History (BA)
The study of history aims at the understanding and disciplined reconstruction of past human activities, institutions, ideas, and aspirations in the light of present knowledge and in the hope of usefulness for the future. History belongs both to the humanities and to the social sciences. It is studied both for its own sake and for the light it throws on the present problems and future prospects of particular societies and of humankind in general.
A major in history in combination with work in foreign languages, philosophy, literature, and the social sciences provides a broad foundation for informed citizenship. History majors find employment in many fields of human endeavor from arts and business to public service and education. Specialization in history is especially valuable as pre-professional training for law, government, diplomacy, and journalism and for library, archival, and museum administration.
Requirements for the Major in History
Undergraduate majors are required to take at least 27 credits at the 2000 level or above, which must include one three-credit course from each of Groups A, B, and C, and two three-credit courses from Group D. All majors should enroll in HIST 2100 The Historian's Craft as early as possible, and all majors except Honors students must take HIST 4994W Senior Seminar in their senior year. Honors students should take in sequence HIST 4996 Honors Thesis Preparation and HIST 4997W Senior Thesis in History. Under certain circumstances and with advisor approval, honors majors may substitute HIST 4994W Senior Seminar for HIST 4996 Honors Thesis Preparation. With the consent of the undergraduate major’s advisor, graduate level courses may be used to fulfill the distribution requirement. HIST 2100 The Historian's Craft and HIST 4994W Senior Seminar satisfy the information literacy competency. HIST 4994W Senior Seminar or HIST 4997W Senior Thesis in History satisfy the writing in the major requirements.
Group A - Ancient, Medieval, and Early Modern
Select one three credit course from the following:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| HIST 2020 | Pyramids, Pirates, and the Polis: The Ancient Mediterranean | 3 |
| HIST 2230 | Global History of Capitalism | 3 |
| HIST 2350 | Byzantium | 3 |
| HIST 2470 | 3 | |
| HIST 2811 | Early Modern India: From Muslim Rulers to British Raj | 3 |
| HIST 2821 | Early Modern China: From Mongols to Manchus | 3 |
| HIST 3300/ANTH 3513 | Near Eastern Prehistory | 3 |
| HIST/CAMS 3301 | Ancient Near East | 3 |
| HIST/CAMS 3320 | Ancient Greece: Troy to Sparta | 3 |
| HIST/CAMS 3321 | Hellenistic World: Alexander to Cleopatra | 3 |
| HIST/CAMS 3325 | Ancient Rome: Aeneas to Augustus | 3 |
| HIST/CAMS 3326 | Ancient Rome: Emperors and Barbarians | 3 |
| HIST/CAMS/HEJS 3330 | Palestine Under the Greeks and Romans | 3 |
| HIST/CAMS 3335 | The Early Christian Church | 3 |
| HIST/CAMS 3340 | World of the Later Roman Empire | 3 |
| HIST 3360 | Early Middle Ages | 3 |
| HIST 3361 | The High and Later Middle Ages | 3 |
| HIST/HEJS 3362 | The Black Death: Medieval and Modern Responses to Catastrophe | 3 |
| HIST 3370 | The Renaissance | 3 |
| HIST 3371 | The Reformation | 3 |
| HIST 3400 | Europe in the Seventeenth Century | 3 |
| HIST 3420 | English History to 1603 | 3 |
| HIST 3460 | Italy 1250-1600 | 3 |
| HIST 3704 | Medieval Islamic Civilization to 1700 | 3 |
Group B - Modern Europe
Select one three credit course from the following:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| HDFS 3423 | History of the Family | 3 |
| HIST 2204 | History of Technology | 3 |
| HIST 2205 | Personality and Power in History | 3 |
| HIST/SCI 2206 | History of Science | 3 |
| HIST 2208 | Science, Technology, and Society | 3 |
| HIST 2222E | Global Environmental History | 3 |
| HIST 2240 | History of War in the Modern World | 3 |
| HIST 2401 | Europe in the Nineteenth Century | 3 |
| HIST 2402 | Europe in the Twentieth Century | 3 |
| HIST 2412 | From Revolution to Nihilism: Ideas and Ideologies in Nineteenth-Century Europe | 3 |
| HIST 2413W | From Nietzsche to Neo-liberalism: Ideas and Ideologies in Twentieth-Century Europe | 3 |
| HIST 2421 | History of Modern England | 3 |
| HIST 2451 | Germany Since 1815 | 3 |
| HIST 2456 | Power and Resistance: History of Eastern Europe | 3 |
| HIST 2471 | History of Russia Since 1855 | 3 |
| HIST/HRTS 3201 | The History of Human Rights | 3 |
| HIST/HRTS 3207 | Genocide after the Second World War | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/LLAS 3208 | Making the Black Atlantic | 3 |
| HIST/HRTS 3232 | History of Refugees, Migration, and Statelessness | 3 |
| HIST/WGSS 3416 | Gender and Sexuality in Modern Europe | 3 |
| HIST 3418/HEJS 3203 | The Holocaust | 3 |
| HIST/HEJS 3419 | Jewish Responses to the Holocaust | 3 |
| HIST 3426 | 3 | |
| HIST 3430 | History of Ireland | 3 |
| HIST 3440 | France Since 1715 | 3 |
| HIST 3463 | The Modernization of Italy from 1815 to Present | 3 |
| HIST/MAST 3545 | The Modern Atlantic, 1650-1950 | 3 |
Group C - United States
Select one three credit course from the following:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| HIST 2204 | History of Technology | 3 |
| HIST 2205 | Personality and Power in History | 3 |
| HIST/SCI 2206 | History of Science | 3 |
| HIST/AMST/ENGL 2207 | Empire and U.S. Culture | 3 |
| HIST 2208 | Science, Technology, and Society | 3 |
| HIST 2222E | Global Environmental History | 3 |
| HIST 2240 | History of War in the Modern World | 3 |
| HIST/LLAS/MAST 2507 | New England and the Caribbean Plantation Complex, 1650-1900 | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 2530 | Asian American Experience Since 1850 | 3 |
| HIST/URBN 2541 | The History of Urban America | 3 |
| HIST/AMST 2550 | Crime, Policing, and Punishment in the United States | 3 |
| HIST 2570 | American Indian History | 3 |
| HIST/HRTS 3201 | The History of Human Rights | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA 3206 | Black Experience in the Americas | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/LLAS 3208 | Making the Black Atlantic | 3 |
| HIST 3209/ANTH 3531/MAST 3531 | Maritime Archaeology of the Americas | 3 |
| HIST/HRTS 3232 | History of Refugees, Migration, and Statelessness | 3 |
| HIST/AMST 3502 | Colonial America: Native Americans, Slaves, and Settlers, 1492-1760 | 3 |
| HIST 3504 | The American Revolution | 3 |
| HIST 3510 | Civil War America | 3 |
| HIST 3516 | Rise of U.S. Global Power | 3 |
| HIST 3519 | Contemporary America | 3 |
| HIST 3520 | Social and Cultural History of Connecticut and New England | 3 |
| HIST 3522 | 3 | |
| HIST/AAAS/AMST 3531 | Japanese Americans and World War II | 3 |
| HIST 3540E | Environmental History of the Americas | 3 |
| HIST/AMST 3542E | New England Environmental History | 3 |
| HIST/AMST/MAST 3544 | Atlantic Voyages: European Maritime Expansion, 1400-1650 | 3 |
| HIST/MAST 3545 | The Modern Atlantic, 1650-1950 | 3 |
| HIST 3550 | 3 | |
| HIST 3551 | Topics in U.S. Legal History | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 3554 | Immigrants and the Shaping of American History | 3 |
| HIST 3555 | Work and Workers in American Society | 3 |
| HIST 3556W | History Workshop: Topics in American Society and Culture | 3 |
| HIST 3559 | History of Childhood in the United States, 1620-Present | 3 |
| HIST/WGSS 3560 | Constructions of Race, Gender, and Sexuality in U.S. History | 3 |
| HIST/WGSS 3561 | History of Women and Gender in the U.S. to 1850 | 3 |
| HIST/WGSS 3562 | History of Women and Gender in the United States, 1850-Present | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/HRTS 3563 | African American History to 1865 | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA 3564 | African American History Since 1865 | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/AMST/MUSI 3568 | Hip Hop, Politics and Youth Culture in America | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA 3569 | Slavery in Film | 3 |
| HIST 3575/LLAS 3221/HRTS 3221 | Latinos/as and Human Rights | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/LLAS 3618 | Comparative Slavery in the Americas | 3 |
| HIST/LLAS 3660W | History of Migration in Las Americas | 3 |
| HIST 3674/LLAS 3220 | History of Latinos/as in the United States | 3 |
| HIST/LLAS/WGSS 3675 | Latina History and Biography | 3 |
| Select one of the following: 1 | ||
| Social and Cultural History of Connecticut and New England | ||
HIST 3522 | ||
- 1
Either HIST 3520 Social and Cultural History of Connecticut and New England or HIST 3522 , but not both, may be counted for credit toward the major.
Group D - Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Middle East
Select two three credit course from the following:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| HIST 2204 | History of Technology | 3 |
| HIST 2205 | Personality and Power in History | 3 |
| HIST/MAST 2210E | History of the Ocean | 3 |
| HIST 2222E | Global Environmental History | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 2225 | The Pacific in World History | 3 |
| HIST 2230 | Global History of Capitalism | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/LLAS 2621 | Cuba in Local and Global Perspective | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/LLAS/WGSS 2622 | History of Gender and Sexuality in Latin America and the Caribbean | 3 |
| HIST/URBN 2650 | History of Urban Latin America | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA 2752 | Africa in Global History | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA 2753 | History of Modern Africa | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 2812 | Modern India | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 2822 | Modern China | 3 |
| HIST 2832 | Modern Japan | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 2841 | 3 | |
| HIST/AAAS 2842 | History of Vietnam | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 2866 | China and the West | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 2868 | Foreign Relations of China Since 1949 | 3 |
| HIST/HRTS 3201 | The History of Human Rights | 3 |
| HIST/HRTS 3202 | International Human Rights | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA 3206 | Black Experience in the Americas | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/LLAS 3208 | Making the Black Atlantic | 3 |
| HIST 3210/ANTH 3532/MAST 3532 | Archaeology of the Age of Sail | 3 |
| HIST/HRTS 3232 | History of Refugees, Migration, and Statelessness | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA 3569 | Slavery in Film | 3 |
| HIST 3575/LLAS 3221/HRTS 3221 | Latinos/as and Human Rights | 3 |
| HIST/LLAS 3607 | Latin America in the Colonial Period | 3 |
| HIST/LLAS 3608W | The Hispanic World in the Ages of Reason and Revolution | 3 |
| HIST/LLAS 3609 | Latin America in the National Period | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/LLAS 3618 | Comparative Slavery in the Americas | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA/LLAS 3619 | History of the Caribbean | 3 |
| HIST/AFRA 3620 | Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Spanish Caribbean | 3 |
| HIST/LLAS 3635 | History of Modern Mexico | 3 |
| HIST 3640 | Andean Societies | 3 |
| HIST 3643 | 3 | |
| HIST/LLAS 3660W | History of Migration in Las Americas | 3 |
| HIST/LLAS 3662 | Borderlands of the Americas | 3 |
| HIST 3674/LLAS 3220 | History of Latinos/as in the United States | 3 |
| HIST/LLAS/WGSS 3675 | Latina History and Biography | 3 |
| HIST 3704 | Medieval Islamic Civilization to 1700 | 3 |
| HIST 3705 | The Modern Middle East from 1700 to the Present | 3 |
| HIST/ARIS/ARTH 3710 | Islamic Art History | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 3712 | The Middle East Crucible | 3 |
| HIST 3760 | History of Southern Africa | 3 |
| HIST 3770/AFRA 3224 | History of Pan Africanism | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 3808 | East Asia to the Mid-Nineteenth Century | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 3809 | East Asia Since the Mid-Nineteenth Century | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 3820 | History of Modern Chinese Political Thought | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 3823 | History of the People's Republic of China | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 3830E | Environmental History in East Asia | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS 3845 | The Vietnam War | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS/HRTS 3846 | Genocide and Mass Killings in Asia | 3 |
| HIST 3863 | War and Diplomacy in East Asia | 3 |
| HIST/AAAS/LLAS 3875 | 3 |
Courses with Variable Content
Courses with variable content may be applied to any of the four distribution groups as determined by course content and with Advisor consent. No more than six credits of HIST 3991 Internship will count toward the major requirements.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| HIST 2103W | Biography as History: Individuals in their Times | 3 |
| HIST 2104W | History through Fiction | 3 |
| HIST 2105 | History through Film | 3 |
| HIST 2993 | Foreign Study | 1-12 |
| HIST 3095 | Special Topics | 1-6 |
| HIST 3098 | Variable Topics | 3 |
| HIST 3102 | Topics in Public History | 3 |
| HIST 3103/DMD 3610 | Collaborating with Cultural Organizations I: Methods | 3 |
| HIST 3104/DMD 3620 | Collaborating with Cultural Organizations II: Practice | 3 |
| HIST 3107/DMD 3589 | Historical Fiction in Games and Film | 3 |
| HIST 3991 | Internship | 1-12 |
| HIST 3993 | Foreign Study | 1-9 |
| HIST 3994W | Junior Seminar | 3 |
| HIST/DMD 4640 | Digital Public History Project | 3 |
| HIST 4989 | Directed Research | 3 |
| HIST 4994W | Senior Seminar | 3 |
| HIST 4996 | Honors Thesis Preparation | 3 |
| HIST 4997W | Senior Thesis in History | 3 |
| HIST 4999 | Independent Study | 1-6 |
| A graduate level History course | 3 | |
A minor in History is described in the “Minors” section.