South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
http://www.csames.illinois.edu/
Center Director: Hadi Esfahani
Center Office: 221 ISB
The Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies offers two Interdisciplinary Minors: South Asian Studies and Study of the Islamic World.
For additional information, please contact:
Associate Director: Ritu Saksena
Email: rsaksena@illinois.edu
Phone: 244-7331
Interdisciplinary Minor in South Asian Studies
The Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies offers an Interdisciplinary Minor in South Asian Studies. The minor is especially suited for students interested in a program of studies with focus on South Asia, as a complement to their disciplinary study. The structure of the minor provides students a great amount of flexibility; possible areas of emphasis include language and literature, as well as history and social sciences.
A minimum grade-point average of 2.75 in South Asian Studies courses is required for completion of the minor. The 18-20 hours of courses selected by students for the South Asian Studies Minor should form a coherent program of study and must meet the approval of an advisor in the Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies. The program must include at least 6 hours of 300- or 400-level courses. A student's plan of courses for the minor must be approved by the program.
| Hours | Requirements |
|---|---|
| 3-5 hours | Fourth-semester course work in an area-relevant language. Courses that meet this requirement and are currently offered on a regular basis are HNDI 404 (5 hours) AND SNSK 404 (3 hours) The requirement may also be met by comparable courses in these and other South Asian and South Asia-related languages, taught at UIUC or at other universities, through online courses (where available), and through a proficiency examination. |
| 3 hrs | HIST 130 - Civilization of India (same as ANTH 130) |
| 12 hrs | Courses on South Asian history, language, literature, culture, and society from the following list:* |
ACE 453 - Econ Dev in S and SE Asia |
|
ANTH 499 - Topics in Anthropology (appropriate sections) |
|
ASST 398 - Colloquium in Asian Studies (appropriate sections) |
|
CWL 189 or CWL 190 - Classics Non-West Culture I and II (appropriate sections) |
|
ECON 450 - Developments Economics (appropriate sections) |
|
HNDI 405 - Advanced Hindi I and HNDI 406 - Advanced Hindi II |
|
HNDI 408 - Intro to South Asian Lit |
|
HIST 430 - India from Colony to Nation |
|
LA 218 - S. Asian Cultural Landscapes (same as ASST 218) |
|
MUS 417 - Area Studies in Ethnomusicology (same as ANTH 417) (appropriate sections) |
|
PS 346 - Gov & Pol of South Asia (same as ASST 346) |
|
RLST 104 - Asian Mythology |
|
RLST 213 - Intro to Islam-ACP |
|
RLST 260 - Mystic and Saints in Islam |
|
RLST 286 - Introduction to Hinduism |
|
RLST 494 - Topics in Religious Thought (appropriate sections) |
|
RLST 403 - Women in Muslim Societies (same as ANTH and GWS 403 and HIST 434) |
|
RLST 408 - Islam and Modern Society |
|
RSOC 443 - Social Change in Dev Areas (same as SOC 463) |
|
| 18-20 | total |
* Other area-relevant courses may be substituted as they are offered, with approval of the advisor. These include courses in languages other than Hindi and independent study courses with South Asia teaching faculty and with appropriate topics, such as the following ANTH 390, HIST 490, LING 290, PS 490, RLST 390, SOC 390. Students wanting to take such independent study courses need to get permission from the instructor; not more than two independent study courses may be taken to meet the degree requirements.
Interdisciplinary Minor in the Study of the Islamic World
An interdisciplinary minor in the Study of the Islamic World is offered by the Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies. It is designed for students interested in developing an expertise in one or more parts of the Islamic world or in Islamic culture generally, as a complement to their disciplinary major. Completion of the minor requires 19 credit hours in applicable courses with a minimum grade-point average of 2.75.
| Hours | Requirements |
|---|---|
| 4 | Completion of a fourth semester course in an Islamic language (e.g.
Arabic, Turkish, Swahili, Wolof). Select courses from the approved course
list. |
| 3 | Select one of the following:
SAME 133 - Intro to the World of Islam, or HIST 135 - History of Islamic Middle East, or RLST 214 - Introduction to Islam (or RLST 213 - Intro to Islam ACP) |
| 12 | Additional courses chosen from the approved course list. The courses must come from at least two disciplines. At least six hours must be at the 300- or 400-level. |
| 19 | Total |