Admission requirements
- Admission to the Research Master Archaeology programme.
Description
This is a course in which key developments in prehistoric Europe will be discussed, taking place between the 7th and the end of the 1st millennium BC. The emphasis is on how Prehistory shaped the modern world.
The focus is on agrarian communities. Themes that may be addressed include the spread of farming in Europe, the rise and history of ritual landscapes, the deep history of migration, Prehistoric religion and cosmology, invention and adaptation of metallurgy, Bronze Age and Iron Age 'world systems', ethnogenesis (Celts, Germans, Scythians), and the legacy of Prehistory in modern Europe.
Central to the course will be how to deal with and encapsulate such broad issues in regional, practical research, and if/how it plays a role in debates on contemporary society. The lectures will be closely linked to current research of our section members.
This is an interactive course, which means that part of each lecture session is dedicated to a discussion on the basis of literature and an assignment, and part in which a broader background is presented on the issues being debated.
This way you will build your knowledge of and insight into the most fundamental interpretative themes of European Prehistory, and you will be trained to formulate your own views on them.
You will write several papers throughout the course in which you try to answer/explore the question that has been posed about the literature. At the end, you write an essay on a theme of your own choice, reflecting on a particular research question.
Due to its broad perspective, the course is not only of interest to students who plan a future career in the archaeology of early Europe (both in terms of fieldwork/material culture, museums and heritage), but also to students who are interested in links between the Mediterranean and Near East on the one hand, and ‘Barbaric’ Europe on the other.
Although participating in the same sessions as the MA students, assignments will be different and more demanding for RMA students. We also expect the RMA students to start and stimulate discussion.
In addition, they will write a different type of essay in which a theme is explored in more depth, and new directions for research are formulated.
Course objectives
Knowledge of and insight in key developments in European Prehistory from the Neolithic to the Iron Age, and ability to situate these in broader, more global developments, or contextualise these in social-historical discussions;
Ability to review the significance of such regional/local research in terms of such broader issues;
Ability to quickly combine and assess the opinions of others on Prehistoric key themes;
Ability to report such reviews orally and in writing;
Ability to assess and evaluate different theories and use these to formulate original/innovative new directions of research;
Ability to stimulate and facilitate discussion.
Timetable
Course schedule details can be found in MyTimetable.
Log in with your ULCN account, and add this course using the 'Add timetable' button.
Mode of instruction
Formal lectures;
Discussion based on written assignments.
Assessment method
3 short assignments (500 words each) (50%);
Final essay (1,800-2,000 words) (50%);
Participation in discussion (bonus of max. 0.5, used to round up grade).
A retake is only possible for the final essay, and only if all other requirements have been met, including attendance and submission of all assignments.
Assessment deadlines:
The dates of exams and retakes can be found in MyTimetable. The deadlines of papers, essays and assignments are communicated through Brightspace.
The assignments have strict (weekly) deadlines.
Reading list
The reading list will be published on Brightspace.
Registration
Enrolment for all components of your study programme through MyStudymap is mandatory. This applies to both compulsory elements and elective credits. If you are not enrolled, you may not participate.
General information about registration can be found on the Course and exam enrolment page.
Contact
For more information about this course, please contact Dr. Q.P.J. (Quentin) Bourgeois or Dr. N.Ø. Brusgaard.
Remarks
Compulsory attendance.