Undergraduate Arabic

Arabic Courses
Course BoK Description Fall SPG OCC

SPG = Spring

OCC = Occasionally
Please note that occasionally some courses, particularly those at the 3000/4000 level, may be offered in a semester other than indicated.

ARAB

1001

HU

DC

Basic Literary Arabic I is the first basic Literary Arabic course in a two-semester sequence. Classroom activities focus on speaking, listening, reading, writing, and Arabic culture. To prepare for active participation in class students spend time listening and working with home DVD exercises prior to class time. All activities are aimed at placing the learner in the context of the native speaker from the beginning and eliciting creative play with acquired vocabulary. Limited introduction to and weekly practice in colloquial Arabic will complement the study of Literary Arabic for use on informal occasions.

Completion of the 1001-1002 sequence fulfills various college language requirements. Students should confirm the language requirement with their home college.

This course offers online sections fall and spring semesters.

 x
    

ARAB

1002

HU

DC

Basic Literary Arabic II is the second basic Literary Arabic course in a two-semester sequence and is designed to build cultural skills and the four language skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing in Modern Standard literary Arabic. Students will practice at home and be exposed to native speakers through audio-visual materials. They begin to recognize and to differentiate parts of speech and their morphological relationships. Limited introduction to and weekly practice of colloquial Arabic will continue to complement the study of Literary Arabic for use on informal occasions. Completion of the 1001-1002 sequence fulfills various college language requirements. Students should confirm the language requirement with their home college.

Prerequisite: Arabic 1001 or permission of the Arabic Language Coordinator.

   x
  

ARAB

1011

HU

DC

Extended Basic Literary Arabic I is the first course of a four-course sequence of Arabic language and culture. Students learn basic speaking, listening, reading and writing at a more relaxed pace than in the intensive Basic Literary Arabic sequence. Attention is also paid to communicative, contextualized learning in the classroom. This course counts toward the foreign language requirement.

Completion of the 1011 through 1014 sequence fulfills various college language requirements. Students should confirm the language requirement with their home college.

 x
    

ARAB

1012

HU

DC

Extended Basic Literary Arabic II is the second course of a four-course sequence of Arabic language and culture. Students learn basic speaking, listening, reading and writing at a more relaxed pace than in the intensive Basic Literary Arabic sequence. Students actively learn through communicative activities in the classroom. Increasing attention is paid to basic conversational skills. This course counts toward the foreign language requirement.

Completion of the 1011 through 1014 sequence fulfills various college language requirements. Students should confirm the language requirement with their home college.

   x
  

ARAB

1013

HU

DC

Extended Basic Literary Arabic III is the third course of a four-course sequence of Arabic language and culture. Students continue to learn basic speaking, listening, reading and writing at a more relaxed pace than in the intensive Basic Literary Arabic sequence. Students actively learn through communicative activities in the classroom. Increasing attention is paid to basic conversational skills and cultural awareness. This course counts toward the foreign language requirement.

Completion of the 1011 through 1014 sequence fulfills various college language requirements. Students should confirm the language requirement with their home college.

 x
    

ARAB

1014

HU

DC

Extended Basic Literary Arabic IV is the fourth course of a four-course sequence of Arabic language and culture. Students learn increasingly complex speaking, listening, reading and writing, while at a more relaxed pace than in the intensive Basic Literary Arabic sequence. Students actively learn through communicative activities in the classroom. Increasing attention is paid to basic conversational skills and cultural awareness. This course counts toward the foreign language requirement.

Completion of the 1011 through 1014 sequence fulfills various college language requirements. Students should confirm the language requirement with their home college.

   x
  

ARAB

2001

HU

DC

Second Year Literary Arabic 1 is the first in a two-course sequence for students who have completed the language requirement and wish to develop and expand their knowledge of basic linguistic functions and cultural skills in Arabic.

In the classroom, direct instruction in language and culture is paired with communicative activities that develop linguistic skills as well as intercultural competence. To prepare for active participation in class, students spend time listening and working with home DVD exercises prior to class time. Limited introduction to and weekly practice in colloquial Arabic will complement the study of Literary Arabic for use on informal occasions. Completion of the sequence is a requirement for the Arabic Language and Culture Certificate.

Required of the Arabic minor.

 x
    

ARAB

2002

HU

DC

Second Year Literary Arabic 2 is the second in a two-course sequence for students who have completed the language requirement and wish to develop and expand their knowledge of basic linguistic functions and cultural skills in Arabic. In the classroom, direct instruction in language and culture is paired with communicative activities that develop linguistic skills as well as intercultural competence. To prepare for active participation in class, students spend time listening and working with home DVD exercises prior to class time. Limited introduction to and weekly practice in colloquial Arabic will complement the study of Literary Arabic for use on informal occasions.

Completion of the sequence is a requirement for the Arabic Language and Culture Certificate and minor.

   x
  

ARAB

2050

HU

DC

Colloquial Arabic is an introduction to the phonology, morphology, and syntax of the semiformal spoken [not written] language of educated urbanites of the Eastern Arab world, with intensive practice in speaking skills with emphasis on various cultural aspects of daily Arab life. This course cannot be used to fulfill the foreign language requirement. Permission of instructor is required.

This course or Arabic 5011 is required for the Arabic major.

   x
  

ARAB

3001

  

Third-Year Literary Arabic is the first course in a two-semester sequence of third-year Arabic. Students continue to develop and reinforce the four language skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking through the use of different media resources. Emphasis is placed on controlled compositions and oral presentations at an advanced intermediate level, using adapted and authentic texts on various aspects of Arabic culture.

Required for the Arabic major.

 x
    

ARAB

3002

  

Third-Year Literary Arabic is the second course in the two-semester sequence of third-year Arabic. Students continue to develop and reinforce the four language skills through the use of different media resources, transforming passive skills into active ones, introducing advanced grammar concepts, and exploring a range of literary genres, styles, themes, and periods.

Required of the Arabic major.

   x
  

ARAB

3010

HU

DC

Culture of Contemporary Arab Society [with film features] is an analytical study of the cultural traits and patterns of contemporary Arab society based on scholarly research, recent fieldwork, and personal experiences and observations in the Arab world. It examines (1) the development of its language and dialects, beliefs, customs, and traditions, within the framework of a dynamically changing society; (2) major ecological structures; (3) the family and its value system; (4) representative social, political and religious institutions, reform, and challenges of modernization; and, (5) trends in literature (with emphasis on the emotional and psychological dimensions of cultural traits and change), communications media, and music. This course is taught in English and includes film features.

Required of the Arabic major and minor.

   x
  

ARAB

3011

HU

DC

Arab-American Culture introduces students to the history and structure of the Arab-American community in the United States. Critical, anthropological, sociological, and literary readings will be discussed from the perspective of important social issues such as gender, class, race, marginality, identity, ethnicity, discrimination, assimilation, representation, alienation, and otherness, to encourage students to reflect on the social diversity of experience and to think critically about social issues in the United States from the perspective provided by the Arab-American response to the American vision and experience. Taught in English.

Core elective â majors and minors are required three, one of which must be History 1007 or 1008.

 x
    

ARAB

3020

HU

DC

Modern Arabic Literature in Translation surveys the development of modern Arabic literature and the influence of Western literary genres. Selections of poetry, short stories, and novels of wide-ranging orientation (romantic, mystical, socio-political, religious, and philosophical) are read in English translation and are critically discussed with attention to their historical and cultural contexts and literary techniques. Themes such as the conflicts between tradition and modernity, colonial and native languages, Islamic and Western values, rural and urban lifestyles, as well as sexual politics and functional literary discourse, gender roles, orientalism, anti-colonialism, political culture, and the construction of individual and national identity are treated.

Core elective-majors and minors are required three, one of which must be History 1007 or 1008.

     x

ARAB

3021

HU

DC

Classical Arabic Literature in Translation is a historical survey of classical Arabic poetry and prose genres from the period between the 5th and 16th centuries, read in English translation. It examines literary styles and conventions, the ways poetry and prose were recited and written down, sources of literary inspiration for various genres, and canons of traditional Arab literary criticism. Among the topics to be treated, if time permits, are heroic odes, Qur'anic, philosophical, aesthetic, and mystical narratives, fables, epistles, erotic tales, love lyrics, drama, and folkloric romances such as the Thousand and One Nights.

Core elective-majors and minors are required three, one of which must be History 1007 or 1008.

     x

ARAB

3022

HU

DC

 Arab Women Novelists: Through reading and discussion of some diverse representative novels by Arab women writers, in English translation, the course explores (1) how Arab women novelists articulated relationships between class and feminism; gender issues, colonialism, and nationalism; war and sexuality; language, gender and identity and (2) how they negotiated religion and tradition, challenged societal and familial roles, responded to political and cultural exigencies, and formulated a literary and feminist paradigm.

Core elective â three are required for majors and minors, one of which must be History 1007 or 1008.		     x

ARAB

3023

HU

DC

Love and Sexuality in Arabic Literature covers the themes of love and sexuality as depicted in some representative texts from pre-Islamic poetry and the Qur'an to the Arabian Nights and Modern Arabic literature. Courtly and mystical love poetry, homoerotic motifs, the romantic imagination, erotic awareness and structures, the female body and literary discourse, sexual politics, and patriarchal sexuality will be explored. Sexuality and sexual activity, as depicted in the literature, provide a mirror through which one can observe the most intimate and intrinsic personal and social aspects of human life, whether wholesome or aberrant, constructive or corruptive. This provides an opportunity for introspection and critical comparative analysis of sexuality issues. Film features are included.

Core elective â three are required for majors and minors, one of which must be History 1007 or 1008.

   x
  

ARAB

3024

HU

DC

 Hispano-Arabic Literature and Culture in Translation explores Andalusian Arabic literature in English translation. This literature originated during the period when Spain was an Islamic and mostly Arabic speaking territory-from the 8th to the 13th century-and in the centuries following the Christian conquest, when Arabic continued to be widely used. The literature is presented and discussed within a sociopolitical and historical context, covering a hybrid culture that includes reference to art, philosophy, architecture, music, and some Hebrew and Romance literary texts. Film narratives and documentaries will be used extensively to supplement the reading assignments.

Core elective- three are required for majors and minors, one of which must be History 1007 or 1008.		 x
    

ARAB

4010

  

Literary Arabic Grammar is an accelerated introduction to the phonetics, phonology, basic morphology, and simple sentence structure of Modern Standard Literary Arabic, with a review of the script and the use of pronunciation and translation exercises.

Previous knowledge of the Arabic script is recommended.

Required for the Arabic major. Core elective for the Arabic minor.

 x
    

ARAB

4011

  

Literary Arabic Grammar introduces complex morphological and syntactic structures, using translation exercises.

Prerequisite: ARAB 4010 or ARAB 1002 or permission of instructor required.

Core elective- three are required for Arabic majors and minors, one of which must be History 1007 or 1008.

   x
  

ARAB

4031

   Survey of Arabic Literature, Culture, and Thought I examines representative samples of or excerpts from modern Arabic literary and cultural texts of different genres and themes, including modern poetry, novel, short story, drama, Arab-American literature. Written assignments converted into oral presentations and in-class discussions focus on rapid acquisition of vocabulary, idioms, grammar, and style. Prerequisite is Arabic 3002 or its equivalent. This class is conducted mostly in Arabic.

This course or Arabic 4032 or Arabic 4033 is required for the Arabic major.		   x
  

ARAB

4032

   Survey of Arabic Literature, Culture, and Thought II examines representative samples of or excerpts from modern Arabic critical thought and pre-modern Arabic literary and cultural texts of different genres and themes, including women writers, critical thought, political culture, philosophy of history, and folkloric and Andalusian literature. Written assignments converted into oral presentations and in-class discussions focus on rapid acquisition of vocabulary, idioms, grammar, and style. Prerequisite is Arabic 3002 or its equivalent. This class is conducted mostly in Arabic.

This course or Arabic 4031 or Arabic 4033 is required for the Arabic major.		     x

ARAB

4033

   Survey of Arabic Literature, Culture, and Thought III examines representative samples of or excerpts from medieval and classical literary and cultural texts of different genres and themes, including Islamic mysticism and philosophy, poetic and linguistic theory, sublime and erotic love, religious and Qur'anic literature, and medieval and classical, and pre-Islamic literature. Written assignments converted into oral presentations and in-class discussions focus on rapid acquisition of vocabulary, idioms, grammar, and style. Prerequisite is Arabic 3002 or its equivalent. This class is conducted mostly in Arabic.

This course or Arabic 4031 or Arabic 4032 is required for the Arabic major.		     x

ARAB

4081

   Arabic Certificate Capstone is the final component of the Arabic Language and Culture Certificate. It allows the student to explore a topic of interest using what was learned in Arabic as a source. The student develops the project in consultation with a faculty advisor.

This course is required for the Certificate in Arabic.		 x
 x
  

ARAB

5001

   Arabic Capstone is the final component of the General Education Requirement. It allows the student to explore a topic of interest using what he or she has learned in Arabic as a source. The capstone, while having a writing component, can have a varied format including performance and/or art. The student develops the project in consultation with a faculty mentor after receiving prior approval of the faculty advisor and the Undergraduate Director.

Required for the Arabic major.		   x
  

ARAB

5011

  

History of the Arabic language surveys the development of the Arabic language from its origins to the present, with emphasis on the externally motivated changes that led to its evolution from a tribal dialect into an international literary language. The formation of the Arabic script and emergence and growth of Classical, Medieval Literary Arabic and Modern Standard Arabic are traced. The structure and development of Old, Middle, and New Arabic and their affinities to other indigenous languages are outlined. The historical implications of the development of communal dialects (Islamic, Judaic, and Christian); sociolinguistic variation (urban, rural, and bedouin); and inherent linguistic variability (diglossia) are treated.

This course or Arabic 2050 is required for the Arabic major.

     x