Arabic, Islamic, and Middle Eastern Studies

Director: Farid Senzai, Ph.D.

The interdisciplinary minor in Arabic, Islamic, and Middle Eastern Studies (AIMES) provides an introduction to the people, cultures, politics,  religions and societies of the broader Middle East and North Africa. It will also include examination of peoples from the region living elsewhere and the diverse forms of Islamic practice and local religious customs observed in Muslim societies and throughout the world. This program also encourages the study of diaspora and immigrant communities where Islamic and Middle Eastern populations constitute a religious or ethnic minority.

Students enrolled in this minor have the opportunity to sample a variety of methodologies and academic disciplines—including anthropology, art history, literary criticism, history, political science, and religious studies—that address the Middle East in particular and the Islamic world at large.

The AIMES interdisciplinary minor is ideal for students who want to develop the intellectual resources for thoughtful and informed engagement with current issues in the Middle East and the Islamic world. AIMES is also well suited for students considering work with overseas aid organizations, government and military service, international business, or graduate programs in international studies.

Requirements for the Minor

Students must complete a total of nine courses—six culture courses and three Arabic language courses—for a minor in AIMES. Details concerning these requirements are as follows:

Culture Courses

Students must take a total of six culture courses relating to AIMES (two lower-level and four upper-level) from at least three different departments. No more than two courses may be counted for AIMES credit from the department in which a student majors. A maximum of three courses for AIMES credit may be taken from any one department.

Arabic Language

Three quarters of Arabic are required. Students with prior knowledge of a relevant language may take a test that certifies that they have fulfilled this requirement.

Senior Project

In lieu of one of the six required courses in Middle Eastern and Islamic cultures, students may elect to do an independent study/reading course on a project in consultation with a member of the AIMES Faculty Advisory Council. This project may entail fieldwork with local Muslim and diaspora Arab or Middle Eastern communities in the Bay Area.

Students enrolled in the AIMES minor are strongly encouraged to participate in SCU-approved study abroad programs that pertain to Arabic, Islamic, and Middle Eastern studies. Before enrolling in any such program, students should check with the director and faculty members of the AIMES minor as well as the Global Engagement Office.

Anthropology Courses

ANTH 156. Anthropology of Muslim Peoples and Practices

ANTH 187. Middle East: Gender and Sexuality

ANTH 188. Middle East: Culture and Change

Art History Courses

ARTH 24. From Damascus to Dubai: A Survey of the Visual Culture of the Middle East

ARTH 121. Venice and the Other in the Renaissance

ARTH 164. Islamic Art, 600–1350 CE

Ethnic Studies Courses

ETHN 80. Introduction to the Study of Muslim and Arab Americans in the United States

History Courses

HIST 120. The Crusades: Christian and Muslim Perspectives  

HIST 144S. Islam in Africa

Modern Languages and Literatures Courses

ARAB 1. Elementary Arabic I

ARAB 2. Elementary Arabic II

ARAB 3. Elementary Arabic III

ARAB 21. Intermediate Arabic I

ARAB 22. Intermediate Arabic II

ARAB 23. Intermediate Arabic III

ARAB 50. Intermediate Arabic Conversation

ARAB 137. Arabic Language, Culture and Identity

ARAB 171. Reading the Quran

ARAB 185: Arab American Experience

ARAB 199. Directed Reading

FREN 114. Literatures and Cultures of the Maghreb

FREN 173. Immigration, Race, and Identity in Contemporary France

Political Science Courses

POLI 139. Religion and Politics in the Developing World

POLI 142. Politics in the Middle East

POLI 192. Senior Seminar: Contemporary Politics of the Middle East

POLI 196. Senior Seminar: US Foreign Policy Towards the Middle East

Religious Studies Courses

RSOC 7. South and Southeast Asian Religious Traditions

RSOC 67. Film and Judaism

RSOC 81. Islam

RSOC 126. Sufi Islam and Christian Mysticism

RSOC 174. Jewish Philosophy: Athens and Jerusalem

RSOC 182. Shia Islam in the Contemporary World

RSOC 190. Islam: Reformation and Modernity

SCTR 19. Religions of the Book

SCTR 48.  Racializing Jesus

TESP 88. Hope and Prophetic Politics