Sources will include ancient art, archaeological finds, and literature of many genres in the Hebrew Bible and outside it.

Instructor(s): Simeon Chavel     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Introductory Biblical Hebrew sequence (BIBL 33900–34000 + Text course) or equivalent.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 21865, KNOW 44600, HIJD 44600, BIBL 44600, NEHC 44600

NEHC 22010. Jewish Civilization I: Ancient Beginnings to Medieval Period. 100 Units.

Jewish Civilization is a three-quarter sequence that explores the development of Jewish culture and tradition from its ancient beginnings through its rabbinic and medieval transformations to its modern manifestations. Through investigation of primary texts-biblical, Talmudic, philosophical, mystical, historical, documentary, and literary-students will acquire a broad overview of Jews, Judaism, and Jewishness while reflecting in greater depth on major themes, ideas, and events in Jewish history. The autumn course will deal with antiquity through the Middle Ages. Its readings will include material from the Bible and writings from the second temple, Hellenistic, rabbinic, and medieval periods. All sections of this course will share a common core of readings; individual instructors will supplement with other materials. It is recommended, though not required, that students take the three Jewish Civilization courses in sequence. Students who register for the Autumn Quarter course will automatically be pre-registered for the winter segment. In the Spring Quarter students have the option of taking a third unit of Jewish Civilization, a course whose topics will vary (JWSC 1200X).

Instructor(s): Larisa Reznik     Terms Offered: Autumn Winter
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 11701, RLST 22010, JWSC 12000, MDVL 12000

NEHC 22011. Jewish Civilization II: Early Modern Period to 21st Century. 100 Units.

Jewish Civilization is a three-quarter sequence that explores the development of Jewish culture and tradition from its ancient beginnings through its rabbinic and medieval transformations to its modern manifestations. Through investigation of primary texts-biblical, Talmudic, philosophical, mystical, historical, documentary, and literary-students will acquire a broad overview of Jews, Judaism, and Jewishness while reflecting in greater depth on major themes, ideas, and events in Jewish history. The Winter course will begin with the early modern period and continue to the present. It will include discussions of mysticism, the works of Spinoza and Mendelssohn, the nineteenth-century reform, the Holocaust and its reflection in writers such as Primo Levi and Paul Celan, and literary pieces from postwar American Jewish and Israeli authors. All sections of this course will share a common core of readings; individual instructors will supplement with other materials. It is recommended, though not required, that students take the three Jewish Civilization courses in sequence. Students who register for the Autumn Quarter course will automatically be pre-registered for the winter segment. In the Spring Quarter students have the option of taking a third unit of Jewish Civilization, a course whose topics will vary (JWSC 1200X).

Instructor(s): Kenneth Moss Larisa Reznik     Terms Offered: Spring Winter
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 22011, JWSC 12001, HIST 11702

NEHC 22020. Alternative Feminisms: Gender, Agency, and Liberation in the Middle East. 100 Units.

This course critically examines gender, agency, and liberation in the Middle East. The course will begin with a discussion of human agency, its relation to sociocultural context, and the feminist literature on the issues of agency, resistance, and liberation. Then, we will explore these relationships in non-Western contexts by drawing examples from Turkey, Iran, and Northern Syria. In the cases of Turkey and Iran, we will focus on the feminist movements and women's collective actions for the right to wear and take off the headscarf. In the case of Northern Syria, we will explore the agencies of Kurdish female guerrillas and their conceptions of empowerment. In each case, we will focus on the moral and ethical principles that guide women's choices and trace their sociohistorical foundations.

Instructor(s): S. Numanbayraktaroglu     Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): Catalog content areas: 3, C
Equivalent Course(s): CHDV 22020, GNSE 32020, ANTH 22020, GNSE 23159, ANTH 32020, CHDV 32020, NELC 32020

NEHC 22308. Phoenician Religion (In Their Own Words And Those of Their Neighbors) 100 Units.

The Phoenicians were a Canaanite people who maintained their language, religion, and culture until Roman times. One of the main challenges facing the study of the Phoenician religion (and culture in general) is that most of their literature is lost. This course gathers together a variety of emic sources in the Phoenicians' own language or stemming from the Phoenician realm but written in Greek or Latin, as well as sources written by others about the Phoenicians, with a special focus on cult and religious identity. The texts we will read and discuss range from royal, votive, and funerary inscriptions, to the views about the Phoenicians in the Hebrew Bible, and Greek and Roman writers. This course is partly a text-based, reading course, and partly a thematic, culture course.

Instructor(s): Carolina López-Ruiz     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Intermediate knowledge (2 years) of a Semitic language (e.g., Hebrew, Phoenician, Aramaic, Ugaritic, Arabic) OR of ancient Greek and/or Latin.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): CLCV 22322, RLST 22308, NEHC 42308, CLAS 32322, HREL 42308

NEHC 22502. Persian Literary Translation Through the Translation of Hafez. 100 Units.

Persian Literary Translation Through the Translation of Hafez Translating poetry is often a challenging endeavor, but translating Persian classical poetry is especially complex for several reasons, including the genre's prevalence of ebhām (ambiguity) and ihām (polyvalence). These challenges have caused many literary translators to dub Hafez's poetry as practically untranslatable, yet nonetheless there have been many attempts at translation, with varying degrees of success. This course aims to both explore the specific challenges translators of Hafez have encountered and also to strengthen students' literary translation skill through the translation of Hafez's works. After conducting a survey of existing translations of Hafez and other Persian classical poets, hands-on translations of several ghazals of Hafez will foster a better understanding of the multilayered meanings of his poetry. In addition, published as well as video sources on literary translation will serve as an introduction to prevailing theories of translation and to efficient methodologies of translating literary texts. The course being essentially designed to familiarize students with the practice of translation, students will create and refine their own translations of selected poems of Hafez. The complete term paper must be 10-15 pages of typed double-spaced font 12 text and include the introductory essay, the translation, and the original poems.

Equivalent Course(s): PERS 20502, NEHC 32502

NEHC 22700. Biblical Law. 100 Units.

This course will examine the laws in the Torah/Pentateuch and elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible for their legal, social, and moral reasoning; their style; their meaning in literary works, as literature; and their historical setting. It will compare them to laws in other ancient works like the Hammurabi monument(s).

Instructor(s): Simeon Chavel     Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 32700, JWSC 22702, BIBL 32700, RLST 22700, HIJD 32700

NEHC 22707. Rumi: Poetry, Wisdom, and Metaphysics. 100 Units.

Hailed as one of the world's greatest mystical poets, Jalal al-Din Rumi (d. 1273) transcends the boundaries of language, religion and ethnicity. Today Rumi's poems can be heard in mosques, monasteries, churches and synagogues. This course examines Rumi's teachings, the metaphysics of love and his perennial wisdom through translations of his sublime verse, the quintessential art form of the Sufis. Students will engage with the field of Persian Sufi literature and understand the methods employed by scholars in studying Sufi poetry.

Instructor(s): Mukhtar Ali     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 22707, FNDL 22707

NEHC 22906. The Book of Ezekiel. 100 Units.

A seminar for reading the Book of Ezekiel (in English; optional reading group for those who read biblical Hebrew), the Bible's most bizarre and challenging Prophetic work. It features Ezekiel's close encounters with a brutal divine, instantaneous transportation to future spaces and faraway places, dream-scenes that become real, mortifying dramatizations, and surreal sensory overload. Ezekiel says he played the role of a crude mime, a confounding cryptic, and an erotic singer. This charged and disturbing work generated a variety of literary and speculative Jewish and Christian traditions, like the Apocalyptic and the Mystical. Modern Bible critics discount its retrospective frame, consider it a repository of historical materials, and probe Ezekiel for personality disorders. We will engage it the way it presents itself to us, as literature, in a which a character tells his glorious and troubled story, and explore its frame, content, poetics, Judean literary traditions, contemporary Babylonian scene, and historical message.

Instructor(s): Simeon Chavel     Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 32906, NEHC 32906, JWSC 22906, RLST 22906, HIJD 32906

NEHC 23250. Introduction to Islamic Theology. 100 Units.

Survey of ideas and arguments formulated by renowned Muslim theologians and responses that their doctrines triggered. Major doctrines will be covered, starting with early debates over the nature of belonging to the Muslim community, the nature of God, revelation, prophecy, freewill and predestination. The course roughly follows the historical development of Islamic theology in conversation with other Islamic sciences (philosophy, sufism, law), with a close examination of the confrontation between a group of rationalist theologians (Muʿtazilites), the traditionalist hadith-scholars, and the emergence of Sunni Ashʿarite theology between the 9th and 11th centuries.

Instructor(s): Yousef Casewit     Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): No knowledge of Arabic is required. Reading materials will be in English. Open to graduate students. This course meets the CS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 23250, ISLM 36250, NEHC 36250

NEHC 23613. Popular Culture in the Middle East and North Africa. 100 Units.

TBD

Instructor(s): Travis Jackson     Terms Offered: Various
Prerequisite(s): 100-level music course or consent of instructor.
Equivalent Course(s): MUSI 23613

NEHC 23723. Guardians of knowledge: scribes and books from Antiquity to the Middle Ages. 100 Units.

Books have been a fundamental part of the transmission of knowledge and more generally, human communication. They collect thoughts, experiences, feelings, knowledge and ideas into a material artifact that is distributed to an audience of readers. The work of scribes and scholars is the silent agent of this millennial enterprise. The process of book-production involves a large number of different skills from these artisans: material manufacture, preparation of writing surfaces and inks, writing skills, calligraphy, binding, distribution. In this course students will study the history of books, from Antiquity to the invention of the printing press, and their makers. The topics covered will include scribal training, book manufacture, circulation and trade of books, readership, and other such topics around the world of books and scholars. The course will focus on books as artifacts, as transmitters of knowledge and literary creativity.

Instructor(s): Sofía Torallas Tovar.      Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 34723, CLCV 24723, NEHC 34723, CLAS 34723, RLST 22723

NEHC 23825. Human Rights in the Middle East. 100 Units.

This seminar explores the broad range of human rights struggles, concerns and activism in the contemporary Middle East region. The class will examine human rights issues posed by authoritarian, dictatorial and single-party state formations in the Middle East particularly by looking at the effects of internal security apparatuses, mechanisms of state violence, and struggles for political participation and liberty. We explore ongoing indigenous struggles for recognition and autonomy, such as the Kurdish, Sahrawi and Amazigh cases, while also contextualizing the region's complex history of colonial and neocolonial interventions by force and their human rights implications. We will examine the varied roles that non-state actors play in Middle Eastern human rights spheres, from militias to NGOs to religious and communal structures. The course will look to local actors and movements to explore forms of resistance, struggle, and social change while maneuvering through often highly-constrained political spaces. We pay particular attention to marginalized communities by looking at the rights struggles of minorities, women, children, migrant workers, the disabled, and the LGBTQ+ community in Middle Eastern contexts. Personal Status Laws and their effects on rights, especially with regard to marital relations and parental rights are considered. Interdisciplinary and varied modes of knowledge production including film serve as source materials.

Instructor(s): Lindsay Gifford, Pozen Center for Human Rights Assistant Research Professor     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): HMRT 23825, HMRT 33825, GLST 23825, NEHC 33825

NEHC 24590. Early Islamic Theological (Kalām) Texts. 100 Units.

This course offers the opportunity of engaging first-hand with the Arabic texts that define the discussions and polemics in Islamic theology of the formative period (7-10th centuries). Besides studying texts from different genres and produced by authors of differing theological orientations, we will discuss a wide range of themes, such as faith, free will, God's attributes, revelation, etc., in their intellectual and polemical contexts. The study of the primary readings will be supplemented by secondary scholarly literature. The main objective of this course is to enable students to understand the early theological texts in their religious and historical contexts, which will also inform their study of the major theological works of the Islamic tradition in the later periods.

Instructor(s): Mehmetcan Akpinar     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): 2 years of Arabic required.
Note(s): This course meets the HS Committee distribution for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 24590, NEHC 34590, ISLM 34590, MDVL 24590

NEHC 24592. Jewish and Islamic Ethics in al-Andalus. 100 Units.

This course will include readings in Jewish and Islamic ethics from al-Andalus and the Maghrib with a focus on the writings of Maimonides (d. 1204) -- especially his "Eight Chapters" and Commentary on Avot (completed in the 1160s) and Ibn al-Mar'a of Malaga (d. 1214) -- especially his commentary on Ibn al-'Arif.

Instructor(s): Jim Robinson and Yousef Casewit     Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): This course meets the HS or CS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): HIJD 34592, JWSC 24592, RETH 34592, ISLM 34592, RLST 24592, MDVL 24592, NEHC 34592

NEHC 24777. North African France: Decolonization, Immigration and Postcolonial Identity. 100 Units.

This course will combine a series of site visits with selected readings. For site visits, in addition to walks through historic African and Arab Paris, we will visit several institutions and museums in the French capital including the Institut du Monde Arabe (the Arab World Institute), the Grand Mosque of Paris, the Cité Nationale de l'Histoire de l'Immigration (France's first national museum on the history of immigration), and the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris (a foundation and campus for international students). For further contextualization, we will visit bookstores, libraries, markets, and art collections (mainly the Louvre and the Musée d'Orsay) in Paris and its suburbs. Time permitting, we may travel to Marseille to visit the Old Port, the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations (MUCEM), and other sites of interest. This course will include readings from history, sociology, and literature, with a focus on the cultures and contemporary politics of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia from both North African and French perspectives. While drawing on foundational and recent scholarship in French studies, North African studies, and postcolonial studies, we will examine fictional and non-fictional texts by Maghrebi and second-generation Maghrebi authors. We will also analyze a selection of cinematic, artistic, and musical works by Franco-Maghrebi artists as a way to explore the relationship between verbal and visual modes of representation.

Instructor(s): Khalid Lyamlahy
Prerequisite(s): Admission to Paris: Versailles: Art, Power, and Resistance (September) study abroad program.
Note(s): The course will be taught in English, with an option for advanced French students to engage in French coursework through the Languages Across the Curriculum initiative.
Equivalent Course(s): FREN 24777

NEHC 24801. Words of the Wise: Proverbs and Qohelet. 100 Units.

Text-course (text in biblical Hebrew only) covering the literary genres, discursive styles, and philosophical ideas of Proverbs and Qohelet (Ecclesiastes), with attention to voicing, double-voicing, and intertextuality.

Instructor(s): Simeon Chavel     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): One year of Biblical Hebrew.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students. JWSC majors/minors can petition to count this course toward their degree requirement.
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 44800, NEHC 44801, HIJD 44800, RLST 22304

NEHC 24815. Collecting the Ancient World: Museum Practice and Politics. 100 Units.

Where is this artifact from? Who does it belong to? How did it get here? Who's telling its story? Critical inquiry into the practice and politics of museums has reached a new zenith in contemporary discourse. From discussions of acquisition and repatriation to provenience (archaeological findspot) and provenance (an object's ownership history) and the ethics of curation and modes of display, museum and art professionals-and the general public alike-are deliberating on the concept of museums and the responsibilities of such institutions towards the collections in their care. This course will explore the early history of museums and collecting practices and their impact on the field today, with a focus on cultural heritage collections from West Asia and North Africa. We will first spend time on such topics as archaeological exploration of "the Orient," colonial collecting practices, and the antiquities trade, as well as the politics of representation and reception in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Next, we will look at critical issues presently facing museums, including ethical collection stewardship, provenance research, repatriation, community engagement, and public education. The course will be structured in a seminar format, with lectures devoted to the presentation of key themes by the instructor and critical discussion as a group. Meetings will include visits to the ISAC Museum at UChicago.

Instructor(s): K. Neumann     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): HIST 20509, ARTH 24815, NEHC 34815, HIST 30509, ARTH 34815

NEHC 25209. Jews, Arabs, and Others: Nations from the Nile to the Jordan. 100 Units.

This course considers nationbuilding as an ongoing and recurring process in the Middle East, realigning identities and communities according to the political concerns of the time. In particular, we will examine how Arabs and Others have figured in the political imagination of both Egypt and Israel-Palestine. When can Egyptians, Palestinians, and Israelis consider themselves "Arab"--and when not? What are the stakes of naming Arab-ness or claiming it for oneself? To answer these questions, this course will include readings and popular films on Arab nationalism and minorities in Egypt, the question of Jewish versus Israeli nationalism, Arab (or Mizrahi) Jews in Israel, and the relationship of Palestinian nationalism to the borders that have been drawn within the historic land of Palestine.

Instructor(s): Callie Maidhof     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): ANTH 24110, GLST 25209

NEHC 25218. Suhrawardi and His Interpreters. 100 Units.

Shihāb al-Dīn Suhrawardī (d. 1191), the founder of the ishrāqī philosophical tradition, is undoubtedly one of the most innovative and influential philosophers in the history of Islamic thought. In this seminar, we will examine major themes in the writings of Suhrawardī along with excerpts from Arabic commentaries by Muslim and Jewish authors such as Ibn Kammūnah (d. 1284), Shahrazūrī (d. 1288), Quṭb al-Dīn Shīrāzī (d. 1311), Dawānī (d.1502), Dashtakī (d. 1542), Qarabāghī (d. 1625) and Harawī (d. 1689). Topics include, Suhrawardī's understanding of the history of philosophy, light and the order of existence, virtues and human happiness, self-knowledge and self-awareness, conceptual and non-conceptual knowledge, and theory of ritual actions.

Instructor(s): Nariman Aavani     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): 2 years of Arabic.
Note(s): This course meets the CS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 25218, MDVL 25218, NEHC 35218, ISLM 35218, RLST 25218

NEHC 25705. The last century of Persian in India (c. 1770-1850): Persian literary culture and its transformation. 100 Units.

In this seminar we will read original texts and familiarize students with archival research on Persian materials from the colonial period, looking at examples in original manuscripts and lithographed editions. Despite being rarely considered by historians of Persian cultural history and historians of British India, this period saw a fascinating profusion of writings, composed in particular by Hindu and Muslim scribes commissioned by British officers. Throughout the course we will emphasize the crucial role of Persian and Persian-writing Indian literati for the early colonial state administration and intelligence. Besides looking at works produced in a colonial context, we will examine the transformation of prose writing amongst Persianate literati in North Indian cities.

Equivalent Course(s): SALC 25705, NEHC 35705, SALC 35705

NEHC 25806. The Political Theologies of Zionism. 100 Units.

The relationship between nationalism and religion has throughout history been a stormy one, often characterized by antagonisms and antipathy. In this course we will examine from various aspects the complex nexus of these two sources of repeated ideological and political dispute within Judaism, and more specifically within Zionism as its political manifestation. Zionism has mostly been considered a secular project, yet recently, Zionist theory is scrutinized to identify and unearth its supposedly hidden theological origins. In nowadays Israel, a rise in religious identification alongside an increasing religionization of the political discourse calls for the consideration of new theopolitical models of Zionism applicable in a post-secular environment. The aim of this course is to explore this complex intertwining of politics and religion in Israel from both historical and contemporary perspectives. The first part of the course will outline the theoretical foundation of post-secular and political-theological discourses. The second part will address the explicit and implicit political theologies of Zionism. The third part will outline contemporary aspects of political-theological thought in Israel, and their actual appearance in the political sphere.

Instructor(s): David Barak-Gorodetsky     Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): This course meets the HS or CS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): THEO 35806, HIJD 35806, HIST 39403, JWSC 27940, RLST 25806

NEHC 26062. Jewish Graphic Narrative: Between Memory and Caricature. 100 Units.

Over the past decade, there has been an explosion of "graphic novels" aimed at adult readers concerning Jewish society, history, and religion. This course explores the history of comics through the lens of its Jewish creators and Jewish themes, and the history of Jewish culture and society through the lens of graphic storytelling. We learn to interpret this complex art form that combines words and hand-drawn images, translating temporal progression into a spatial form. Reading American, European, and Israeli narratives, our discussions will focus on autobiographical and journalistic accounts of uprooting, immigration, conflict, and loss. We will ask: how do Jewish graphic novelists grapple with the history of racist caricature? What is the relationship between graphic narrative and memory culture? Authors whose work we will study include: Art Spiegelman, Rutu Modan, Lianna Finck, Joann Sfar, Joe Sacco, R. Crumb

Instructor(s): Na'ama Rokem     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): JWSC 20701, RLST 26062, SIGN 26062, CMLT 20711

NEHC 26103. Dreams, Visions, and Mystical Experience. 100 Units.

An exploration of primary literature and secondary scholarship on dream interpretation, luminous vision, and religious experience, with a focus on the writings of figures from the late North African Sufi tradition such as 'Ali al-Jamal and 'Abd al-'Aziz al-Dabbagh.

Instructor(s): Yousef Casewit     Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): This course meets the CS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 36103, ISLM 36103, RLST 26103

NEHC 26322. Healing Traditions. 100 Units.

This seminar is a comparative exploration of medical and healing traditions and their religious, spiritual, and cultural intersections. Students will gain an understanding of the history of medicine in the Middle East, India, China, and the West, including the metaphysical systems that inform those traditions. Within the frameworks of Islamic Medicine, i.e. "prophetic medicine" and Sufi healing practices, Avicenna and the Galenic tradition, Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda and Buddhist medicine, we will discuss the following topics: Ritual healing, faith and prayer, divine healers and medical authority, etiology and pathology, religious pharmacology and drugs, mental health, spiritual states and possession, and near death experiences, among others. Students will conduct research on a particular modality in conversation with recent trends in health in modern allopathy while evaluating efficacy, scope and place of traditional modalities.

Instructor(s): Mukhtar Ali     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): KNOW 26322, GLST 26322, RLST 26322, CCTS 26322, HLTH 26322

NEHC 26500. The Radiant Pearl: Introduction to Syriac Literature and its Historical Contexts. 100 Units.

After Greek and Latin, Syriac literature represents the third largest corpus of writings from the formative centuries of Christianity. This course offers students a comprehensive overview of the dominant genres and history of Syriac-speaking Christians from the early centuries through the modern day. Moving beyond traditional historiography that focuses exclusively on early Christianity within the Roman Empire, this class examines Christian traditions that took root in the Persian and later Islamic Empires as well. Through studying the history and literature of Syriac-speaking Christians, the global reach of early Christianity and its diversity comes to the fore. Syriac-speaking Christians preached the Gospel message from the Arabian Peninsula to early modern China and India. Syriac writers also raised female biblical figures and holy women to prominent roles within their works. Students will broaden their understanding of the development of Christian thought as they gain greater familiarity with understudied voices and visions for Christian living found within Syriac literature. Special attention will be paid to biblical translation, asceticism, poetry, differences between ecclesial communities as well as the changing political fortunes of Syriac-speaking populations. No previous knowledge or study expected.

Instructor(s): Erin Galgay Walsh     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): HCHR 36500, GNSE 26505, BIBL 36500, RLST 16500, NEHC 36500, GNSE 36505

NEHC 27213. Partings, Encounters, and Entangled Histories: The Formation of Judaism and Christianity. 100 Units.

When did the fault lines between Judaism and Christianity emerge? This course explores this question by examining the formation of Judaism and Christianity within the world of the Ancient Mediterranean. What religious views, texts, and practices did Jews and Christians hold in common? How did early writers construct communal boundaries and project "ideal" belief and practice? What role did the changing political tides of the Roman and Persian empires play? We will explore continuities and growing distinctions between Jews and Christians in the areas of scriptural interpretation, ritual practices, and structures of authority. Special attention will be paid to debates around gender and sexuality, healing, and views of government and economics. We will approach these issues through material evidence and close readings of early literature in light of contemporary scholarship. Students interested in modern histories of Judaism and Christianity will gain a firm foundation in the pivotal debates, texts, and events that set the trajectories for later centuries.

Instructor(s): Erin Galgay Walsh     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): No prerequisite knowledge of the historical periods, literature, or religious traditions covered is expected.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): HIJD 37213, HCHR 37213, CLCV 24021, CLAS 34021, RLST 27213, NEHC 37213, JWSC 27213, HIST 31600, BIBL 37213

NEHC 28003. Islamic Art: Private Collections on Public Display. 100 Units.

In the past decade, two museums in Texas - the MFA Houston and the Dallas Museum of Art -- have suddenly emerged as major centers for Islamic art. Usually, well-developed displays of Islamic art build on sustained institutional commitment to curation over several generations. However, these Texas museums both quickly transformed their abilities to exhibit Islamic art by securing long term loans of significant private collections. With the al-Sabah Collection and the Hossein Afshar Collection, MFA Houston more than doubled its display space for Islamic art in 2023; and similarly, the Dallas Museum of Art has displayed the Keir Collection since 2014. This travelling seminar brings students to Texas for two weeks, facilitating direct study of an expansive range of Islamic arts produced from the medieval period to the present, in materials ranging from silk, parchment, ceramic, and rock crystal; to lacquer, sandstone, metal, jade, and plexiglass. Students will learn basic classification systems for navigating the vast range of Islamic arts, and will also each select a specific work for close study. Upon return to campus, students will develop their thoughts on the object in relation to questions of collection and display. What force does a given object have in shaping, confirming, or challenging logics of collection and display? What might the same object achieve differently within the context of a different, possibly thematic, exhibition?

Instructor(s): P. Berlekamp     Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): Consent Only
Equivalent Course(s): ARTH 38003, ARTH 28003, NEHC 38003

NEHC 28402. The Book of Judges. 100 Units.

A text-course (text in biblical Hebrew only). It will cover the book's concept of a "judge," its themes, plot, and values, its sources and formation, the real beginning and end of the book, and its historical referents. Framed by theory of history and of narrative.

Instructor(s): Simeon Chavel     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): One year Biblical Hebrew.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students. JWSC majors/minors can petition to count this course toward their degree requirement.
Equivalent Course(s): BIBL 48402, NEHC 48402, RLST 22302, HIJD 48402

NEHC 28499. How Did The Ancients Interpret Their Myths? 100 Units.

How did the ancient Greeks interpret their own narratives about the gods? How did their encounter with Near Eastern mythologies shape their own story-telling, and how did their understanding and use of myths evolve with time? In this course, we will explore the ancient interpretation of myth from the archaic Greek to the Roman periods. First, we will focus on the cross-cultural adaptations of Near Eastern traditions in Greek epic (Homer and Hesiod), as a form of interpretation itself. Then we will discuss how ancient poets and thinkers interpreted and reinterpreted divine narratives, paying attention to their philosophical, literary, and cultural strategies, from Orphism and Plato to the Stoics and later philosophical schools, including Euhemerism and its engagement with Phoenician mythology.

Instructor(s): Carolina López-Ruiz     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): CLCV 28422, RLST 28499, CLAS 38422, HREL 38499, NEHC 38499

NEHC 28504. Interactions b/w Jewish Phil. and Lit.in Middle Ages. 100 Units.

Any study of Jewish philosophy that focuses on a small collection of systematic summas tells only half the story. In this seminar, the emphasis will be shifted from canonical theologies to lesser-known works of literature. Each class will examine the way a different genre was used to defend philosophy and teach it to the community at large. Emphasis will be on literary form and style, rhetoric, methods of teaching and argumentation, all in relation to questions about reception and dissemination, progress and creativity, science and religion.

Instructor(s): James T. Robinson     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 28504, MDVL 22700, RLVC 42700, HIJD 42700, ISLM 42700, JWSC 22701, NEHC 42700

NEHC 28611. Jewish Sufism. 100 Units.

During the Middle Ages the Jews in the Muslim world developed a robust synthesis of Jewish Spirituality and Islamic Sufism. Even those who did not subscribe to a Sufi pietistic Judaism nevertheless introduced Sufi language and ideas into their Jewish thought. This course will introduce several important figures in this Jewish Sufi movement, from Bahya ibn Paquda in 11th-century Spain to Maimonides and his descendants in 12th14th century Egypt. There will be a section for Arabists to read Bahya's "Duties of the Hearts" in Arabic, and a section for Hebraists to read the twelfth-century Hebrew translation of it.

Instructor(s): James T. Robinson     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 28611, NEHC 48610, ISLM 48610, HIJD 48610, MDVL 28610, JWSC 28610, RLVC 48610

NEHC 28871. Infinite Narrative: The Arabian Nights and its Global Refractions. 100 Units.

The Arabian Nights, or A Thousand and One Nights, has had a profound influence on global culture. A shaping force in the formation of European Orientalism and Romanticism in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, the work has since inspired a vast array of writers, filmmakers, and artists across the world. We will begin this course by studying the Nights as a product of the medieval Arabo-Islamic world, examining the major themes and formal features of the work. We will then investigate the translation and reception of the Nights in early modern Europe, before analyzing a selection of short stories, films, and novels based on or inspired by the Nights spanning the nineteenth to the twenty-first century. These will include stories by Edgar Allen Poe and Jorge Luis Borges; films by Masaki Kobayashi and Pier Paolo Pasolini; and novels by one or more of Naguib Mahfouz, Radwa Ashour, Salman Rushdie, and Isabel Allende. The primary texts will be supplemented with readings concerning narratology and the art of storytelling, the fantastic and magic realism, and contemporary debates about world literature. All texts will be read in translation, but students with knowledge of Arabic will be encouraged to participate in additional sessions devoted to reading parts of the Arabic texts in the original.

Instructor(s): Evelyn Richardson     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 20221, CMLT 28870

NEHC 28882. Magic and Divination in the Islamic World. 100 Units.

From weather forecasts to stock market speculations, our modern world is saturated with predictions for the future. In spite of this, other divinatory methods such as astrology are often portrayed as superstitious, irrational, or unreligious. This course will introduce students to the unexpected interaction of science, magic, and religion through the exploration of divination in the Islamic world. We will ask how divination can be a part of religious practice and how methods of future-telling are said to "work" from the perspective of the philosophers and scientists who practiced them. We will also explore the arguments against divination and identify and understand religious and/or scientific objections to the practice. All readings will be in English translation.

Instructor(s): Alex Matthews     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): KNOW 28882, MDVL 28882, RLST 28882, CCTS 21020, HIPS 28882

NEHC 29003. Islam Beyond the Human: Spirits, Demons, Devils, and Ghosts. 100 Units.

This seminar explores the diverse spiritual and sentient lifeforms within Islamic cosmology that exist beyond the human-from jinn, angels, and ghosts to demons and devils. We will focus on theological, scientific, philosophical, anthropological, and historical accounts of these creatures across a variety of texts, as well as their literary and filmic afterlives in contemporary cultural representations. In so doing, we consider the various religious, social, and cultural inflections that shape local cosmological imaginaries. We ask how reflecting on the nonhuman world puts the human itself in question, including such concerns as sexuality and sexual difference, the boundaries of the body, reason and madness, as well as the limits of knowledge.

Instructor(s): Alireza Doostdar and Hoda El Shakry     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Enrollment by Consent Only (for both grads and undergrads). Students should send the instructors a paragraph explaining their interest and prior preparation or familiarity with the themes in the course.
Note(s): This course meets the LMCS or SCSR Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): ANTH 29003, AASR 49003, CMLT 49003, NEHC 49003, CMLT 29003, KNOW 49003, GNSE 29003, RLST 29003, ISLM 49003, GNSE 49003, ANTH 49003

NEHC 29018. Love, Desire, and Sexuality in Islamic Texts and Contexts. 100 Units.

What separates love from lust? How do our erotic desires and sexual practices intersect with our beliefs? This interdisciplinary class explores these questions in conversation with foundational thinkers from the Islamic tradition alongside insights from feminist and queer theory. We will delve into questions on the relationship between romantic, familial, and divine love; gender, sexuality, and the body; and Orientalism and the politics of reading desire cross-culturally. Exploring a diverse set of primary sources that range from the Qur'ān to Rūmī's Masnāvī to contemporary Bollywood, we will encounter different representations of love, desire, and sexuality in religious and philosophical discourses, literary representations, and visual media. We will examine not only how these representations reflect different historical norms, but also how and to what extent texts and images can inform or impact the norms of their contexts as well. No prerequisite knowledge of the topics or time periods discussed is needed, and students will have the opportunity over the course of the class to develop a project that relates our content to their own interests.

Instructor(s): Allison Kanner-Botan     Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): This course counts as a Concepts course for GNSE majors.
Equivalent Course(s): GNSE 23135, CMLT 28013, MDVL 28013, RLST 28013, SALC 28013

NEHC 29023. Returning the Gaze: The West and the Rest. 100 Units.

Aware of being observed. And judged. Inferior... Abject… Angry... Proud… This course provides insight into identity dynamics between the "West," as the center of economic power and self-proclaimed normative humanity, and the "Rest," as the poor, backward, volatile periphery. We investigate the relationship between South East European self-representations and the imagined Western gaze. Inherent in the act of looking at oneself through the eyes of another is the privileging of that other's standard. We will contemplate the responses to this existential position of identifying symbolically with a normative site outside of oneself-self-consciousness, defiance, arrogance, self-exoticization-and consider how these responses have been incorporated in the texture of the national, gender, and social identities in the region. Orhan Pamuk, Ivo Andrić, Nikos Kazantzakis, Aleko Konstantinov, Emir Kusturica, Milcho Manchevski.

Instructor(s): Angelina Ilieva     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): CMLT 29023, HIST 23609, HIST 33609, REES 29023, REES 39023, NEHC 39023, CMLT 39023

NEHC 29030. Islam, Race and Decoloniality. 100 Units.

This course explores western perspectives, attitudes and representations of Muslims and Islam from medieval European thought, through liberal colonial encounters to contemporary media and political discourses. Students will examine the intersection of race and religion as it applies to the construction of Muslim identity and alterity in the Western imagination. We will explore the remarkable consistency across centuries of the threatening, menacing, barbaric and uncivilized Muslim "Other". The course centers around these Orientalist constructions and will explore the power structures, colonial modalities, epistemological frameworks, and ideological assumptions that perpetuate the racialization of Islam and Muslims within the United States and abroad. This course ultimately aims to uncover potentials for resistance, recovery and renewal through the politics and praxis of decoloniality. Students will gain familiarity with decolonial theory and practices, as well as the important project of 'epistemic delinking' as it is framed by contemporary scholars intent on challenging, possibly undoing and remapping the Muslim experience within global liberal political modernity.

Instructor(s): Maliha Chishti     Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): This course meets the LMCS or SCSR Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students.
Equivalent Course(s): ISLM 39030, NEHC 39030, RLST 29030, KNOW 39030

NEHC 29765. Cultural Heritage Management Crisis in Conflict Areas. 100 Units.

As a result of the widespread destruction of monuments, museums, and archaeological sites in conflict areas, combined with the creation of brand-new international funds to protect heritage in situations of armed conflict or climate change, this class presents a series of lectures and discussions by the course instructors along with guest lectures by heritage specialists who focus on the various geographical zones concerned. It will also adopt a transdisciplinary approach where several fields of expertise will be convoked, from archaeology and curatorial to international heritage protection law.

Equivalent Course(s): ARTH 39765, KNOW 39765, KNOW 29675, NEHC 39765

NEHC 29899. Research Colloquium. 100 Units.

Required of fourth-year students who are majoring in NELC. This is a workshop course designed to survey the fields represented by NELC and to assist students in researching andcompleting their Research Project. Students must get a Reading and Research form from their College Adviser and complete the form in order to be registered. Signatures are needed from the adviser and Director of Undergraduate Studies. Please indicate on the form that you wish to register for NEHC 29899 Section 01.

Instructor(s): Reculeau, Herve      Terms Offered: Autumn

NEHC 29989. Race and the Bible. 100 Units.

The course will cover race in the Bible, race in the ancient world of the Bible, American use of the Bible on race, and the critique of race as a formative and constructed concept.

Instructor(s): Erin Galgay Walsh and Simeon Chavel     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): BIBL 31000 (Introduction to the Hebrew Bible) or BIBL 32500 (Introduction to the New Testament). BIBL 32500 can be taken concurrently.
Note(s): This course meets the HS or LMCS Committee distribution requirement for Divinity students. JWSC majors/minors can petition to count this course toward their degree requirement.
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 49989, RLST 29109, CRES 27699, BIBL 49999, HCHR 49999, HIJD 49999

NEHC 29995. Research Project. 100 Units.

In consultation with a faculty research adviser and with consent of the Director of Undergraduate Studies, students devote the equivalent of a one-quarter course to the preparation of their Research Project. Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form. Please indicate that you wish to register for NEHC 29995 Section 01 with the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

Instructor(s): Reculeau, Herve      Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): 4th year NELC majors only. Approval of Director of Undergraduate Studies.

Near Eastern Languages Courses

NELG 20125. Amarna Canaanite in its Sociolinguistic Setting. 100 Units.

In this course, we will focus on letters from the Amarna archive (ca. 1360-1330 BCE) that were written in what is commonly referred to as "Canaano-Akkadian", a form of Akkadian with significant influence from the native Canaanite language(s) of the scribes. There is no consensus as of yet what "Canaano-Akkadian" represents in terms of language. One aim of the course is to look at different proposals and evaluate them based on the original texts. In order to be able to understand the origin of Canaano-Akkadian and to put it into its proper historical and sociolinguistic context, we will further read earlier texts from Canaan, including those from Hazor and Taanach, before going over to letters from major Canaanite sites attested in the Amarna archive, such as Byblos, Jerusalem, Megiddo, Gezer, and others.

Equivalent Course(s): NELG 30125

Persian Courses

PERS 10101-10102-10103. Elementary Persian I-II-III.

This sequence concentrates on modern written Persian as well as modern colloquial usage. Toward the end of this sequence, students are able to read, write, and speak Persian at an elementary level. Introducing the Iranian culture is also a goal.

PERS 10101. Elementary Persian I. 100 Units.

This course is designed for complete beginners and teaches students to pronounce, read and write standard Persian, as well as some Iranian colloquial dialect. It includes an introduction to the alphabet, pronunciation patterns, greetings, basic structures, and other fundamentals. Students who have exposure to other Middle Eastern or South Asian languages, but have not formally studied Persian before, should enroll in this course. By the end of the course, students will be able to communicate in Persian at a Novice-Mid level according to the ACTFL National Standards. They should be able to read and compose basic texts in formal Persian relating to themselves and their everyday lives, and handle basic 'survival' scenarios that have been covered in class

Instructor(s): Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi     Terms Offered: Autumn

PERS 10102. Elementary Persian II. 100 Units.

This sequence concentrates on all skills of language acquisition (reading, writing, listening, and speaking). The class begins with the Persian alphabet, and moves to words, phrases, short sentences, and finally short paragraphs. The goal is to enable the students towards the end of the sequence to read, understand, and translate simple texts in modern standard Persian and engage in short everyday conversations. All the basic grammatical structures are covered in this sequence. Introducing the Iranian culture through the texts is also a goal. The class meets four hours a week with the instructor and one hour with a native informant who conducts grammatical drills and Persian conversation.

Instructor(s): Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): PERS 10101

PERS 10103. Elementary Persian III. 100 Units.

This sequence concentrates on all skills of language acquisition (reading, writing, listening, and speaking). The class begins with the Persian alphabet, and moves to words, phrases, short sentences, and finally short paragraphs. The goal is to enable the students towards the end of the sequence to read, understand, and translate simple texts in modern standard Persian and engage in short everyday conversations. All the basic grammatical structures are covered in this sequence. Introducing the Iranian culture through the texts is also a goal. The class meets four hours a week with the instructor and one hour with a native informant who conducts grammatical drills and Persian conversation.

Instructor(s): Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): PERS 10102

PERS 20101-20102-20103. Intermediate Persian I-II-III.

This sequence deepens and expands students’ knowledge of modern Persian at all levels of reading, writing, and speaking. Grammar is taught at a higher level, and a wider vocabulary enables students to read stories, articles, and poetry. Examples of classical literature and the Iranian culture are introduced.

PERS 20101. Intermediate Persian I. 100 Units.

This sequence deepens and expands the students' knowledge of modern Persian. The goal is to enable the students to gain proficiency in all skills of language acquisition at a higher level. In this sequence, the students learn more complex grammatical structures and gain wider vocabulary through reading paragraph-length texts on a variety of topics related to Persian language, literature, and culture. Students will also be familiarized with Persian news and media terminology. Class meets four hours a week with the instructor and one hour with a native informant who conducts grammatical drills and Persian conversation.

Instructor(s): Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): PERS 10103 or consent of instructor

PERS 20102. Intermediate Persian II. 100 Units.

This sequence deepens and expands the students' knowledge of modern Persian. The goal is to enable the students to gain proficiency in all skills of language acquisition at a higher level. In this sequence, the students learn more complex grammatical structures and gain wider vocabulary through reading paragraph-length texts on a variety of topics related to Persian language, literature, and culture. Students will also be familiarized with Persian news and media terminology. Class meets four hours a week with the instructor and one hour with a native informant who conducts grammatical drills and Persian conversation.

Instructor(s): Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): PERS 20101 or consent of the instructor

PERS 20103. Intermediate Persian III. 100 Units.

This sequence deepens and expands the students' knowledge of modern Persian. The goal is to enable the students to gain proficiency in all skills of language acquisition at a higher level. In this sequence, the students learn more complex grammatical structures and gain wider vocabulary through reading paragraph-length texts on a variety of topics related to Persian language, literature, and culture. Students will also be familiarized with Persian news and media terminology. Class meets four hours a week with the instructor and one hour with a native informant who conducts grammatical drills and Persian conversation.

Instructor(s): Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): PERS 20202 or consent of the instructor

PERS 20502. Persian Literary Translation Through the Translation of Hafez. 100 Units.

Persian Literary Translation Through the Translation of Hafez Translating poetry is often a challenging endeavor, but translating Persian classical poetry is especially complex for several reasons, including the genre's prevalence of ebhām (ambiguity) and ihām (polyvalence). These challenges have caused many literary translators to dub Hafez's poetry as practically untranslatable, yet nonetheless there have been many attempts at translation, with varying degrees of success. This course aims to both explore the specific challenges translators of Hafez have encountered and also to strengthen students' literary translation skill through the translation of Hafez's works. After conducting a survey of existing translations of Hafez and other Persian classical poets, hands-on translations of several ghazals of Hafez will foster a better understanding of the multilayered meanings of his poetry. In addition, published as well as video sources on literary translation will serve as an introduction to prevailing theories of translation and to efficient methodologies of translating literary texts. The course being essentially designed to familiarize students with the practice of translation, students will create and refine their own translations of selected poems of Hafez. The complete term paper must be 10-15 pages of typed double-spaced font 12 text and include the introductory essay, the translation, and the original poems.

Instructor(s): Shabani-Jadidi, Pouneh     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): PERS 20102
Equivalent Course(s): NEHC 22502, NEHC 32502

PERS 29021. Reading Indo-Persian harmonized prose: Bahār-i dānish. 100 Units.

In this course, we will read excerpts from one of the most popular collections of stories written in harmonized (aka ornate) prose in Mughal India: ʿInāyatallāh's Bahār-i dānish. We will use several editions of the texts as well as commentaries and translations and focus on grammar, rhetoric, and the various strategies one may use to render Persian harmonized prose into English.

Instructor(s): Thibaut d'Hubert     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): SALC 29021, SALC 39021, PERS 39021

Sumerian Courses

SUMR 10101-10102-10103. Elementary Sumerian I-II-III.

This sequence typically begins in Winter Quarter and concludes Autumn Quarter of the next academic year. This sequence covers the elements of Sumerian grammar, with reading exercises in Ur III, pre-Sargonic, and elementary literary texts. This sequence is offered in alternate years.

SUMR 10101. Elementary Sumerian I. 100 Units.

This course covers Elementary Sumerian.

Instructor(s): Jana Matuszak     Terms Offered: Winter. This sequence is offered in alternate years.
Prerequisite(s): AKKD 10101

SUMR 10102. Elementary Sumerian II. 100 Units.

Elementary Sumerian II

Instructor(s): Drew Younger     Terms Offered: Spring. This sequence is offered in alternate years.
Prerequisite(s): SUMR 10101

SUMR 10103. Elementary Sumerian III. 100 Units.

This sequence covers the elements of Sumerian grammar, with reading exercises in Ur III, pre-Sargonic, and elementary literary texts.

Instructor(s): Staff     Terms Offered: Autumn. This sequence is offered in alternate years.
Prerequisite(s): SUMR 10102

SUMR 20201. All about Kings: Sumerian Royal Inscriptions, Correspondence, and Hymns. 100 Units.

In this course, we will read a selection of Sumerian texts that provide insights into the image of the king. We will start with royal inscriptions, move on to the so-called royal correspondence of the Kings of Ur, and finish with excerpts from the self-praise poem of king Sulgi commonly referred to as 'Sulgi B'. Apart from tackling philological issues and practicing to read cuneiform from copies and photos, we will also address broader questions during classroom discussions, such as: Can we use royal inscriptions, correspondence, and hymns as historical sources? Can we bridge the gap between the reign of historical Ur III kings and their feats as commemorated in texts preserved exclusively on Old Babylonian manuscripts? Can we use language and orthography for dating a text?

Instructor(s): Jana Matuszak     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Elementary Sumerian sequence (SUMR 10101 and SUMR 10102)
Equivalent Course(s): SUMR 30201

SUMR 20202. Dumuzi's Dream. 100 Units.

In this course, we will read the Sumerian mythological narrative known by its modern title "Dumuzi's Dream." Judging by the numerous manuscripts preserved from the Old Babylonian period, it was a popular text in scribal education. We will practice reading from copies, photos, and original cuneiform tablets, as five manuscripts are housed at the Oriental Institute Museum and available for hands-on study. Based on close engagement with the individual manuscripts, we will discuss the principles of textual criticism and how to prepare an eclectic text, as well as a text edition. Besides philological issues, we will also address broader questions during classroom discussions, such as: Can we use such literary texts to reconstruct Sumerian mythology? How does this text relate to other literary compositions revolving around the divine couple Innana and Dumuzi, and how does it relate to non-literary text corpora? In how far can we determine its function, both within scribal education and beyond? Can we actually apply the term 'literature' to the Sumerian textual legacy?

Instructor(s): Jana Matuszak     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Elementary Sumerian sequence (SUMR 10101 and SUMR 10102)
Equivalent Course(s): SUMR 30202

SUMR 20204. Sumerian Creation Narratives. 100 Units.

In this course we will read creation accounts in the Sumerian language from the third and early second millennium BCE. Apart from the obvious thematic focus, the course will also serve as an introduction to different genres, ranging from mythological narratives to disputations to (parodies of) hymns. By reading texts from the Presargonic, Ur III, and Old Babylonian periods, students will also gain a deeper understanding of Sumerian grammar, palaeography, and orthography.

Equivalent Course(s): SUMR 30204

SUMR 20320. Readings in Emesal. 100 Units.

The nature and function of Emesal, the most important variety of Sumerian after the so-called main dialect, remain debated. This is mainly due to the heterogeneity of the corpus of texts transmitted in Emesal. After familiarizing ourselves with the characteristics of Emesal, available resources and the latest scholarly discourse, we will approach the question of how we might define Emesal by reading excerpts from a variety of sources dating to the 2nd and 1st millennia BCE, ranging from proverbs and literary disputations between women to 'love songs', mythological narratives, city laments, and ritual lamentations.

Instructor(s): Jana Matuszak     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): SUMR 30320

SUMR 20505. Introduction to Neo-Sumerian Economic Texts. 100 Units.

The goal of this class is to provide an overview of various genres of economic and administrative texts from the Neo-Sumerian (or so-called "Ur III") period, ca. 2112-2004 BC, with the bulk of preserved textual material spanning from the latter part of Shulgi's reign to the early years of Ibbi-Sin (ca. 2064-2025). Emphasis will be made on the technical aspects of reading and interpreting individual documents (signs, vocabulary, format, etc.) as well as on the utilization of the documents to reconstruct a coherent and comprehensive picture of Sumerian government, society, and economy.

Instructor(s): Ryan Derek Winters     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): SUMR 30505

Turkish Courses

TURK 10101-10102-10103. Elementary Turkish I-II-III.

This sequence features proficiency-based instruction emphasizing grammar in modern Turkish. This sequence consists of reading and listening comprehension, as well as grammar exercises and basic writing in Turkish. Modern stories and contemporary articles are read at the end of the courses.

TURK 10101. Beginning Modern Turkish. 100 Units.

This sequence features proficiency-based instruction emphasizing grammar in modern Turkish. This sequence consists of reading and listening comprehension, as well as grammar exercises and basic writing in Turkish. Modern stories and contemporary articles are read at the end of the courses.

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Autumn
Note(s): The class meets for five hours a week

TURK 10102. Elementary Turkish II. 100 Units.

Elementary Turkish (First Year)

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10101
Note(s): This class meets for five hours a week

TURK 10103. Elementary Turkish III. 100 Units.

Elementary Turkish (First Year)

Instructor(s): K. Arik     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10102
Note(s): This class meets for five hours a week

TURK 10105-10106-10107. Introduction to Old Turkic I-II-III.

An introductory sequence in the written language of the Orkhon Inscriptions, dating back to the fifth-to-eighth-century Kök Türk State of Central Eurasia, and of related inscriptions from the Yenisei River area, Mongolia, Central Asia, and Eastern Europe. The language of the inscriptions is considered to be the ancestor of the majority of Turkic languages spoken today and uses a distinctive alphabet sometimes known as the Old Turkic Runiform Alphabet. The sequence covers a brief historic overview, basic grammar, reading selections from the inscriptions in the original and in translation, and familiarization with the alphabet itself.

TURK 10105. Introduction to Old Turkic I. 100 Units.

An introductory course in the written language of the Orkhon Inscriptions, dating back to the 5th-8th Century Kök Türk State of Central Eurasia, and of related inscriptions from the Yenisei River area, Mongolia, Central Asia and Eastern Europe. The language of the inscriptions is considered to be the ancestor of the majority of Turkic languages spoken today, and uses a distinctive alphabet sometimes known as the Old Turkic Runiform Alphabet. The course covers a brief historic overview, basic grammar, reading selections from the inscriptions in the original and in translation, and familiarization with the alphabet itself. K. Arik, Autumn.

Instructor(s): K. Arik     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): One year of a Turkic language or the equivalent, and/or consent of the instructor
Equivalent Course(s): MDVL 10105

TURK 10106. Introduction to Old Turkic II. 100 Units.

An introduction to the language and inscriptions of the Old Turkic period.

Instructor(s): K. Arik     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10105
Equivalent Course(s): MDVL 10106

TURK 10107. Introduction to Old Turkic III. 100 Units.

An introduction to the language and inscriptions of the Old Turkic period.

Instructor(s): K. Arik     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10106
Equivalent Course(s): MDVL 10107

TURK 10501. Intro to Turkic Languages I. 100 Units.

The first quarter of a two-section course in which Elementary Kazakh and Elementary Uzbek will be offered as one class, with the option for students to study one or the other, or both simultaneously.

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): KAZK 10501, UZBK 10501

TURK 10502. Introduction to Turkic Languages II. 100 Units.

The second quarter of a two-section course in which Elementary Kazakh and Elementary Uzbek will be offered as one class, with the option for students to study one or the other, or both simultaneously.

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10501
Equivalent Course(s): UZBK 10502, KAZK 10502

TURK 10503. Introduction to Turkic Languages III. 100 Units.

Introduction to Turkic languages III

Instructor(s): Arik, Kagan      Terms Offered: Spring

TURK 15000. Turkish in Istanbul. 100 Units.

TBD

TURK 15001. Elementary Turkish in Istanbul. 100 Units.

Elementary Turkish in Istanbul

TURK 15002. Elementary Turkish in Istanbul. 100 Units.

TURK 15003. Intermediate Turkish in Istanbul. 100 Units.

TURK 15004. Intermediate Turkish in Istanbul. 100 Units.

TURK 15005. Advanced Turkish in Istanbul. 100 Units.

TURK 20101-20102-20103. Intermediate Turkish I-II-III.

This sequence features proficiency-based instruction emphasizing speaking and writing skills as well as reading and listening comprehension at the intermediate to advanced levels in modern Turkish.  Modern short stories, novel excerpts, academic and journalistic articles form the basis for an introduction to modern Turkish literature. Cultural units consisting of films and web-based materials are also used extensively in this course, which is designed to bring the intermediate speaker to an advanced level of proficiency.

TURK 20101. Intermediate Turkish I. 100 Units.

This sequence features proficiency-based instruction emphasizing speaking and writing skills as well as reading and listening comprehension at the intermediate to advanced levels in modern Turkish. Modern short stories, novel excerpts, academic and journalistic articles form the basis for an introduction to modern Turkish literature. Cultural units consisting of films and web-based materials are also used extensively in this course, which is designed to bring the intermediate speaker to an advanced level of proficiency. Prerequisite(s): TURK 10103, or equivalent with intermediate level proficiency test.

Instructor(s): Helga Anetshofer     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10103, or equivalent with intermediate level proficiency test.

TURK 20102. Intermediate Turkish II. 100 Units.

This sequence features proficiency-based instruction emphasizing speaking and writing skills as well as reading and listening comprehension at the intermediate to advanced levels in modern Turkish. Modern short stories, novel excerpts, academic and journalistic articles form the basis for an introduction to modern Turkish literature. Cultural units consisting of films and web-based materials are also used extensively in this course, which is designed to bring the intermediate speaker to an advanced level of proficiency.

Instructor(s): Helga Anetshofer     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): TURK 20101

TURK 20103. Intermediate Turkish III. 100 Units.

This sequence features proficiency-based instruction emphasizing speaking and writing skills as well as reading and listening comprehension at the intermediate to advanced levels in modern Turkish. Modern short stories, novel excerpts, academic and journalistic articles form the basis for an introduction to modern Turkish literature. Cultural units consisting of films and web-based materials are also used extensively in this course, which is designed to bring the intermediate speaker to an advanced level of proficiency.

Instructor(s): Helga Anetshofer     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): TURK 20102

TURK 20123. Summer Intensive Intermediate Turkish. 300 Units.

Summer Intensive Intermediate Turkish enables students to develop strong intermediate speaking, listening, reading and writing skills and further solidify their foundation and proficiency in Turkish. Students study Turkish as it is used in authentic media, literature, and film, and gain familiarity with Turkish culture and civilization. The course will also address the needs of those preparing to study Ottoman. The first half of the course emphasizes completing skills acquired in Beginning Turkish and improving competency, while the second half further deepens students' proficiency, using an introductory sample of authentic textual and audio-visual materials, and excerpts from Turkish literature and texts, ranging from late Ottoman and early Republican period to the present time. Students will have 25 contact hours per week in this course, including synchronous and asynchronous online class time with the instructor, and time spent similarly with the native language assistant. Several hours will be allocated each week to cultural activities such as viewing films, clips, and presentations, and virtual conversation tables. Intensive Intermediate Turkish is the equivalent of the 20100-20200-20300 sequence offered during the regular academic year at the University of Chicago.

Instructor(s): Staff     Terms Offered: Summer
Prerequisite(s): Successful completion of TURK 10300 or equivalent placement.

TURK 29701. Independent Study: Old Turkic. 100 Units.

Independent study in Old Turkic.

Terms Offered: Autumn Spring Winter

Uzbek Courses

UZBK 10103. Elementary Uzbek-3. 100 Units.

TBD

UZBK 10501. Intro to Turkic Languages I. 100 Units.

The first quarter of a two-section course in which Elementary Kazakh and Elementary Uzbek will be offered as one class, with the option for students to study one or the other, or both simultaneously.

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): TURK 10501, KAZK 10501

UZBK 10502. Introduction to Turkic Languages II. 100 Units.

The second quarter of a two-section course in which Elementary Kazakh and Elementary Uzbek will be offered as one class, with the option for students to study one or the other, or both simultaneously.

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10501
Equivalent Course(s): TURK 10502, KAZK 10502

UZBK 29700. Independent Study: Uzbek. 100 Units.

Independent Study: Uzbek - Continuation of Introduction to Turkic Languages

Instructor(s): Kagan Arik     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): TURK 10502


Contacts

Undergraduate Primary Contact

Director of Undergraduate Studies
Herve Reculeau

773.702.4592
Email

Administrative Contacts

Department Manager
Sarah Hill
Pick Hall 301
773.702.3183
Email

Department Assistant
Salma Tahrani
Pick Hall 301
773.702.9512
Email