This course introduces students to medieval history and the methods historians use to study and communicate about the past. Medieval history has traditionally centered on Western Europe, but this course also integrates new approaches to the Global Middle Ages, including attention to connectivity, comparative studies across contexts, and a survey of world literatures. Topics include Late Antique transformations to the Roman world, the Germanic migrations, and the rise of Christianity; the Islamic Conquests, the Carolingian Renaissance, and the Viking expansion; the Crusades, the Black Death, and the rise of early modern empires. Students will learn to read primary sources, assess scholarly arguments, and incorporate interdisciplinary approaches. This course will require visits to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Met Cloisters.
Over the centuries, readers have been drawn to accounts of “true” crime—violent narratives involving real people and real events. And yet, as with any literary object, the notion of “truth” is always unstable—stories and their tellings are always shaped by the motivations, values, and choices of those who tell them, often with an eye toward the audience that will consume them. Whether constructed in order to moralize, to enforce or critique social or political ideologies, or purely to sell copies, “true
crime” is a literary genre that reveals attitudes about gender, race, and class; that illustrates—and sometimes calls into question—cultural norms and mores; that calls on readers to reflect on their own morbid curiosity and assumptions and fears. In this class we will engage with a diverse selection of literary texts—spanning from the Middle Ages to the present day and from a range of genres, including pamphlets, plays, novels, and more—as well as contemporary films, a tv series, and a
podcast. Through close reading and critical analysis, we will examine the evolution of the “true crime” genre and the cultural and societal contexts that shape the portrayal of crime for popular consumption. We will explore the ways in which texts and authors sensationalize, moralize, and convey the complexities of crime. We will analyze point of view: who’s telling the story, whom we sympathize with, and what insights we get into the minds of those committing crimes as well as those who fall prey to them. We will consider justice and policing— the role played by the law and its enforcers in shaping narratives about crime and punishment, right and wrong. Finally, we will reflect on the ethical implications of representing real-life crimes in literature, and how “true crime” narratives shape social perceptions, fears, prejudices, and notions of justice and morality.
Weekly meetings with researchers from Barnard, Columbia, and other guests to discuss the nature of scientific inquiry in psychology; and intellectual, professional, and personal issues in the work of scientists.
Essentials of the spoken and written language. Prepares students to read texts of moderate difficulty by the end of the first year.
Introductory courses to Bengali, a major language of northeast India and Bangladesh.
This course aims to train students to achieve basic skills in Burmese. They will develop competency in reading and writing Burmese script. Students will also learn basic spoken Burmese.
Fundamentals of grammar, reading, speaking, and comprehension of the spoken language. During the spring term supplementary reading is selected according to students' needs.
The aim of the beginning French sequence (French 1101 and French 1102) is to help you to develop an active command of the language. Emphasis is placed on acquiring the four language skills--listening, speaking, reading and writing--within a cultural context, in order to achieve basic communicative proficiency.
Prerequisites: No prior German.
German 1101 is a communicative language course for beginners, taught in German, in which students develop the four skills -listening, speaking, reading, and writing- and a basic understanding of German-speaking cultures. Emphasis is placed on acquiring the four language skills within a cultural context. Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to understand, speak, read, and write German at a level enabling them to communicate with native speakers and provide basic information about their background, family, daily activities, student life, work, and living quarters. Completion of daily assignments, which align with class content, and consistent work are necessary in order to achieve basic communicative proficiency. If you have prior German, the placement exam is required.
For students who have never studied Greek. An intensive study of grammar with reading and writing of simple Attic prose.
This is the first semester of a year-long course designed for students wishing to learn Greek as it is written and spoken in Greece today. As well as learning the skills necessary to read texts of moderate difficulty and converse on a wide range of topics, students explore Modern Greeces cultural landscape from parea to poetry to politics. Special attention will be paid to Greek New York. How do our, American, Greek-American definitions of language and culture differ from their, Greek ones?
This course is designed to bring students with no background to a point where they can perform most basic linguistic functions in Khmer, including greetings, likes/dislikes, telling about yourself, describing places and situations, all in appropriate time frames. The class uses a highly interactive classroom style, supplemented by extensive use of video - both prepared and student-produced - and other computer-assisted tools. Please note this course is offered by videoconferencing from Cornell as part of the Shared Course Initiative.
For students who have never studied Latin. An intensive study of grammar with reading of simple prose and poetry.
Prerequisites: (see Courses for First-Year Students). Functions, limits, derivatives, introduction to integrals, or an understanding of pre-calculus will be assumed. (SC)
This course constitutes the first half of a year-long introduction to Tamil, the official language of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu as well as an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore. In addition to being spoken by almost 80 million people worldwide, Tamil also has an impressive classical past, having served as a language of religious, intellectual, and literary life in South India for nearly two millennia. Assuming no prior experience with the language, this introductory sequence provides students with the grammar, language skills, and cultural context necessary for achieving their individual Tamil language goals, whether they be conducting fieldwork or scholarly research, chatting with relatives back home, or simply waxing poetic over an artful
dosai
. In order to cultivate students’ reading, writing, speaking, and listening comprehension skills, this course draws upon a wide variety of teaching materials, including the core textbook, oral drills, audio recordings, short films, music videos, memes, and more. No P/D/F or R credit is allowed for this class.
This course is intended for beginners of the Nepali language. The emphasis is given on basic grammar, speaking, and comprehension skills, using culturally appropriate materials and texts. Devanagari script for reading and writing is also introduced.
Prerequisite (or co-requisite): PSYC BC1001. Lecture course and associated recitation section introducing students to statistics and its applications to psychological research. The course covers basic theory, conceptual underpinnings, and common statistics. The following Columbia University courses are considered overlapping and a student cannot receive credit for both the BC course and the equivalent CU course: STAT UN1001 Introduction to Statistical Reasoning; STAT UN1101 Introduction to Statistics; STAT UN1201 Introduction to Statistics.
Prerequisite (or co-requisite): PSYC BC1001. Lecture course and associated recitation section introducing students to statistics and its applications to psychological research. The course covers basic theory, conceptual underpinnings, and common statistics. The following Columbia University courses are considered overlapping and a student cannot receive credit for both the BC course and the equivalent CU course: STAT UN1001 Introduction to Statistical Reasoning; STAT UN1101 Introduction to Statistics; STAT UN1201 Introduction to Statistics.
Prerequisite (or co-requisite): PSYC BC1001. Lecture course and associated recitation section introducing students to statistics and its applications to psychological research. The course covers basic theory, conceptual underpinnings, and common statistics. The following Columbia University courses are considered overlapping and a student cannot receive credit for both the BC course and the equivalent CU course: STAT UN1001 Introduction to Statistical Reasoning; STAT UN1101 Introduction to Statistics; STAT UN1201 Introduction to Statistics.
Introduction to Punjabi, a major language of northern India and Pakistan. Beginning with the study of the Gurmukhi script, the course offers an intensive study of the speaking, reading, and writing of the language.
This course is designed to bring students with no background to a point where they can perform most basic linguistic functions in Sinhala, including greetings, likes/dislikes, telling about yourself, describing places and situations, all in appropriate time frames. The class uses a highly interactive classroom style, supplemented by extensive use of video - both prepared and student-produced - and other computer-assisted tools. Please note this course is offered by videoconferencing from Cornell as part of the Shared Course Initiative.
Prerequisites: a score of 0-279 on the department's Spanish as a Second Language Placement exam. An introduction to Spanish communicative competence, with stress on basic oral interaction, reading, writing, and cultural knowledge. Principal objectives are to understand and produce commonly used sentences to satisfy immediate needs; ask and answer questions about personal details such as where we live, people we know and things we have; interact in a simple manner with people who speak clearly, slowly and are ready to cooperate; and understand simple and short written and audiovisual texts in Spanish. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade.
Essentials of grammar, basic vocabulary, practice in speaking and reading Swahili the most widely used indigenous language of East Africa. No P/D/F or R credit is allowed for this class.
Introduction to the basic grammatical structures of Wolof, a major language of West Africa spoken in Senegal and Gambia. No P/D/F or R credit is allowed for this class.
This course is designed to bring students with no background to a point where they can perform most basic linguistic functions in Yoruba, including greetings, likes/dislikes, telling about yourself, describing places and situations, all in appropriate time frames. The class uses a highly interactive classroom style, supplemented by extensive use of video - both prepared and student-produced - and other computer-assisted tools. Please note this course is offered by videoconferencing from Cornell as part of the Shared Course Initiative.
Introduces students to the basic structures of Zulu, a Bantu language spoken in South Africa, especially in the Zululand area of KwaZulu/Natal province.
The aim of the beginning French sequence (French 1101 and French 1102) is to help you to develop an active command of the language. Emphasis is placed on acquiring the four language skills--listening, speaking, reading and writing--within a cultural context, in order to achieve basic communicative proficiency.
The aim of the beginning French sequence (French 1101 and French 1102) is to help you to develop an active command of the language. Emphasis is placed on acquiring the four language skills--listening, speaking, reading and writing--within a cultural context, in order to achieve basic communicative proficiency.
Prerequisites: Primarily for students who need further instruction to qualify for the intermediate course. Credit cannot be granted for both FREN BC1002 and BC1102 (or its equivalent). Enrollment limited to 20 students per section. Oral and written review of basic grammar and syntax. Readings in modern French and Francophone literature.
Prerequisites: LATN UN1101. A continuation of LATN UN1101, including a review of grammar and syntax for students whose study of Latin has been interrupted.
Prerequisites: MATH UN1101 or the equivalent. Methods of integration, applications of the integral, Taylors theorem, infinite series. (SC)
Prerequisites: SPAN UN1101 or a score of 280-379 on the department’s Spanish as a Second Language Placement exam. An intensive introduction to Spanish language communicative competence, with stress on basic oral interaction, reading, writing and cultural knowledge as a continuation of SPAN UN1101. The principal objectives are to understand sentences and frequently used expressions related to areas of immediate relevance; communicate in simple and routine tasks requiring a direct exchange of information on familiar matters; describe in simple terms aspects of our background and personal history; understand the main point, the basic content, and the plot of filmic as well as short written texts. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade.
This introductory course is designed to equip beginners with a solid foundation in modern Korean
language and culture through the integrated development of the four core language skills: speaking,
listening, reading, and writing. Students will begin by mastering the Korean writing system (Hangul)
within the first two weeks, followed by seven structured lessons focusing on essential grammatical
structures, vocabulary, and basic conversational skills.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
§ Understand and use basic grammatical structures and vocabulary in everyday conversations.
§ Comprehend spoken and written Korean in structured contexts, such as classroom dialogues and
short passages.
§ Deliver short, structured presentations in Korean on familiar topics using appropriate vocabulary,
grammar, and pronunciation.
§ Engage in simple interpersonal communication on familiar topics, such as greetings, self-
introduction, daily routines, and preferences.
§ Demonstrate cultural understanding of modern Korean society through exposure to authentic
media and participation in cultural activities.
This is a course designed for the students enrolled in the Barbara Silver Horowitz ’55 Scholars of Distinction program. It should be taken fall and spring semesters of a students first and second years at the college (for a total of 4 course credits total over the two years). Each month is organized around an outing (or several outings) with readings and guest speakers to complement the outing. Students are expected to attend all the events and meetings. Each student will also produce a blog post connected to or inspired by each event. These posts will appear on the Barnard College website dedicated to the program. Blog posts do not have to cover the event per se, they might, for example, attend to ancillary issues raised by the event or topics raised by the accompanying readings.
We all have enemies, individual and collective, private and public, ephemeral or persistent. This seems increasingly true. But do we choose our enemies or do our enemies choose us? Do we invent the enemy? Is the enemy a “social construction,” a fiction or is the enemy a “fact”? Do we need to believe in the enemy or is it better to know the enemy? And once there are enemies, is it really possible to love them? All enemies? Is that a religious commandment? Does religion have a special relationship to enemies? And what about frenemies? This course will explore different kinds of enemies such as they appear in sacred texts (the Bible, the Qur’ān), novels, films and
popular culture. And yes, we will try to learn whether we can love our enemies.
Covers all of Greek grammar and syntax in one term. Prepares the student to enter second-year Greek (GREK UN2101 or GREK UN2102).
This course is designed for the absolute beginner or the student returning to ballet class after a lengthy hiatus and is intended to familiarize the student with the classical ballet terminology, to foster independence in this particular vocabulary, to introduce the historical context of the Western art form and conventions of a ballet class. Learning the physical practice of this centuries-old craft will give the student basic classical ballet terminology as well as gaining an anatomical understanding of the body.
Prerequisites: MATH UN1101 or the equivalent Vectors in dimensions 2 and 3, complex numbers and the complex exponential function with applications to differential equations, Cramers rule, vector-valued functions of one variable, scalar-valued functions of several variables, partial derivatives, gradients, surfaces, optimization, the method of Lagrange multipliers. (SC)
Prerequisites: MATH UN1102 and MATH UN1201 or the equivalent Multiple integrals, Taylor's formula in several variables, line and surface integrals, calculus of vector fields, Fourier series. (SC)
Prerequisites: FREN BC1001, BC1002, BC1102, C1101 and C1102, or an appropriate score on the placement test. Further development of oral and written communication skills. Readings in French literature.
Advanced work in language skills. Readings in French literature. Prerequisites: FREN BC1203 or an appropriate score on the placement test.
NOTE: This course
does not
fulfill the Columbia College and GS language requirement.
An introduction to the language of classical and modern Arabic literature. No P/D/F or R credit is allowed for this class.
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the principles of American politics and governance. Upon completing the class, students should be more informed about the American political process and better able to explain contemporary American political phenomena, as well as being more likely to engage with politics and elections.
BEGINNING IN FALL 2025, BARNARD STUDENTS WISHING TO TAKE INTERNATIONAL POLITICS FOR INTRO CREDIT TOWARD THE MAJOR MUST TAKE POLS-BC1210. If Barnard students enroll in POLS-UN2201, the course will only count toward their major as elective credit.
Columbia College students who take POLS-BC1210 can only apply the course toward their major for elective credit.
Students may not get credit for more than one of the following courses: POLS BC1210, POLS UN1201, or POLS-UN2201.
Prerequisites: First Year Arabic I or instructor permission. An introduction to the language of classical and modern Arabic literature. No P/D/F or R credit is allowed for this class.
This course introduces students to urban dance styles, focusing on the foundations and origins of hip-hop dance, street dance culture, and the physical vocabularies of hip-hop and freestyle dance. Classes are geared to condition the body for the rigors of hip-hop technique by developing strength, coordination, flexibility, stamina, and rhythmic awareness while developing an appreciation of choreographic movement and structures. Compositional elements of hip-hop will be introduced and students may compose brief movement sequences.
In Elementary Armenian I, students learn the Armenian script and the basic grammar that will enable them to communicate about topics relating to themselves and their immediate surroundings: family, school, daily occupations, describing people, expressing likes and dislikes, requesting and giving information about themselves and others, proper forms of greetings, etc. They also begin to read signs, advertisements, and develop the skills to read texts like short stories and Armenian fables. No P/D/F or R credit is allowed for this class.
This course is designed for movers with little or no experience with dance, or who are unfamiliar with modern dance styles. It is intended to introduce modern dance techniques, terminology, and historical context, as well as improve anatomical and spatial awareness, and foster physical confidence moving to music. Students of this course will also cultivate comfort with watching, interpreting, and discussing modern dance. Love of dance is not a prerequisite, but is definitely a goal.
This course is designed for movers with some experience with dance, or who are unfamiliar with modern dance styles. It is intended to introduce modern dance techniques, terminology, and historical context, as well as improve anatomical and spatial awareness, and foster physical confidence moving to music. Students of this course will also cultivate comfort with watching, interpreting, and discussing modern dance. Love of dance is not a prerequisite, but is definitely a goal.
This
history
of children’s literary narrative begins with the observation that the stories read and heard by children exercise immeasurable imaginative power.
Socially, ethically, culturally, psychologically, even politically,
much of who we are as adults –what makes us cry and what makes us laugh-- began in the first stories that absorbed us and gave us so much pleasure. Beginning with fairytales and folktales from across the
globe
, we will explore coming-of-age stories, domestic fiction designed to educate girls, adventure romance marketed to boys (and to men who thought of themselves as boys) and fantasy. We will look at how children’s literature explores questions of heroism,
gender
difference,
disability
, perspective, community, and resilience. We will consider narrative strategies such as setting, voice, and plot as well as the role of historical context, illustration and media adaptation. While our discussions will focus on fictional primary sources, we will also consider scholarship that helps see this material through a variety of theoretical perspectives. Readings may include fairytale selections from Europe, Asia, and Africa; Alcott’s
Little Women
and its American afterlife in Gerwig’s film
;
Stevenson’s
Treasure Island
and pirate narrative
;
Collodi’s and Disney’s
Pinocchio;
Taylor’s
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry;
C.S. Lewis’s
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
and quest romance
;
Rowling’s
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone;
and
a selection of illustrated picture books
.
Readings in translation and discussion of texts of Middle Eastern and Indian origin. Readings may include the Quran, Islamic philosophy, Sufi poetry, the Upanishads, Buddhist sutras, the Bhagavad Gita, Indian epics and drama, and Gandhis Autobiography.
This seminar is an exploration of some "great books" from the Middle East and South Asia. We will read books, plays, stories, and poems in English translation that were originally written in Arabic, Persian, Bangla, Sanskrit. From the Thousand and One Nights to an Arabic epic about a warrior princess to the Bhagavad Gita, we will examine themes of storytelling, gender, politics, and the nature of divinity. With the exception of one Sudanese novel, we will be focusing on texts from the premodern period, and our focus will be on how to interpret texts, develop arguments about those texts, and learning about cultures of reading and writing in the past.
This course constitutes the first half of a year-long introduction to Classical Sanskrit, the translocal language of religious, intellectual, and literary life in South Asia for nearly two millennia. Assuming no prior experience with the language, this introductory sequence provides students with the grammar, reading strategies, and cultural context necessary to begin accessing the language’s many rich textual traditions, including scripture (sruti), epic (itihasa), poetry (kavya), drama (na?aka), systematic thought (sastra), and more.
The Music Performance Program (MPP) offers music lessons in various classical and jazz instruments, bluegrass guitar and jazz voice, taught by distinguished MPP Associate Faculty members. Lessons are 6 hours per semester. An audition is required.