Instituts- und/oder fachübergreifende Masterstudiengänge
M.A. Interdisciplinary Studies of the Middle East (Studienordnung 2020)
0593a_MA120Please find the current study and examination regulations here .
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Histories and Societies of the Middle East
0593aB1.1Learning objectives:
Students have in-depth knowledge and understanding of the historical and social formations of the Near and Middle East from late antiquity to the present as well as the historical conditions since antiquity. They are familiar with important current theoretical and methodological debates in social history research that are relevant to the study of the Near and Middle East. Students can recognize, classify, and articulate the circumstances and problems surrounding socialhistorical descriptions of the Near and Middle East; they also know how to consult, evaluate, and interpret source material independently and to apply the tools of history and social sciences when dealing with questions they have developed themselves. They are aware of the central categories of analysis used to examine historical and social processes and know how to discuss and present the results of their scholarly analyses orally and in writing.Content:
In this module, students engage intensively with complex topics such as periodization, dimensions of space (power centers vs. peripheral regions, transregional connections), governance, statehood and social groups as well as identity, mobility, communication, and ethnic and religious minorities. The module teaches them to reflect on topics from the fields of Arab-Islamic, Arab-Christian and Syrian-Christian, Byzantine, Persian, Jewish or Turkish history as well as from historical source studies considering theories and methods specific to historical and social science and by critically evaluating scholarly debates in these fields.Modes of instruction/ Contact hours / Regular attendance required
Elective course / 2 SWS / yesElective course / 2 SWS / yes
Module assessment
Written assignment (approx. 5000 words)Language
English (or if applicable, Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, Syriac-Aramaic,Turkish)Total workload
450 hours (15 credit points)duration / Frequency
One or two semesters / Every semester Schließen-
14186
Hauptseminar
Iran and Turan: Sogdians and Turks on the Silk Road (Desmond Durkin-Meisterernst)
Zeit: Di 16:00-18:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2058 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14225-ISME
Seminar
Global Secularity: Near Eastern Cases (Mohammad Magout)
Zeit: Mo 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: 0.3099B Seminarraum (Zugang von der L-Strasse) (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14227-ISME
Seminar
Dis:Integration. Whiteness, Gender, and the Politics of Belonging in Germany (Miriam Kurz (LA))
Zeit: Do 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 0.3099B Seminarraum (Zugang von der L-Strasse) (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14228-ISME
Methodenübung
Dis:Integration. Whiteness, Gender, and the Politics of Belonging in Germany (Miriam Kurz (LA))
Zeit: Do 16:00-18:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 0.3099B Seminarraum (Zugang von der L-Strasse) (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14229-ISME
Seminar
The Mosque (Birgit Krawietz)
Zeit: Do 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2051 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14471
Seminar
Leo Strauss - Jewish Thought and Political Crisis (Reimund Leicht)
Zeit: Do 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2052 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14220-ISME
Seminar
The Mamluk Sultanate in Its Global Context (Christian Mauder)
Zeit: Mi 16:00-18:00 (Erster Termin: 15.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2051 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14221-ISME
Übung
The Mamluk Sultanate through Arabic Texts (Ingrid Austveg Evans)
Zeit: Format: Block seminar January–February 2026 (Erster Termin: 05.01.2026)
Ort: 1.2052 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14224-ISME
Grundkurs
Istanbul as Urban Laboratory (Birgit Krawietz)
Zeit: Mi 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 15.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2051 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14226-ISME
Übung
Global Secularity: Arabic Sources (Mohammad Magout)
Zeit: Mo 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: 0.3099B Seminarraum (Zugang von der L-Strasse) (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14230-ISME
Lektürekurs
The Mosque (Birgit Krawietz)
Zeit: Do 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2051 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14302
Wahlveranstaltung
(WV1) Theorie und Methodik für Turkolog. (Elke Hartmann)
Zeit: Di 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: K 25/11 weitere Hinweise zur Austattung unter: www.raum.geschkult.fu-berlin.de
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14303
Wahlveranstaltung
(WV2) Theorie und Methodik für Turkolog. (Elke Hartmann)
Zeit: Mi 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 15.10.2025)
Ort: 0.3099B Seminarraum (Zugang von der L-Strasse) (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14478
Hauptseminar
How Maimonides' Mishneh Torah Transformed Jewish Law (Lukas Mühlethaler)
Zeit: Mo 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: K 23/21 (Habelschwerdter Allee 45)
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14481
Vorlesung
Introduction to the History of Jewish Knowledge (Lukas Mühlethaler)
Zeit: Mo 10:00-12:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: 2.2059 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14186
Hauptseminar
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Traditions of Texts and Knowledge in the Middle East
0593aB1.2Learning objectives:
Students have a thorough understanding of the emergence and systematization of various traditions of knowledge and texts in the Near and Middle East, including their presentation and mediality, as well as the people involved in those traditions and the authority associated with them regarding religious, social and epistemological structures, especially from the beginnings of Islam to the present. They are aware of the historical and contemporary processes of collective formation and positioning of identity in cultures of knowledge and texts in the Near and Middle East; they have a conceptual toolkit of established theories and methods from the history of knowledge, cultural studies, and philology, which allows them to reflect on sources from different knowledge and text cultures and to present the results of their analyses orally and in writing appropriately.Content:
The module deals with the history and current significance of textual cultures and knowledge cultures from the Near and Middle East, especially from the beginnings of Islam to the present day. This includes, on the one hand, the reception and further development of antiquity’s legacy in natural sciences and humanities (in philosophy, logic, mysticism, etc.) as well as scientific literature in the broadest sense through the centuries and, on the other hand, normative traditions, such as the exegesis of sacred texts as well as the study of traditions, norms, dogmatics, hagiography, religious ethics, or rituals. One focus is on the cultural and intellectual history of the Arabic-speaking world, Jewish history of knowledge and the relationship between Judaism and Islam as well as facets of the Christian Orient and Iranian religions in the past and present.Modes of instruction/ Contact hours / Regular attendance required
Elective course / 2 SWS / yesElective course / 2 SWS / yes
Module assessment
Written assignment (approx. 5000 words)Language
English (or if applicable, Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, Syriac-Aramaic,Turkish)Total workload
450 hours (15 credit points)duration / Frequency
One or two semesters / Every semester Schließen-
13995
Vorlesung
Introduction to History of Ancient Science - Methods and Topics (Antonius Ossendrijver)
Zeit: Di 10:00-12:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: Arnimallee 10, Room 010
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14180
Vorlesung
Religious Minorities in the Iranian-Speaking World: Beyond the Mainstream (Khanna Usoyan)
Zeit: Do 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2002 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14460
Vertiefungsseminar
Jewish Philosophy – Major Texts and Central Questions (Lukas Mühlethaler)
Zeit: Di 10:00-12:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: JK 25/138 weitere Hinweise zur Austattung unter: www.raum.geschkult.fu-berlin.de
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14475
Seminar
The People of the Comic Book: Jews and Comics (Lukas Mühlethaler)
Zeit: Mo 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: K 23/27 (Habelschwerdter Allee 45)
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14481
Vorlesung
Introduction to the History of Jewish Knowledge (Lukas Mühlethaler)
Zeit: Mo 10:00-12:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: 2.2059 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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13996
Vorlesung
Thinking Across the Divide: Mathematics, History, and Society (Anuj Misra)
Zeit: Mo 10:00-12:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: Arnimallee 10, Room 205
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13997
Seminar
Mathematics, Society, and the Mind: A Seminar Series (Anuj Misra)
Zeit: Di 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: Arnimallee 10, Room 010
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14223-ISME
Grundkurs
Scholarship on texts, visual representations, and material constructions in the WANA region (Birgit Krawietz)
Zeit: Do 16:00-18:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2051 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14229-ISME
Seminar
The Mosque (Birgit Krawietz)
Zeit: Do 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2051 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14230-ISME
Lektürekurs
The Mosque (Birgit Krawietz)
Zeit: Do 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2051 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14461
Lektürekurs
Ibn Falaquera and the Emergence of a Hebrew Philosophical Tradition (Lukas Mühlethaler)
Zeit: Di 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: JK 25/138 weitere Hinweise zur Austattung unter: www.raum.geschkult.fu-berlin.de
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14471
Seminar
Leo Strauss - Jewish Thought and Political Crisis (Reimund Leicht)
Zeit: Do 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2052 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14478
Hauptseminar
How Maimonides' Mishneh Torah Transformed Jewish Law (Lukas Mühlethaler)
Zeit: Mo 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: K 23/21 (Habelschwerdter Allee 45)
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13995
Vorlesung
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Languages of the Middle East
0593aB1.3Learning objectives:
Students can reflect critically on linguistic developments in the Near and Middle East drawing from the most important primary and secondary sources. They know the principles of classifying languages of the region (e.g. historically, comparatively, typologically, regionally) and are confident in applying various methods from empirical linguistics to the languages of the region (e.g. language documentation, field research, dialectology, variational linguistics, sociolinguistics). They know how to make use of models and examples demonstrating the complex interrelationship between language and society in different historical contexts; they can examine oral and written sources independently regarding linguistic issues and to present their observations in oral and written form in a structured and logical way.Content:
The courses provide an overview of the region’s language groups, their historical sources, and their current classification (e.g. Semitic, Iranian, Turkish); furthermore, the module surveys linguistic ecology regarding topics such as nation states, minorities, gender, regional languages, diglossia, writing systems, and linguistic ideologies.Modes of instruction/ Contact hours / Regular attendance required
Elective course / 2 SWS / yesElective course / 2 SWS / yes
Module assessment
Written assignment (approx. 5000 words)Language
English (or if applicable, Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, Syriac-Aramaic,Turkish)Total workload
450 hours (15 credit points)duration / Frequency
One or two semesters / Every semester Schließen-
14152
Sprachpraktische Übung
Angewandte Arabische Grammatik (Montserrat Rabadan Carrascosa)
Zeit: Mo 12:00-14:00, Mi 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2052 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14178
Grundkurs
Avestan I (Alberto Cantera Glera)
Zeit: Di 10:00-12:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2052 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14187
Lektürekurs
Bactrian II (Desmond Durkin-Meisterernst)
Zeit: Fr 13:00-15:00 (Erster Termin: 17.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2058 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14188
Lektürekurs
Two Pamir languages (Desmond Durkin-Meisterernst)
Zeit: Fr 15:00-17:00 (Erster Termin: 17.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2058 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14361
Hauptseminar
(HS) Introduction to Aramaic Linguistics (Shabo Talay)
Zeit: Do 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 2.2058 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14179
Grundkurs
Middle Persian I (Alberto Cantera Glera)
Zeit: Mi 10:00-12:00 (Erster Termin: 15.10.2025)
Ort: 2.2063 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14183
Seminar
Northern Kurdish I (Kurmanci) (Khanna Usoyan)
Zeit: Do 10:00-12:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2051 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14184
Seminar
New Persian II (Ramin Shahzadi)
Zeit: Di 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: K 23/27 (Habelschwerdter Allee 45)
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14185
Seminar
Historical Grammar of Iranian Languages with Special Regard to Middle Iranian (N.N.)
Zeit: Mo 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: 0.2001 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14363
Methodenübung
(MÜ) From Fieldwork to Manuscripts: Methods in Semitic Studies (Maciej Klimiuk)
Zeit: Di 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2058 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14364
Hauptseminar
(HS) Introduction to Arabic Dialectology (Maciej Klimiuk)
Zeit: Di 16:00-18:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2002 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14365
Lektürekurs
(Lk) Damascus Arabic (Maciej Klimiuk)
Zeit: Do 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 16.10.2025)
Ort: 0.2052 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14369
Seminar
(S) Introduction to Semitic Languages and Linguistics (Nikita Kuzin)
Zeit: Mo 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: 2.2058 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14371
Seminar
(VS) Northwest Semitic Inscriptions (Grace Jeongyeon Park)
Zeit: Mo 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: 0.2002 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14372
Lektürekurs
(Lk) Northwest Semitic Inscriptions (Grace Jeongyeon Park)
Zeit: Fr 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 17.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2001 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14152
Sprachpraktische Übung
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Literatures of the Middle East in their Social Dimensions
0593aB1.4Learning objectives:
Students develop their analytical skills in the scholarly handling of written and oral sources from the Near and Middle East; they have an awareness of the origins and reception of literary production in the past and present. They can approach research questions in a methodologically and terminologically reflective manner based on various genres of texts and literary phenomena; they know how to evaluate secondary literature as well as the most important primary sources critically, and to describe, analyze and classify them historically and aesthetically. They can recognize connections and intertextual references and understand and historically contextualize mutual influences, continuities, and ruptures. They strengthen their ability to reflect and reason complex, multilingual, transregional matters. They are skilled to reflect their approaches to research questions and to present their analyses orally and in writing appropriately.Content:
The module deals with selected epochs, authors, genres, language levels of the Near and Middle East or of a specific literary genre, using the most important sources and critically illuminating specialist literature. The courses provide an overview of partial epochs or literary genres, including debates concerning specific literary, social and gender-historical research problems. Students discuss significant texts in the regional languages regarding authorship, production processes, and media representations, as well as to influences and patterns of perception that have an impact on the literary reception from the regions of the Near and Middle East; thereby, they experiment with theoretical approaches to interpretation of sources from Arabic, Persian, Hebrew, Syriac-Aramaic, or Turkish literature.Modes of instruction/ Contact hours / Regular attendance required
Elective course / 2 SWS / yesElective course / 2 SWS / yes
Module assessment
Written assignment (approx. 5000 words)Language
English (or if applicable, Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, Syriac-Aramaic,Turkish)Total workload
450 hours (15 credit points)duration / Frequency
One or two semesters / Every semester Schließen-
14475
Seminar
The People of the Comic Book: Jews and Comics (Lukas Mühlethaler)
Zeit: Mo 14:00-16:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: K 23/27 (Habelschwerdter Allee 45)
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14151
Sprachpraktische Übung
Liebende, Gazellen, Reittiere und Wüsten – Klassische arabische Texte (Montserrat Rabadan Carrascosa)
Zeit: Mo 10:00-12:00, Mi 10:00-12:00 (Erster Termin: 13.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2052 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14154
Lektürekurs
Das Selbst in der modernen Lyrik arabischer Dichterinnen (Maysoon Shibi)
Zeit: Mi 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 15.10.2025)
Ort: 0.2002 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14181
Seminar
Introduction to the Pre-Islamic Iranian Literature (Alberto Cantera Glera)
Zeit: Di 12:00-14:00 (Erster Termin: 14.10.2025)
Ort: 1.2002 Seminarraum (Fabeckstr. 23/25)
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14475
Seminar