Classics and Ancient Civilisations
| Degree: | Master of Arts in Classics and Ancient Civilisations |
|---|---|
| Mode of Study: | Full-time |
| Duration: | 1 year |
| Start date: | September, February |
| Language of instruction: | English |
| Location: | Leiden |
| Croho/isat code: | 60821 |
| Specialisations: | |
The Master’s programme in Classics and Ancient Civilisations provides comprehensive training covering the entire range of present-day research on the ancient civilisations of Greece and Rome, Egypt and the Near East.
This MA programme is unique in the Netherlands in the breadth of its subject matter, the historical periods covered and the multidisciplinary approach of its study. From the beginning of history in Egypt and Mesopotamia up to the Medieval texts in Neo-Latin, Coptic or Hebrew. Characteristic for the MA is its focus on reading ancient texts in their original languages, and discussing the different interpretations that the texts allow.
The Leiden programme distinguishes itself from other similar master’s programmes by offering expertise in the world of the Hebrew Bible, emerging Christianity, ancient Mesopotamia, Anatolia, Egypt (ancient, antique and late-antique) and Greco-Roman Antiquity, all seen from a multidisciplinary perspective.
The programme introduces a wide variety of research methods, all of them well-represented in the research carried out at Leiden University. The combined study of sources of different nature is a particularly exiting research approach, because it may lead to new interpretations of the past. Traditional philology with its intimate knowledge of languages and texts, while still indispensable, is enriched by social history and economic theory, comparative literature, the study of religion in an anthropological perspective and, of course, archaeology and material culture.
