Greek Language Programs at New York University

New York University - Alexander S. Onassis Center for Hellenic Studies:
Alexander S. Onassis Center for Hellenic Studies at NYU offers the first Major in Hellenic Studies in the United States. It aims to attract students keen to acquire a firm grounding in the language, culture and society of modern Greece. The major is appropriate for students who seek a rigorous humanities degree; for students who plan to graduate and seek employment in working environments engaged with Greece or Greek affairs in multiple contexts; those students who wish to pursue further graduate work on matters related to Greece.

Major in Hellenic Studies, Minor in Hellenic Studies for students who wish to do systematic work on modern Greek culture, including language, literature, history, and politics, may pursue an interdisciplinary minor offered by the Onassis Program in Hellenic Studies.

Alexander S. Onassis Program in Hellenic Studies
The Alexander S. Onassis Program in Hellenic Studies provides students with a comprehensive and interdisciplinary understanding of the language, literature, history, and politics of Greece. Through a wide range of courses, students are exposed to a polyphony of viewpoints that help elucidate the historical and political experiences of Byzantine, Ottoman, and modern Greece; the ways in which Greece has borne its several pasts and translated them into the modern era; Greece and its relations to Western Europe, the Balkans, the Middle East, and Mediterranean cultures; and the distinguished literary and artistic traditions of a country that many regard as the birthplace of Western civilization, even as these traditions exhibit their multicultural contexts.

NYU’s summer program in Athens combines classroom study of the language, history, and culture of Greece with extracurricular activities and excursions that introduce students to all aspects of Greek life. The program offers a wide range of courses, including ancient and modern Greek language, Greek Drama, Modern Greek Politics, the City of Athens, and the Archaeology of Greece. Classes are held at the Al Andar Center, a three-story Bauhaus building located in the historical center of Athens. Activities include walking tours of Athens, visits to monuments and museums, and evening outings to dramatic and musical performances; weekend excursions include trips to several Greek islands, medieval settlements, and other important historical and archaeological sites. Relevant courses taken in the academic study program in Greece, NYU in Athens, count toward the major or minor as regular courses.

MAJOR
The major consists of 10 courses. Courses taken in the program’s academic study program in Greece, NYU in Athens, count toward the major as regular courses. A solid foundation in the modern Greek language is a prerequisite for all majors. Upon declaring the major, a student is expected to enroll in Elementary Modern Greek I (V56.0103) or take a placement examination. By the end of their program, all students must demonstrate competence in modern Greek at the intermediate level through successful completion of two semesters of Intermediate Modern Greek (V56.0105 and V56.0106) or a placement examination.

Programs of Study
Qualified students may choose from three proposed areas of concentration:

Track A: Language, Literature, and Culture provides students with a solid foundation in the modern Greek language and provides a comprehensive introduction to medieval and modern Greek literature and culture.

Track B: Politics and History provides students with an interdisciplinary social science perspective on the medieval and modern Greek experience. Students may choose to concentrate their studies in history or politics, or create their own combination in consultation with the director of undergraduate studies.

Track C: The Classical Legacy provides students with an interdisciplinary perspective on the reception of classical Greek thought in postclassical Greece.

Students in tracks A and B who have placed out of Intermediate Modern Greek are encouraged to take Advanced Modern Greek I and II (V56.0107 and V56.0108). Track C students who place out of Intermediate Modern Greek are encouraged to take two semesters of ancient Greek.

All majors are expected to enroll in the Seminar on Modern Greek Culture (V56.0130) and two specifically designated survey courses offered within the program. Which survey courses they choose will depend on the disciplinary concentration that they select on completion of their first year in the program. Every student must take at least one designated survey course in his or her own track of concentration and one designated survey course from an outside track (that is, students in Track A should take a Track B survey; students in Track B, an A survey; students in Track C should choose from Track A or B).

MINOR
A minor in Hellenic studies can be obtained by completing four courses offered by the program. Students must show proficiency in modern Greek language by successful completion of either a placement examination or Intermediate Modern Greek II (V56.0106). Elementary Modern Greek I and II do not count toward the minor.

Students should consult the director of undergraduate studies of the program prior to registering for courses in the minor.