Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations
314 Hall of Graduate Studies, 432.2944
M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.
Chair
Dimitri Gutas
Director of Graduate Studies
Beatrice Gruendler (2703 HGS, 432.7522, beatrice.gruendler@yale.edu)
Professors
Benjamin Foster, Beatrice Gruendler, Dimitri Gutas, Bentley Layton, William Simpson, Harvey Weiss
Assistant Professors
John Darnell, Eckart Frahm
Lecturer
Karen Foster
Senior Lectors
Fereshteh Amanat-Kowssar, Ayala Dvoretzky, Bassam Frangieh
Lectors
Siam Bhayro, Neta Stahl
Fields of Study
Fields include Arabic and Islamic studies (also with interdisciplinary minor), Greco-Arabic studies, Archaeology of the Ancient Near East, Assyriology, Egyptology, and Coptic and Egyptology.
Special Admissions Requirements
Applicants should state their specific field of study and intended specialization. Evidence of a reading knowledge of both French and German is required of all students. Proficiency in one of these languages is normally prerequisite for admission and deficiency in the second language must be rectified before admission to a second year of study. Proficiency will be certified by passing a departmental examination upon registration at Yale. Students admitted with only one of the two required languages or who fail the departmental examination are expected to enroll in an appropriate full-year course given by the French or German departments at Yale. Completion of such a course with a grade of A or B will be accepted as fulfilling the proficiency requirement in either language; exceptions, e.g., for native speakers of French or German, may be made by the department upon recommendation of the director of graduate studies.
Special Requirements for the Ph.D. Degree
Course Work: The department normally requires three full years of course work, four year courses or eight term courses per year being considered a full load. This may be reduced to two years in cases of exceptional background in Near Eastern languages. Normal progress in course work is considered to be consistent achievement of grades of High Pass or better, and at least four term courses or two year courses with Honors per year.
Special Language and Course Requirements: Course work should be planned to meet two departmental general standards: core languages for the primary fields of study, and minimum competence in a secondary field. The core languages in each of the major fields of study are as follows: Arabic and Islamic Studies: Arabic, Persian (Farsi) or Syriac or Greek; Archaeology of the Ancient Near East: at least one ancient language relevant to the student's area of interest; majors in archaeology are also required to take at least one term of archaeological method and theory and at least one term of descriptive and inferential statistics; Assyriology: Sumerian and Akkadian; Egyptology: Egyptian and at least four terms of Demotic or Coptic; Coptic and Egyptology: Coptic, Egyptian, Greek, Arabic, Latin, and one other Christian oriental language. Minimum competence in a secondary field of study is defined as follows: at least two terms of a Near Eastern language to be evaluated either by examination or with a course grade of High Pass or better, or at least two terms of nonlanguage courses outside the area of specialization. A minimum grade of High Pass in these courses will be considered successful fulfillment of this requirement.
In Arabic and Islamic Studies, the minimum competence can be extended to an interdisciplinary course of study in a minor field. Minors may include six to eight term courses in the following departments and programs: Anthropology, Comparative Literature, French, German Studies, Greek and Classics, History, History of Medicine and Science, Judaic Studies, Italian, Linguistics, Medieval Studies, Political Science and Sociology, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Spanish and Portuguese, or others, by permission of the director of graduate studies. Students in all programs of the department will be expected to declare their choice of a secondary language or area, or a minor field, by their third term of study. Examinations and the Dissertation: The comprehensive examination is normally taken at the end of the third year of study or, where advanced standing has been granted, at the end of the second year, but in no case later than September of the academic year following the last year of the student's required course work. The scope of the examination will be determined by the director of graduate studies in consultation with the student and department member(s) in whose area the student's studies are concentrated. The examination will consist of written and oral portions and will cover no fewer than five and no more than six areas. In the case of the program in Arabic and Islamic Studies with an interdisciplinary minor, the written portion will consist of two language examinations and one subject in the minor field, and the oral of two subjects in Arabic studies and one in the minor field. The written examinations will be set by the individual faculty members responsible for particular areas of study, but the oral portion will be conducted by the full staff of the department. The dissertation proposal is normally submitted within one month after completion of the qualifying examination. Successful completion of the comprehensive examination and submission of an acceptable prospectus will qualify the student for admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree. After completion of the dissertation, the candidate may receive a final examination concerned primarily with the defense of the thesis.
Master's Degrees
M.Phil. See Graduate School requirements. Alternatively, the department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations offers, in conjunction with the Medieval Studies Program, a joint M.Phil. degree. For further details, see Medieval Studies. In addition to the Graduate School requirements, the dissertation prospectus must have been accepted.
M.A. Applicants who do not wish to enroll in the Ph.D. program may pursue a Master of Arts degree. Students enrolled in such a program should complete a minimum of twelve term courses with at least two term grades of Honors and an average of High Pass in the remaining courses, and will be required to submit a master's thesis no later than April 1 of the fourth term of study. No financial aid is available. Students enrolled in the Ph.D. program are also eligible for this degree by meeting the same requirements.
Program materials are available upon request from the Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Yale University, PO Box 208236, New Haven CT 06520-8236.
Courses
NELC 503a, The Art of Ancient Palaces. Karen Foster.
NELC 504bu, Art of the Ancient Near East and Aegean. Karen Foster.
Introduction to the art and architecture of Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Aegean, with attention to cultural and historical contexts.
NELC 506b, History of Mesopotamia: Third Millennium B.C.E. Benjamin Foster.
[NELC 507a, History of Mesopotamia: Second Millennium B.C.E.]
[NELC 508b, History of Mesopotamia: First Millennium B.C.E.]
NELC 510au8 Conflicts that Shaped Pharaonic Egypt. John Darnell.
An overview of the history of ancient Egypt, from the predynastic period, c. 4500 B.C.E., to the end of Byzantine rule on the Nile. Focus on periods of internal social and political fragmentation; examination of the struggles and mechanisms that led to the establishment and renewal of central authority on the Nile.
[NELC 511bu, Ancient Egypt from the Ramesside to the Ptolemaic Periods.]
NELC 512bu, Egyptian Religion through the Ages. John Darnell. TTh 1–2.15
Topics in Egyptian religion including religious architecture; evidence for protodynastic cults; foreigners in Egyptian religious celebrations; music and vocal expression in Egyptian religion; Re and Osiris; the Amarna interlude and the Ramesside solar religion; and the goddess of the eye of the sun. The approach is diachronic. Readings in English of primary and secondary sources.
[NELC 520, Beginning Sumerian.]
[NELC 521b, Intermediate Sumerian.]
NELC 528a or b, Advanced Sumerian. Benjamin Foster.
NELC 539a or b, Directed Readings: Sumerian.
NELC 540u, Elementary Akkadian. Harold Vedeler. MWF 9.30–10.20
NELC 541b, Advanced Akkadian. Benjamin Foster.
NELC 544a, Mesopotamian Selected Texts: Bilingual. Eckart Frahm.
NELC 544b, Mesopotamian Selected Texts: Scholarly Texts, First Millennium B.C.E. Eckart Frahm.
[NELC 545b, Neo-Babylonian.]
NELC 559a or b, Directed Readings: Assyriology.
NELC 560u, Introduction to Classical Hieroglyphic Egyptian. Colleen Manassa.
An introduction to the language of ancient pharaonic Egypt (Middle Egyptian) and its hieroglyphic writing system, with short historical, literary, and religious texts. Grammatical analysis with exercises in reading, translation, and composition.
NELC 563bu, From Pictograph to Pixel: Changing Ways of Human Communication. John Darnell, Michael Fischer, Beatrice Gruendler. TTh 11.30–12.45
An exploration of the five pivotal stages in the development of human communication throughout world history: pictographic and syllabic ways of writing, the consonantal or phonetic alphabet, the invention of paper, movable type, and acoustic/electronic/digital media and the Internet. These technologies are considered for their innovative features, new capabilities, social and ideological implications, and the instrumental roles they played in contemporary periods of change.
NELC 564a, Egyptian Historical Texts: Old and Middle Kingdom. William Simpson.
NELC 564b, Egyptian Historical Texts: New Kingdom and Later.
NELC 565a, Egyptian Literary Texts: Old and Middle Kingdom. William Simpson.
NELC 565b, Egyptian Literary Texts: New Kingdom and Later.
NELC 566a, Late Period Historical Texts: Napatan Historical Inscriptions. John Darnell.
Close reading of Napatan historical texts, including the inscription of Karimala, the Piye Stela, the Dream Stela of Tanutamun, the Stela of Enthronement, the Stela of Excommunication, and the Stela of Harsiotef. Discussion of the historical significance of the texts; analyses of grammatical material touching upon Nubian perceptions of Middle and Late Egyptian grammar and early Demotic grammar; hieratic-inspired orthographies, etc.
[NELC 566b, Literary Texts in Late Egyptian.]
NELC 567a, Egyptian Religious Texts.
NELC 568a, Selected Egyptian Literary Texts. William Simpson.
[NELC 569b, Ptolemaic and Roman Hieroglyphic Texts.]
NELC 571a or b, Selected Egyptian Wisdom Texts.
NELC 572b, Ramesside Texts. John Darnell.
Readings of Ramesside monumental inscriptions, mostly of historical significance. Focus on inscriptions from the reigns of Sety I, Ramesses II, and Merneptah, including the Wadi Mia Temple inscriptions of Sety I, the stela of Sety I for Ramesses I; the Inscription dédicatoire of Ramesses II for Sety I at Abydos, the Kom el-Ahmar Stela, and the Kadesh texts of Ramesses II; the Amada Stela, Triumph Stela, and other monuments of Merneptah. Discussions of late Middle Egyptian grammar and orthography, historical significance, etc.
NELC 573b, Introduction to Demotic. John Darnell.
Introduction to the grammar and script followed by readings from a variety of genres: wisdom, religious and historical texts, legal documents, letters, and graffiti.
NELC 576a, Ancient Egyptian Epistlography. John Darnell.
Reading (in hieroglyphic and hieratic scripts) of Egyptian letters, from the Old Kingdom through the Third Intermediate Period, including the Letters to the Dead, Kahun Letters, and Late Ramesside Letters.
NELC 577b, Ancient Egyptian Cosmographic Texts. John Darnell.
Close reading of Egyptian cosmographic books, including the King as Solar Priest, the Book of the Creation of the Solar Disk, the Book of Nut, the Book of the Day and the Night, the Enigmatic Netherworld Books of the Solar-Osirian Unity.
NELC 578a, Egyptian Religious Texts: The Ancient Egyptian Netherworld Books.
NELC 579a or b, Directed Readings: Egyptology.
[NELC 586bu, Origins of Cities and States in Greater Mesopotamia.]
[NELC 587bu, Environmental History of the Near East.]
NELC 588au, Civilizations and Collapse. Harvey Weiss. Th 3.30–5.20
Collapse documented in the archaeological and early historical records of the Old and New Worlds, including Mesopotamia, Mesoamerica, the Andes, and Europe. Analysis of politicoeconomic vulnerabilities, resiliencies, and adaptations in the face of abrupt climate change, anthropogenic environmental degradation, resource depletion, "barbarian" incursions, or class conflict. Also ANTH 773au, ARCG 773au.
NELC 590a, Coffin Texts. John Darnell.
Readings of the religious texts found on the inner surfaces of Middle Kingdom coffins. The course focuses on creation accounts, the Shu texts, spells of transformation, the Book of the Two Ways, etc. Readings in both normalized hieroglyphic transcription and original cursive hieroglyphic writing.
NELC 591b, Ancient Egyptian Love Poetry. John Darnell. MW 3–5
Egyptian love poetry, concentrating on the major documents. Most readings in hieratic, with discussions of the grammar of literary Late Egyptian, its relationship to non-literary Late Egyptian and late Middle Egyptian.
[NELC 592b, Death and Afterlife in Ancient Egypt.]
NELC 595a, Ancient Egyptian Art and Archaeology. William Simpson.
NELC 621, Ugaritic. Siam Bhayro. F 9–11
NELC 631b, Ethiopic. Siam Bhayro. TTh 3.45–5
NELC 661u, Elementary Modern Hebrew. Ayala Dvoretzky, Neta Stahl. MWF 11.30–1, drill 1 HTBA
Introduction to the language of contemporary Israel, both spoken and written. Fundamentals of grammar; extensive practice in speaking, reading, and writing under the guidance of a native speaker.
NELC 662u, Modern Hebrew II. Ayala Dvoretzky, Neta Stahl. MWF 10.30–11.20, drill 1 HTBA
Introduction to modern Hebrew literature, with readings selected from contemporary prose and verse. Review and continuation of grammatical study leading to a deeper comprehension of style and usage. Prerequisite: NELC 661u or equivalent.
NELC 665au, Advanced Modern Hebrew: Ideological and Social Discourse. Neta Stahl. MW 1–2.15
An examination of major controversies in Israeli society. Readings include newspaper editorials and academic articles as well as documentary and history-based plays. Advanced grammatical structures are introduced and practiced. Conducted in Hebrew. Prerequisite: NELC 662u or equivalent.
NELC 666bu, Introduction to Modern Israeli Literature. Ayala Dvoretzky. MW 1.30–2.45
Reading, discussion, and analysis of short stories, poetry, and magazine articles representative of contemporary Israeli culture, with attention to different styles. Conducted in Hebrew. Prerequisite: NELC 662u or equivalent.
NELC 726au, Introduction to the History of Christianity in the Ancient World: Jesus to Augustine. Bentley Layton. MW 10.30–11.20, 1 HTBA
The rise of Christianity and the development of Western culture into the Middle Ages, including the creation of Christian orthodoxy; religious, political, social, gender, literary, and theological history of Christian religion in many forms. No previous background assumed. Also RLST 651au.
[NELC 735bu, Gnostic Religion and Literature.]
[NELC 74ou, Biblical Coptic: Elementary Course.]
NELC 741bu, Introduction to Gnostic Texts in Coptic. Bentley Layton. TTh 11.30–12.45
NELC 745au, Egyptian Monastic Literature in Coptic. Bentley Layton. TTh 11.30–12.45
[NELC 746a, Early Ascetism and Monasticism in Egypt (Patristic Seminar).]
[NELC 748a, The White Monastery of Atripe: Study of Canons 1–5 of Shenoute.]
[NELC 749b, The White Monastery of Atripe: Reconstruction of the Disciplinary Code.]
NELC 770u, Elementary Syriac. Siam Bhayro. MW 3.30–4.45
The Mesopotamian Christian form of Aramaic widely used in the Roman and Byzantine Near East. Thorough grounding in grammar and vocabulary as a basis for reading biblical, historical, poetic, and theological texts.
[NELC 772a, Classical Syriac Historiography.]
[NELC 773b, Theological and Literary Texts in Syriac.]
NELC 802au, The History of the Islamic Near East from Mohammad to the Mongol Invasion. Adel Allouche. MW 9–10.15
An examination of the shaping of society and polity from the rise of Islam to the Mongol conquest of Baghdad in 1258. The origins of Islamic society; conquests, and social and political assimilation under the Ummayyads and Abbasids; the changing nature of political legitimacy and sovereignty under the caliphate; provincial decentralization; and new sources of social and religious power. Also HIST 829au.
[NELC 805bu, Greek into Arabic into Latin: Foundations of Western Culture.]
[NELC 807bu, Modern Islamic Thought.]
[NELC 808bu, Islamic Law: Concepts and Controversies.]
[NELC 809au, Science in the Islamic World.]
[NELC 810au, Memory, Fiction, and the Creation of Meaning in Classical Arabic Literature.]
NELC 811au, Love, Desire, and the Erotic in Classical Arabic Literature. Beatrice Gruendler. TTh 11.30–12.45
The theme of love in classical Arabic literature, from the pre-Islamic era through the Middle Ages (seventh to fifteenth century, C.E.). Exploration of the guises of love, its standard motifs and varying meanings according to different contexts: erotic and platonic, courtly and spiritual, literal and metaphorical. Genres include the pre-Islamic Bedouin ode (qasida), the Islamic love lyric (ghazal), Islamic court poetry and belles lettres (adab), mystical poetry, Andalusian poetry (muwashshah, zajal), as well as exegetical tales and medieval popular romances.
[NELC 812b, Abbasid Poetry in Context.]
NELC 818bu, Early Arabic Philosophy. Dimitri Gutas. M 3.30–5.20
The transition from Greek philosophy in late antiquity to Arabic philosophy under the early 'Abbasids (sixth to eleventh century). Readings in English translation from the works of Kindi, Rhazes, Farabi, and Avicenna, with special emphasis on epistemology, theory of the soul, and metaphysics. Prerequisite: a course in ancient or medieval philosophy, or permission of instructor. Also PHIL 613bu.
NELC 821u, Elementary Modern Standard Arabic. Bassam Frangieh. MTWThF 1.30–2.20
Develops a basic knowledge of modern standard Arabic. Emphasis on grammatical analysis, vocabulary acquisition, and the development of reading and writing skills.
NELC 822u, Spoken Modern Standard Arabic. Bassam Frangieh. TTh 2.30–3.45
A supplement to the elementary course in modern standard Arabic, emphasizing oral skills. Corequisite or prerequisite: NELC 821u or permission of instructor.
NELC 824u, Intermediate Modern Standard Arabic. Bassam Frangieh. MW 11.30–12.45
Intensive review of grammar; readings from contemporary and classical Arab authors with emphasis on serial reading of unvoweled Arabic texts, prose composition, and formal conversation.
NELC 825u, Advanced Modern Standard Arabic. Racha El-Omari. MW 1–2.15
Focus on improving the listening, writing, and speaking skills of students who already have a substantial background in the study of modern standard Arabic.
[NELC 829b, History of the Arabic Language.]
NELC 830au or bu, Arabic Seminar. Dimitri Gutas [F], Beatrice Gruendler [Sp]. T 3.30–5.20
Study and interpretation of classical Arabic texts for advanced students.
NELC 831b, Greco-Arabic Seminar. Dimitri Gutas. W 1.30–3.20
[NELC 832b, Introduction to Medieval Arabic Literary Criticism.]
[NELC 834b, Arab Historical Writing.]
[NELC 836b, Classical Arabic Biography.]
[NELC 844b, Arabic Palaeography and Textual Criticism.]
NELC 845a, Plato's Laws in Arabic. Dimitri Gutas. M 3.30–5.20
[NELC 846a, Seminar in the Philosophy of Avicenna.]
[NELC 847a, Medieval Islamic Ethics.]
[NELC 848a, Seminar in Islamic Theology.]
NELC 849a or b, Directed Readings: Arabic.
NELC 850a, Introduction to Arabic and Islamic Studies. Beatrice Gruendler. W 2.30–4.20
Comprehensive survey of the various subjects treated in Arabic and Islamic studies, with representative readings from each. Detailed investigation into the methods and techniques of scholarship in the field, with emphasis on acquiring familiarity with the bibliographical and other research tools.
NELC 851u, Elementary Persian. Fereshteh Amanat-Kowssar. MWF 9.30–10.20
An introduction to modern Persian, with emphasis on grammar and syntax as well as writing and reading simple prose. Both literary and classical Persian are taught in the second term.
NELC 852u, Intermediate Persian. Fereshteh Amanat-Kowssar. MWF 10.30–11.20
Detailed analysis of Persian usage and syntax through the study of modern and classical texts in prose and poetry. Readings from newspapers, textbooks, historical writings, travelogues, classical and modern literature.
NELC 859a or b, Directed Readings: Persian.
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