Unveil cultural history and languages of the Ancient Near East
Throughout the minor, you will be trained in languages and scripts that are markedly different from European languages and our alphabet. You will also develop high valued intercultural competence.
Please note: some courses take place at the UvA campus in the city centre of Amsterdam. The registration for these courses also takes place at the UvA. Please read the information under 'admissions' carefully.
The course History and Cultures of the Ancient Near East (period 1) is a thorough introduction to ancient Near Eastern history from the late 4th millennium to the 3rd century BC. The focus lies on Mesopotamia, but the Levant is also included.
This course, taught in period 2, presents an archaeology-based overview of the societies and cultures of the Ancient Near East. You will discuss several themes related to sedentism and food production, ancient urbanism. Other subjects are town-countryside relationships, including power and monumentality, food supply system, and administration.
This course (period 3) deals with the main points and issues of religion in ancient Mesopotamia and the Greco-Roman world. The lectures give an overview of the deities, religious life, rituals and customs in these various cultures.
Taught at UvA, Amsterdam Centre
In the course Elementary Akkadian (period 4) you will be introduced to the basics of the Akkadian (Babylonian-Assyrian) language and you will learn how the cuneiform writing system functioned. The language study is accompanied with cultural-historical topics such as literature and society.
Taught at UvA, Amsterdam Centre
Elementary Akkadian II (period 5) is a continuation of the first part in period 4. At the end of the course you will be able to read and translate easy Akkadian texts.Elementary Akkadian II (period 5) is a continuation of the first part in period 4. At the end of the course you will be able to read and translate easy Akkadian texts.
Taught at UvA, Amsterdam Centre
During Hebreeuws I you will learn the basics (alphabet, grammar and syntax) of ancient, that is, biblical Hebrew.
During Hebreeuws II you will continue the study of the grammar and also familiarize yourself with Rabbinical texts and thought.
Hebreeuws III is a continuation of Hebreeuws II. In this course, the knowledge of the grammar and vocabulary of Biblical Hebrew is further deepened. You will also increase your reading skills. The course focuses on the grammatical analysis and translation of Biblical Hebrew texts, with special attention to the syntax of Biblical Hebrew prose.
This course, taught in the first semester, is an introduction into biblical Aramaic. You will get an overview of the grammatical differences between Hebrew and Aramaic and you will read passages from the book Daniel. Prerequisite to follow this course is the successful completion of Akkadian I and II, or Hebrew I. Students who followed Akkadian and do not know the Hebrew alphabet should contact the teacher of Aramaic before the beginning of period 3 in order to get further instructions.
Registration for this course is at VU. Classes are taught once a week in Leiden.
After a short introduction into the history of the Syriac language, you will be introduced into the Syriac language. Special attention is paid to the salient linguistic features of the Semitic languages (which include Syriac, Hebrew, Arabic) in comparison with, for example, Indo-European languages. At the end of the course you will master a basic knowledge of the Syriac language (orthography, phonology, morphology, syntax) and you will be able to read some "easy" original Syriac texts independently.
You will get a good knowledge of the Syriac grammar and a first experience with reading various representatives of the wealth of Syriac literature (Bible translations, commentaries, treatises, poetry) with the help of the available resources (grammars, dictionaries).
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