Featured courses

Viking boat on a body of water

GER 298 Vikings

Learn about the medieval seafaring farmers, traders, and raiders we call Vikings, whose culture has fascinated modern people for the past two hundred years. We will also discuss recent novels, films and TV series inspired by this unique culture.

No knowledge of German required. Readings and Discussions in English.

Prerequisite: No prerequisites

Language: English

Small figurine, painted in German colours, built out of cork, perched on top of a sign

GER 271 German Thought and Culture: Objects

Students explore German cultural history by examining human-made objects that open up perspectives on German culture through the ages. Objects to be studied might include the Berlin Wall, the Swastika, Bach's organ, and Luther's Bible. Students acquire skills in cultural analysis and learn about major developments in literature, philosophy, religion, art, architecture, and music.

Prerequisite:

Language:

Close-up of a woman's face. Painted on her cheek is a German flag

GER 612/712 German in Waterloo

German-speaking immigrants and their descendants have populated Waterloo Region for over two centuries. This course will investigate how their presence is felt in the region, and how aspects of migration, most centrally those related to language and identity, have impacted the community over time.

Topics include: (language) histories of German-speaking immigrants, food discourses, language attitudes and ideologies, cemeteries as linguistic landscapes, changing du/Sie forms, language repertoires/code-switching/translanguaging, migration narratives and letters. For end-of-term papers, students will research a related topic, for which they may use available resources such as a comprehensive data corpus of interviews with German-Canadians and a diverse university archive containing e.g. local newspapers and family correspondence.

Prerequisite:

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