Overview
The Department of Scandinavian offers undergraduate and graduate instruction in the languages, cultures, and literatures of northern Europe. Languages taught are Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, Swedish, and Old Norse. Lower division Reading and Composition courses based on Scandinavian materials are also offered. Lower and upper division lecture courses, all based on readings in English and open to those without a knowledge of Nordic languages, cover a wide variety of topics. The undergraduate major involves five separate concentrations in Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish, and Old Norse Studies, including related aspects of Scandinavian culture and literature. An undergraduate minor is also available. The graduate program leads to the PhD.
The department also administers the Program in Celtic Studies, an interdisciplinary major where students may focus on the intersection of early Celtic and Scandinavian history, mythology and folklore. Majors in Celtic Studies also pursue study in modern and early forms of Irish, Welsh, and Breton and early and modern literatures of Ireland and Wales.
Collections
Doe Library, the main research library on campus, has extensive holdings in the several areas of research that make up the field of Scandinavian Studies (literature, linguistics, history, folklore, film history, the social sciences, etc.). For more information about this collection, see the Doe Library website for the Berkeley Scandinavian Collection .
A smaller departmental collection, the Olof Lundberg Memorial Library, is located in 6337B Dwinelle Hall, adjacent to the current faculty offices. It is open to the public at certain times during the day that are determined at the beginning of each semester, but is not a lending library; its books must be used on site. The Lundberg Library houses an extensive collection of over 13,000 volumes, ranging from medieval to modern history and literature. There is no online list of holdings, but there is a card catalog in the library itself. The department also receives a daily or weekly newspaper from all three of the mainland Scandinavian countries. The librarian can be reached at 510-643-2932, and the library schedule is posted on the library door (varies by semester).
The Barbro Osher Film and Video Collection is a research collection of over 250 Scandinavian film titles. The 35mm and 16mm films in the collection are housed at the Pacific Film Archive (PFA). The films stored at PFA can be searched by title in the OSKICAT online library catalog. The remaining titles of the Osher Collection come in a variety of formats (DVD, laser disc, VHS and PAL video, 3/4" video) and are stored in the Lundberg Library. These may only be used on site.
Undergraduate Programs
Celtic Studies
: BA, Minor
Scandinavian
: BA (with concentrations in Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swedish), Minor
Graduate Program
Courses
Literature and Culture:
Languages:
Scandinavian
SCANDIN 201A Old Norse 4 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2014, Fall 2013, Fall 2012
An introduction to the language of medieval Iceland and Norway. Grammar, historical phonology, and texts.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of lecture per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
Instructor: Lindow
SCANDIN 201B Norse Literature 4 Units
Terms offered: Spring 2015, Spring 2014, Spring 2013
Literary production of early Iceland and Norway. Reading of representative texts in the original.
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: 201A or equivalent
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of lecture per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
Instructor: Lindow
SCANDIN 206 Studies in Philology and Linguistics 4 Units
Terms offered: Spring 2017, Spring 2014, Spring 2011
Variable subject matter; see departmental announcement for description. Sample topics: runology; history of the Scandinavian languages; dialectology.
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of lecture per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
SCANDIN 215 Literary and Cultural Theory 4 Units
Terms offered: Prior to 2007
Introduction to varieties of literary and cultural theory used in the analysis of literary texts and other cultural artefacts.
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: Graduate standing or consent of instructor
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
SCANDIN 220 Early Scandinavian Literature 4 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016
Variable subject matter; see departmental announcement for description. Course normally focuses on one of two areas: Eddic and skaldic poetry; or sagas (royal family, legendary, courtly, episcopal).
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: 201A or equivalent
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of lecture per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
Instructor: Lindow
SCANDIN 235 Studies in Romanticism and Realism 4 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2016, Fall 2015, Fall 2011
Variable subject matter; see departmental announcement for description. Reading and analysis of representative works.
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of lecture per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
SCANDIN 240 Modern and Contemporary Scandinavian Literature 4 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2014, Spring 2012, Fall 2011
Reading and analysis of representative works. Topics vary from semester to semester; see departmental announcement for description.
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of lecture per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
SCANDIN 249 Graduate Studies 1 Unit
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016
Additional work in connection with one of the following courses: Scandinavian C107, C108, 115, 116, 117, 120, 123, 125, C160, 165. Students attend lectures and do all written work in the "main course," and also read assignments in the Scandinavian languages, and write a paper.
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Scandinavian
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 1 hour of discussion per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
SCANDIN 250 Seminar in Scandinavian Literature 4 Units
Terms offered: Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2015
Investigation of selected authors, topics, or problems. Variable subject matter; see departmental announcement for description.
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
SCANDIN 298 Special Study 2 - 12 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Summer 2017 10 Week Session, Spring 2017
Designed to explore a restricted field involving the writing of a report. May not be substituted for available seminars.
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 2-12 hours of tutorial per week
Summer: 10 weeks - 3-18 hours of tutorial per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Letter grade.
SCANDIN 299 Dissertation Writing 2 - 12 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Summer 2017 10 Week Session, Spring 2017
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 0 hours of independent study per week
Summer:
3 weeks - 10-60 hours of independent study per week
6 weeks - 5-30 hours of independent study per week
8 weeks - 3.5-99 hours of independent study per week
10 weeks - 3-18 hours of independent study per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
SCANDIN 300A Methods of Teaching Scandinavian Languages 3 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2015, Fall 2014, Fall 2013
The course consists of a two-hour session per week that will examine current theory and practice of foreign language teaching in connection with Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swedish.
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Professional course for teachers or prospective teachers
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
SCANDIN 300B Teaching Practicum 1 Unit
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016
Graduate Student Instructors must enroll in 300B each semester following the completion of 300A or the equivalent. The course consists of a one-hour weekly session devoted to the analysis and a discussion of pedagogical problems as they arise in the classroom.
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: Graduate Student Instructor in the Scandinavian department
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 1 hour of session per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Professional course for teachers or prospective teachers
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
SCANDIN 301 Scandinavian Teaching Methods 3 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016
Course on practical teaching methods, grading, testing, classroom activities, and design of course materials and syllabi. Required of all Scandinavian Department GSIs.
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course is repeatable for credit each semester of employment as a graduate student instructor (GSI). Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of independent study per week
Summer:
3 weeks - 10-60 hours of independent study per week
6 weeks - 5-30 hours of independent study per week
8 weeks - 3.5-99 hours of independent study per week
10 weeks - 3-18 hours of independent study per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Professional course for teachers or prospective teachers
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
SCANDIN 601 Individual Study for M.A. Candidates 1 - 8 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016
Individual study for the comprehensive or language requirements in consultation with the field adviser. Units may not be used to meet unit or residence requirements for the master's degree.
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 0 hours of independent study per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate examination preparation
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
SCANDIN 602 Individual Study for Doctoral Candidates 1 - 8 Units
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016
Individual study in consultation with the major field adviser to prepare qualified students for various examinations required of candidates for the Ph.D. May not be used to meet unit or residence requirements for the doctoral degree.
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 0 hours of independent study per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: Scandinavian/Graduate examination preparation
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Danish
| DANISH 1A | Beginning Danish | 4 |
| DANISH 1B | Beginning Danish | 4 |
| SCANDIN 100A | Intermediate Scandinavian Languages (Danish, Norwegian, Swedish) (section 103, intermediate Danish) | 4 |
| SCANDIN 100B | INTERMEDIATE SCANDINAVIAN LANGUAGES (DANISH, NORWEGIAN, SWEDISH) (section 103, advanced Danish) | 4 |
Finnish
| FINNISH 1A | Beginning Finnish | 4 |
| FINNISH 1B | Beginning Finnish | 4 |
| FINNISH 102A | Intermediate Finnish | 4 |
| FINNISH 102B | Intermediate Finnish | 4 |
Icelandic
| ICELAND 1A | Beginning Icelandic I | 4 |
| ICELAND 1B | Beginning Icelandic II | 4 |
Old Norse
| SCANDIN 101A | Introduction to Old Norse I | 4 |
| SCANDIN 101B | Introduction to Old Norse II | 4 |
Norwegian
| NORWEGN 1A | Beginning Norwegian | 4 |
| NORWEGN 1B | Beginning Norwegian | 4 |
| SCANDIN 100A | Intermediate Scandinavian Languages (Danish, Norwegian, Swedish) (section 102, intermediate) | 4 |
| SCANDIN 100B | INTERMEDIATE SCANDINAVIAN LANGUAGES (DANISH, NORWEGIAN, SWEDISH) (section 102, advanced) | 4 |
Swedish
| SWEDISH 1A | Beginning Swedish | 4 |
| SWEDISH 1B | Beginning Swedish | 4 |
| SCANDIN 100A | Intermediate Scandinavian Languages (Danish, Norwegian, Swedish) (section 101, intermediate) | 4 |
| SCANDIN 100B | INTERMEDIATE SCANDINAVIAN LANGUAGES (DANISH, NORWEGIAN, SWEDISH) (section 101, advanced) | 4 |
Faculty and Instructors
Faculty
Kate Heslop, Assistant Professor. Medieval Studies, Old Norse literature, Viking and medieval Scandinavia.
Research Profile
Linda H. Rugg, Professor. Scandinavian, Swedish literature and culture 1870 to the present, August Strindberg, Ingmar Bergman, visual autobiography, literature and the visual arts, ecology and culture, film, whiteness studies.
Research Profile
Mark Sandberg, Professor. Silent film, late nineteenth-century visual culture, theater history, comedy, Scandinavian design, serial television, film historiography, Scandinavian film history, Henrik Ibsen, Norwegian literature, Nordic literary history.
Research Profile
Karin L. Sanders, Professor. Danish literature, 19th and 20th Century Scandinavian literature, literary history, gender and literature, word and image, archaeology in literature and visual art, death and the arts.
Research Profile
Jonas Wellendorf, Assistant Professor. Old Norse language and literature, Scandinavian mythology, Scandinavian cultural history (Viking Age and Middle ages).
Research Profile
Lecturers
Molly Bauer, Lecturer.
Jackson W. Crawford, Lecturer.
Karen Moller, Lecturer.
Carl G. Olsen, Lecturer.
Sirpa Tuomainen, Lecturer.
Emeritus Faculty
Carol J. Clover, Professor Emeritus. Medieval studies (Northern Europe), film (especially American).
Research Profile
James L. Larson, Professor Emeritus.
John Lindow, Professor Emeritus. Old Norse-Icelandic literature, Scandinavian folklore, Finno-Ugric folklore, Pre-Christian religion of the North, Scandinavian mythology.
Research Profile
Borge G. Madsen, Professor Emeritus.
Gregory Nybo, Professor Emeritus.
Contact Information
Department of Scandinavian
6303 Dwinelle Hall
Phone: 510-642-4484
Fax: 510-642-6220
Undergraduate Student Services Adviser
Kathi Brosnan
6303 Dwinelle Hall
Phone: 510-642-4661
Graduate Student Services Adviser
Sandy Jones
6313 Dwinelle Hall
Phone: 510-642-9051
Fax: 510-642-6220