Current Course Offerings: 2025-26 Academic Year

Mesopotamia and the ancient Near East—the area of modern Iraq and adjacent regions—witnessed the rise of the first cities in the fourth millennium BC and the emergence of the world’s first empires in the first millennium BC. This course traces Mesopotamian history from the beginnings of agriculture through to the earliest cities, following the trajectory of political development from city states, to territorial states, and finally to the great empires of Assyria, Babylonia, and Achaemenid Persia and their aftermath. It studies the peoples and polities of the ancient Near East, including the Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians, and Persians. It also examines their cultural contributions, from the development of cuneiform writing to their achievements in law, administration, science, art and architecture, religion, and literature.

Day/Time
Tuesday 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Thursday 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM

Instructor(s): Heather D. Baker

Persian women born in the late 19th century and early decades of the 20th century grew up in a period of major political, social, and cultural change that impacted women. A course reading, Memories of a Persian Childhood, illustrates the important role of the family and childhood experiences in the lives of a first generation of women to have access to a modern education, and step beyond traditional boundaries. Women’s personal writings are the main sources we use to learn about female aspirations, hopes and disappointments as well as the challenge of living in a patriarchal society that took for granted that a woman would devote her life to caring for home and family. We will explore how this generation navigated restraints on women in the years of Pahlavi rule (1925-1979) and served as a model of female contribution for a young generation following the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Each seminar will consist of the instructor’s introductory comments, a discussion of the assigned readings and an exchange of opinions about the life of women in different environments. The final mark is based on the readings in the course syllabus, the instructor’s lectures, and class discussions of assigned topics. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Day/Time
Tuesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Niyosha Keyzad

The ancient city of Babylon, now a vast archaeological site in Iraq about 100km south of Baghdad, has captured people’s imagination up to this day. Who has not heard of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Biblical Tower of Babel, or the sci-fi TV series Babylon 5? Yet, how much of that reflects the reality of ancient Babylon? This course will explore the city of Babylon through its texts and archaeology and contrast this data with the way the city has been remembered over the past two thousand years. However, the goal of the course is not only to investigate how myths about Babylon have been constructed throughout the centuries. It will also look at the shortcomings of contemporary academic research on Babylon, and how difficult it is to reconstruct humankind's distant past. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Day/Time
Tuesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Paul-Alain Beaulieu

The Achaemenid Persian Empire (550-323 BCE) ruled communities stretching from Egypt and Greece to Central Asia and the Indus River. Persian rule transformed the eastern Mediterranean and Middle East: the Persians conquered the great civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt, they were the first rivals of the Greek world, and they impacted the formation of Judaism. This course will survey the political, cultural, religious, social, and economic history of the Persian Empire. Students will read primary written sources in translation such as Greek historical texts, Egyptian papyri, and cuneiform tablets. Students will also learn about the archaeology of the Persian heartland in Iran, as well as the Persian impact in places like Turkey, Israel, and Afghanistan.

Day/Time
Tuesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Rhyne King

The course provides an overview of medicine and medical practices from ancient Egypt between the 3rd millennium BCE to first millennium CE, primarily drawing on Egyptian evidence. Materials from neighbouring cultures are also included for comparative reasons. The focus of the class is on interpreting and reconstructing ancient healing practices and theories based on original sources (in translation) through a modern methodological approach, combining perspectives from both the humanities and the medical sciences. Both written and material sources are examined and discussed. One of the main objectives of the module is to make students aware of the importance of culture in interpreting ancient medicine.

Date/Time
Wednesday 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Instructor(s): Andreas Winkler

An introduction to the critical study of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament and the related literature of ancient Jewish communities (Apocrypha, Pseudepigrapha, Dead Sea Scrolls). English translations used; no knowledge of Hebrew is required.

Day/Time
Wednesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Robert Holmstedt

This course examines the formation and development of ancient Jewish literary traditions, centering around complex narrative and poetic figures such as Eve, Abraham, Moses, David, Esther, Job, and Lady Wisdom. Traditions to be studied will be selected from the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) and from early Jewish interpretive writings: the apocrypha, pseudepigrapha, and Dead Sea Scrolls.

Day/Time
Thursday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Sarianna Metso

The Shahnameh, or Book of Kings, is the single most important book in Iranian national culture and one of the great epics of world literature. Composed in Persian by the poet Ferdowsi in the late 10th–early 11th centuries, it had a deep and lasting impact not only on Iran, but also on those cultures that came under the influence of Persian language, literature, and courtly traditions. The course examines, in English translation, the Shahnameh’s presentation of the history of the mythical dynasties of the ancient kings of Iran from the creation of the world to the Sasanians, the last historical dynasty to rule Iran before the Muslim Arab conquests. As the Shahnameh was frequently illustrated, attention will also be devoted to the manuscript tradition, which exhibits some of the finest examples of medieval Persian painting.

Day/Time
Thursday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Maria Subtelny

From 2000 to 333 BCE, the ancient Near East saw the growth and expansion of the world’s first empires, the birth of international diplomacy, burgeoning land- and sea-trade and the emergence of languages and cultures that would go on to shape the Mediterranean world for centuries. This course will explore the archaeological evidence for these developments in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Anatolia and the Levant.

Day/Time
Monday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Wednesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Sheldon Harmacy

This course addresses difficult questions about how we value cultural heritage, who it belongs to, and how we should protect it during times of crisis. Focusing on the conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, we examine what went wrong, and discuss the role of cultural heritage in nationalistic discourses, ideologically motivated performative heritage destruction, and the contribution that cultural heritage can make to post-conflict peacebuilding. We will also cover such issues as the limitations of current cultural heritage protection laws, methods for threat monitoring and assessment, and the role of the illicit antiquities trade in the ongoing destruction of cultural heritage.

Day/Time
Tuesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Lynn Welton

The course focuses on lived experience for people from many different socio-economic levels in ancient Egypt. Through the analysis of archaeological and mortuary evidence, artifacts, and human, animal, and plant remains we will explore the daily lives of Egyptians over time as the natural, social and technological landscape changed, posing questions such as what they ate, how they made things, what kinds of social connections they formed, how they defined their identities, what kind of houses and village, town, or urban settings they lived in, what things they feared, how they died, and what they might have believed. We will look at remains from settlements like Hierakonpolis, Abydos, Giza, Kahun, Tell el-Dab'a, Amarna, Deir el-Medina, and Thebes in detail to understand aspects of the lives of the people who inhabited them.

Day/Time
Thursday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Oren Siegel

The course will introduce students to the Christian communities living in the Middle East since the distant past, identified by ecclesiastical and or ethnic terms, including Armenian, Copt, Greek-Melkite, Maronite, and Syriac. The course will discuss the plurality of their cultural, literary, and theological traditions, the social and intellectual roles of their monasteries, the contributions of their top religious authorities in diplomacy between Byzantium and the Sassanians, their position in the Islamic world and contributions to Islamic culture, philosophy, sciences, and theology, interreligious dialogues and polemics with Islam.

Day/Time
Wednesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Ester Petrosyan

The Near and Middle East in the years from the canonization of the Hebrew Bible (~late fourth -third century BCE) to the rise of Islam and the Quran (~seventh century CE) was home to a multitude of cultures, civilizations, and religious traditions. This course will give an overview of peoples, languages, texts, and religions.

Day/Time
Monday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Tirzah Meacham

It's all Eve's fault! Or is it? For millennia, the character Eve has received the lion's share of the blame for "The Fall" for being the first to eat the forbidden fruit, and there is no question that this has had a negative impact on the treatment of women to this day. Yet Eve as "villain" is not the only possible interpretation of the story of the Garden of Eden. In this course, we will look closely at Eve's appearances in the biblical text and consider the story in its ancient context. We will then consider a wide variety of interpretations of Eve: ancient and modern; Muslim, Jewish, and Christian; scholarly and artistic. All readings will be in English.

Day/Time
Thursday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Laura Hare

The medieval Islamic world from the decline of the early empire and the fall of Baghdad to the flourishing commonwealth during the lifetime of Ibn Khaldun. This course surveys key developments in religion, politics, and society across the Middle East from the 11th century up to the 15th century CE. Starting with the situation on the eve of the Crusades, we trace broader patterns in Islamic history through the emergence of various sultanates (including the dynasty of Salah al-Din Ayyubi and the Mamluks) as well as regional dynamics from North Africa and Spain in the West to Iran and India in the East.

Day/Time
Tuesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Arafat Razzaque

Legal systems play an important role in the lives of vulnerable people. Courts both enforce laws which render people vulnerable in the first place and also help protect those same people from further harm. Because legal documents constitute our main source of information about the experiences of lower-status people, they are also important for historians of the Middle East. In this course, we use legal documents to learn about women, slaves, and non-Muslims. Students learn about women’s personal and property rights, their roles as petitioners and witnesses, and the intersection of public legal appearances with modesty concerns. We examine how enslaved people accessed court systems, and how the law treated those who were considered both possessions of others and, at the same time, possessors of free will. Finally, we explore the dhimma system; the existence of separate, non-Muslim laws and courts; and the experiences of non-Muslims in Islamic courtrooms.

Day/Time
Wednesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Sara Verskin

Exploration of the primary archaeological, architectural, and inscriptional sources, questioning interpretations and analyzing how Egypt confronted foreign domination and developed into a major empire in the New Kingdom under Thutmose III, Hatshepsut, Akhenaten, and Ramesses II, then fragmented politically in the Third Intermediate Period and ultimately became a colony itself.

Day/Time
Tuesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Kei Yamamoto

This is a 300-level course that will provide a holistic exploration of the multifaceted aspects of Kurdish life, delving deep into the vibrant traditions, struggles, and achievements of the Kurdish people. As we traverse through the diverse regions of Kurdistan and its diasporas, we will critically examine the current situations, challenges, and triumphs, offering an insightful perspective on a community that has played a significant role in the socio-political landscape of the Middle East. We will critically engage with classic and modern texts in Kurdish studies and examine them in the context of modern Middle East studies. We will aim to foster a deep understanding of the Kurdish identity and the complex forces that have shaped it.

Day/Time
Friday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Sardar Saadi

This course focuses on the analysis of Ancient Egyptian literary texts from a variety of different genres. We will read examples of instructional and wisdom literature, poetry, literary narratives, and mythical tales. Issues such as how to best define terms like “literature” or “genre” for such an ancient culture will be discussed, and we will try to trace the development of literary texts in pharaonic Egypt–from the earliest attestations of coherent prose in the tombs of the Egyptian Old Kingdom (around 2500 BCE), via the full-blown Late Egyptian narratives of the Ramesside Period (around 1200 BCE), to instances of reiterations of the older genres in the Late and Ptolemaic Periods (to about 300 BCE). No knowledge of Ancient Egyptian is required; all texts will be read in translation.

Day/Time
Monday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Katja Goebs

Students read translations of Arabic literary texts composed by women or dealing with gender and sexuality. Class discussion considers debates in the field about how to analyze these texts in their historical context and in a theoretically grounded manner. Topics addressed include: popular and elite narrative representations of gender and sexuality; pre-Islamic and Abbasid poetry and remarks composed by women, and their transmission in male-authored anthologies; hetero- and homoerotic obscenity and eroticism in Arabic poetry, epistles, and scientific texts; and literary representations of sexual minorities like eunuchs, intersex people, and mukhannathūn (people with apparently male biology who dressed and behaved as women, and had a specific social position at certain times).

Day/Time
Monday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Fay North

Survey of major intellectual trends in the Islamic tradition, particularly those identified with Middle Eastern Muslim thinkers, from the early 19th century to the present. Topics include reformism, modernism, hermeneutics, feminism, Islamism, and liberal and progressive trends in contemporary Muslim thought. Readings in English translation.

Day/Time
Wednesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Hosam Helal

Although ruled by a Muslim dynasty and frequently characterized as an Islamic empire, the Ottoman state was inhabited by diverse religious and ethnic populations, many of them non-Muslim. This course examines how the Ottoman Empire governed and organized its subjects, Muslims and non-Muslims alike, of various ethnic backgrounds. It explores the relations among these communities and their interactions with the state, raising questions about tolerance, co-existence, conflict, loyalty, and identity. By looking into a selection of topics from the wide territorial span of the Ottoman Empire (Anatolia, the Balkans, and the Arab Middle East) the course seeks to provide insights into the organization, functioning, and transformation of a multi-confessional state and society in the premodern and modern eras.

Day/Time
Monday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Milena Methodieva

The course explores key aspects of the history of women, gender, and sexuality in the Ottoman Empire from the early fourteenth century until the empire’s collapse over the course of the First World War. It examines the experiences of women of various social and religious backgrounds, and the transformation of concepts and expressions of sexuality. Topics include gender and law, the harem as a social and political institution, discourses of sexuality, reproductive politics, women’s movements, labour history, fashion, and gendered experiences of displacement, violence, and war.

Day/Time
Wednesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Milena Methodieva

A survey of the Ottoman Empire in the 16th and 17th centuries. From the victory by Selim I the Grim over Safavid Iran and conquest of Syria and Egypt to the resplendent age of Süleyman the Magnificent to the internal and external challenges that forced transformation or decline. Topics include wars in Europe, the Mediterranean and Black Seas, and with Iran; internally, the rise of the harem and “sultanate of the women,” rebellions in Anatolia, military reform, religious controversies, and art and architecture. The endpoint is the Treaty of Karlowitz (1699) when the expansion of the empire ended.

Day/Time
Monday 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Instructor(s): Victor Ostapchuk

Ancient Mesopotamia is well known as the birthplace of some of the world’s earliest cities. This course investigates the physical form of the city in 2nd and 1st millennium BC Babylonia (southern Mesopotamia) as the setting for the daily activities of its inhabitants. It examines the key components of the Babylonian city: houses; neighbourhoods and city districts; palaces; temples and ziggurats; streets and alleys; shops and markets; city walls, gates, and moats, as well as canals, orchards and gardens. The course emphasizes the reading and critical evaluation of written sources in translation, including selected royal inscriptions, topographical texts, and legal and administrative documents. It also considers ways of approaching the study of ancient cities and addresses the integration of textual and archaeological evidence. The focus is on investigating the relationship between Babylonian city form and contemporary social structure.

Day/Time
Tuesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Heather D. Baker

This course explores further applications of polarized-light microscopy in the examination of archaeological materials, particularly pottery (ceramic petrology). The focus is on foundational research and case-studies of materials from around the world with particular attention to material culture from the Middle East, Central America, and East Asia, where University of Toronto researchers have worked, ranging in date from the Neolithic period to the modern day. Class and lab discussions will include critical examination of the application and integration of ceramic petrology in archaeological research design and how petrology can address relevant research questions successfully. Labs comprise eight three-hour sessions during the term, working with the polarized-light microscope to examine and analyze thin-sections.

LEC5101
Day/Time
Thursday 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Instructor(s): Kay Sunahara/Robert Mason

PRA0101
Day/Time
Tuesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Rather than being a specific technical skill, the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) has now become so ubiquitous in the field of archaeology that it is an essential component of archaeological training. This course covers the fundamentals of the application of GIS and remote sensing data to archaeological research, as well as introducing common forms of archaeological spatial analysis. It focuses on hands-on training in GIS software, and the direct application of basic spatial analysis methods to archaeological datasets.

Day/Time
Wednesday 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Lynn Welton/Tucker Deady

Can there be Hebrew literature beyond the State of Israel? This course explores Hebrew literature written in and about places outside Israel and Palestine through selected prose and poetry from the last two decades. We will examine terms like "homeland," "diaspora," and "nation" while exploring how they connect to personal experiences of love, estrangement, and belonging. The works include texts by Israeli authors writing about experiences in North America and Germany, including Maya Arad, Ayelet Tsabari, Sayed Kashua, and others. Alongside these literary works, we will read theoretical texts in diaspora studies to understand cultural movement, identity across borders, and how Hebrew literature positions itself between Middle Eastern and Global North contexts. No prior knowledge of Hebrew or literature is required.

Day/Time
Tuesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Oren Yirmiya

The domestic unit or the household has been recognized as a primary component in the make-up of communities. We define the household here as a social unit whose members cooperate in various subsistence, economic, and ideological spheres and contributing to acts of production, consumption, transmission, and social reproduction (see Wilk and Netting 1984; Wilk and Rathje 1982). As conditions around the household change, so do the structures and dynamics of the household, making them an ideal microcosm and building-block for understanding greater transformations that took place in society at large.

Day/Time
Thursday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Ahmed Abu Jayyab

What is an artifact, and to what degree does it represent art? At what point in the evolution of ancient human society does art emerge? What does it express, what is its purpose, and who are the agents that create and propagate it? This course addresses these questions by examining artifacts from the Palaeolithic to the Iron Age (15,000-300 BC). Students will learn to categorize works of ancient Near Eastern art using descriptive (materials, size, object type) as well as interpretive (iconography, style, themes) parameters, in order to engage critically with art-historical studies. Techniques of reading visual narratives will be exemplified by discussing selected examples in detail, showing ways of identifying a messenger and the message that they are trying to convey, the selective inclusion or omission of elements within a visual narrative, and the possible propagandistic intent in doing so.

Day/Time
Monday 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Clemens Reichel

The student must obtain the consent of an appropriate full-time NMC faculty member to supervise the proposed topic, which is subject to approval by the Associate Chair, Undergraduate. The course application form is available from the NMC Undergraduate Administrator. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

The student must obtain the consent of an appropriate full-time NMC faculty member to supervise the proposed topic, which is subject to approval by the Associate Chair, Undergraduate. The course application form is available from the NMC Undergraduate Administrator. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

This course is designed for students with no prior knowledge of Arabic. It places equal emphasis on the development of all language skills: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. The learning philosophy underlying this approach is that proficiency in a foreign language is best achieved through consistent, deliberate, and systematic practice. From the outset, students are strongly encouraged to develop the habit of consistently practicing learned material.

LEC0101
Day/Time
Monday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Wednesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Adam Ali

LEC0201
Day/Time
Monday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Adam Ali

LEC0301
Day/Time
Tuesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Thursday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Samar Abdelgalil

LEC2000
Day/Time
Monday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Adam Ali

Continued introduction to the fundamentals of Hebrew grammar and syntax. Emphasis on the development of oral and writing skills.

Day/Time
Tuesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Thursday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Yigal Nizri

This course assumes active knowledge of the content covered in NML110Y. It places equal emphasis on the development of all language skills. As the course progresses, students are introduced to the fundamentals of Arabic morphology and syntax. This is achieved through analysis of texts covering a wide range of topics. By the end of the course, students are expected to achieve upper intermediate level of proficiency.

Day/Time
Monday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Wednesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Dina Fergani

Introduction to Aramaic grammar. Readings from biblical Aramaic.

Day/Time
Monday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Rita Sawaya

A continuation of NML230H1.

Day/Time
Tuesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Friday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Ramez Boutros Bishara

This course introduces students to the hieroglyphic script and the classical form of the Ancient Egyptian language. After the basic elements of grammar are mastered, the class will begin reading simple hieroglyphic texts.

Day/Time
Monday 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Wednesday 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Friday 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Instructor(s): Amanda Ladd

An introduction to biblical Hebrew prose. Grammar and selected texts. For students with no previous knowledge of Hebrew.

Day/Time
Monday 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Wednesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Laura Hare

Continued intensive study of written and spoken Hebrew.

Day/Time
Tuesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Thursday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Yigal Nizri

This course is for students who have minimal or no prior knowledge of Persian focusing on reading, writing and conversation. Students start by learning how to write and pronounce the sound and alphabet, how to connect letters to form basic vocabulary in Persian in order to express basic ideas orally and in writing; then they develop their language comprehension through expanding their vocabulary and grammar. By the end of the course, students’ skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing in Persian improves and they should be able to read, write and translate sentences in Persian at intermediate low level.

Day/Time
Monday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Wednesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Azita Hojatollah Taleghani

This course is designed to provide an introduction to Turkish for learners with no previous experience with the language. A variety of speaking, listening, reading, and writing activities will be included to develop both spoken and written language skills. By the end of the course, students will be able to carry out basic conversations in Turkish in everyday social encounters, have a grasp of the basics of the Turkish grammar, and understand elementary texts such as simple excerpts from news articles or literary works. They will also have gained a basic understanding of the cultural contexts in which Turkish is spoken.

Day/Time
Monday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Wednesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Gozde Mercan

Introduction to Old Babylonian. Grammar and the reading of selected texts.

Day/Time
Tuesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Thursday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Odette Boivin

This course assumes active knowledge of the content covered in NML210Y1. As the course progresses, students are introduced to increasingly complex morphological and syntactic patterns of Arabic. This is achieved through analysis of texts covering a wide range of genres. By the end of the course, students are expected to achieve advanced level of proficiency.

Day/Time
Tuesday 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Thursday 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Instructor(s): Samar Abdelgalil

A continuation of NML240Y1, in which the student is exposed to a wide range of hieroglyphic texts in the Middle Egyptian dialect. Sources of historical, literary, religious, and economic significance will be studied. The grammar and syntax covered in NML240Y1 are reviewed intensively.

Day/Time
Monday 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Wednesday 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Friday 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM

Instructor(s): Rosemary Ott

A continuation of the study of ancient Hebrew grammar and texts. Focus is given to covering a wide variety of genres, e.g., narrative, chronicle, genealogy, oracle, prayer, hymn, and proverb.

Day/Time
Monday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Wednesday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Laura Hare

This course introduces the student to Talmudic texts through selections from a particular tractate for representative study. We shall study the Mishnah of the chapter in preparation for the Talmud. Recognition of the dialogic structure of the legal discussions centered on the Mishnah and its elucidation is emphasized. The classical commentaries (Rashi, Tosafot, R. Hananel), the use of dictionaries, concordances, biographies of sages, parallels and other sources will gradually become familiar to the student as aids in understanding the text under consideration. A brief presentation of the essential features of Babylonian Aramaic will be included in the course to facilitate study. Students will also be taught to make use of the Bar Ilan Responsa Project, the Lieberman database, and the Friedberg Jewish Manuscript Society database. We shall also discuss redactional issues as they appear.

Day/Time
Thursday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Tirzah Meacham

This course is an intermediate/advanced level of Persian language for students who passed NML260Y1 or demonstrate commensurate Persian skills. The course continues to develop students’ Persian language knowledge by focusing on more complex readings, writing, grammatical structure, translation, audio/visual, and conversational activities such as group discussion, language games, movies, dialogue, and playing roles at an advanced level. By the end of this course, students are able to reach the intermediate high/advanced level of proficiency in Persian. The course also serves as preparation for courses on classical and contemporary Persian literature.

Day/Time
Monday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Azita Hojatollah Taleghani

This course is designed for students who have already completed NML270Y1 Introductory Turkish or have an equivalent level of proficiency in Turkish. It aims to expand students’ communicative skills, grammatical knowledge, and vocabulary. A variety of intermediate-level speaking, listening, reading, and writing activities will be included to further develop both spoken and written language skills. By the end of the course, students will be able to read, understand, and translate various authentic texts of intermediate difficulty. They will be able to write short essays and talk about a wide range of general topics. They will also have gained a deeper understanding of the cultural contexts in which Turkish is spoken. The course also serves as a preparation for the advanced study of Turkish.

Day/Time
Tuesday 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Thursday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Gozde Mercan

This intermediate Akkadian course is devoted to the study of the literary Akkadian dialect of the late second and first millennia, usually known as Standard Babylonian. Students will read excerpts of literary texts and royal inscriptions in R. Borger’s Babylonisch-Assyrische Lesestücke and eventually proceed to more ambitious compositions such as The Annals of Sennacherib and Enuma Elish. Students are also expected to deepen their knowledge of the NeoAssyrian cuneiform script. (Offered in alternate years)

Day/Time
Tuesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Thursday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Odette Boivin

This course assumes active knowledge of the content covered in NML310Y. Its goal is to strengthen the students reading and writing skills, refine their knowledge of syntax and morphological patterns, and enrich their cultural background. This is achieved through analysis of sophisticated authentic texts covering a wide range of genres. In addition, Classical Arabic literary texts will be incrementally introduced. By the end of the course, students are expected to reach a superior level of proficiency.

Day/Time
Tuesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Thursday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Samar Abdelgalil

This course is primarily a reading course in Syriac literature with reference to specific points in grammar and syntax as contrasted with Aramaic. The texts are read with reference to the history of Syriac literature.

Day/Time
Tuesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): James Toma

This is an advanced language seminar that introduces the student to the analysis, in terms of both language/grammar and content, of Ancient Egyptian texts of historical significance. Texts from the periods of the Old Kingdom up to the Late Period will be studied, and all texts will be read in the (mostly Middle Egyptian) original. Particular attention will be paid to the cultural and social context of the texts, and questions such as how to best define “historical texts,” and to what extent literary texts may be used as historical sources, will be discussed.

Day/Time
Wednesday 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Katja Goebs

The course aims at improving reading proficiency in Demotic by studying a wide array of different text genres in original, including literary, para-literary, religious and documentary texts written in early, middle, and late Demotic. This will familiarize students with the grammatical, paleographical, and orthographical developments of the language.

Day/Time
Wednesday 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Andreas Winkler

This course examines Persian literature, mainly modern Persian poetry from the 19th to the 21st centuries, focusing on linguistics and literary approaches in contemporary poetry. The course includes a brief overview of different factors which shaped modern Persian poetry, then concentrates on the works of well-known modern poets who had great influence on establishing and developing Persian contemporary poets such as Nima Yushij, Ahmad Shamlu, Mehdi Akhavan Sales, Sohrab Sepehri, Forugh Farrokhzad, Hushang Ebtehaj, Simin Behbahani, and Mohammad Reza Shafi’i-Kadkani. After presenting a short biography and the works of each poet, students read selected poems of each poet and discuss the structure, poetic styles, figures of speech, themes and motifs in the poems. (Conducted in Persian)

Day/Time
Tuesday 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Instructor(s): Azita Hojatollah Taleghani

This course is designed for students who have already completed NML460H1 Advance Persian I or have an equivalent level of proficiency in Persian. Its goal is to strengthen the students reading and writing skills and enrich their cultural and literary background. This is achieved through analysis of sophisticated authentic literary texts covering a wide range of literary genres.

Day/Time
Tuesday 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Instructor(s): Azita Hojatollah Taleghani

This course is designed for students who have already completed NML370Y1 Intermediate Turkish or have an equivalent level of proficiency in Turkish. It aims to build upon the existing competence of the students in Turkish and to further improve their four skills through a variety of advanced speaking, listening, reading, and writing activities. By the end of this comprehensive course, students will be able to read, understand and translate various authentic texts of different genres such as literary works. They will be able to write essays on a wide range of topics. They will demonstrate the ability to express themselves both orally and in writing through complex grammatical structures and a rich vocabulary. They will also have gained thorough understanding of the social and cultural contexts in which Turkish is spoken. The course will enable students to pursue independent studies in Turkish.

Day/Time
Monday 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Thursday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor(s): Gozde Mercan