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The Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations introduces students to the peoples, languages, cultures, and societies of the Near and Middle East. Beyond the development of skills in one (or more) of the languages of the region and participation in the Department’s one-term sophomore tutorial, a wide variety of directions of study is available to concentrators. The concentration is intended to provide a solid grounding in the student’s area of focus and to offer an in-depth look at the ways in which modern scholars seek to understand the languages and cultures that have come from this region and that have been so influential throughout the world.

One of the strengths of the concentration in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations is the individual attention each student receives, which allows for flexibility in developing a program of study within the broader arena of the Near East that reflects her or his specific interests. Depending, then, on the availability of faculty and other resources, students may elect to follow a direction such as Modern Middle Eastern Studies, Islamic Studies, Jewish Studies, Biblical Studies, Arabic, Iranian Studies, Turkish Studies, or Near Eastern Archaeology. This list gives only a sample of the possibilities and whichever a student chooses, the choice will be made in consultation with an appropriate faculty member from Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations or an affiliated department, who will then serve as the student’s mentor throughout her or his work, helping to arrange a coherent curriculum of courses in accordance with the guidelines below.

A common thread uniting the various possible directions of study in the concentration is the conviction that facility with the appropriate language(s) is the starting point of all serious work in the various areas involved. Accordingly all concentrators must complete at least four terms of a language of the region taught by the department. To further this goal, as well as to provide prolonged exposure to the civilizations of the region, the Department makes possible a junior year abroad, provided that the course work completed abroad falls within the concentration and is approved by the student’s adviser.

Many possibilities for joint concentrations exist and are welcome in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations. Joint concentrators take four terms of a language, the sophomore and junior tutorials, and at least one other course in Near Eastern studies, in addition to a senior tutorial in two terms focused on the writing of a senior thesis.

The Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations concentration will be of interest to students who are considering careers in government and foreign service, law, journalism, education, business, and divinity, among others, as well as those who anticipate graduate study in Near Eastern or related fields.