Jewish Studies Minor
Hebrew Minor

Jewish Studies Minor

The Minor in Jewish Studies is intended to provide students with an overview of the beliefs, culture, history and religion of Judaism and the Jewish peoples in inter-action with surrounding cultures, from ancient times to the present, as well as an opportunity to become more knowledgeable about selected areas of the Jewish experience.  All Minors are required to complete a mandatory set of two core courses, which may be taken in any order, and which together provide an overview and introduction to Jewish culture and history.  These courses enable students to place in proper context material in the additional courses they take for the minor.

Requirements for the Minor in Jewish Studies

  1. The Minor consists of five courses, which must be taken in at least two different Departments and a least one of which must be at an advanced level.

  2. The requirements for the Minor are the following:
    a. Introduction to Early Judaism, JWST 106/RELI 106 [JWST 24/RELI 24], which covers material through the Muslim conquest.
    b. Introduction to Modern Judaism JWST 107/JWST 107 [JWST 34/RELI 34], which picks up where JWST 106/RELI 106 [JWST 24/RELI 24] ends, and continues to the present time.

  3. The additional courses required to satisfy the minor in Jewish Studies must be taken from a list of courses approved by the Faculty Steering Committee of the Carolina Center for Jewish Studies. Only courses in Modern Hebrew at the 5th semester level or higher can count as courses toward the Minor.

Courses Required: JWST 106/RELI 106 [JWST 24/RELI 24] and JWST 107/RELI 107 [JWST 34/RELI 34]

Additional courses: Three courses from at least two different departments and at least one at an advanced level (noted by *).

Curriculum in American Studies
JWST 253/AMST 253 [JWST 53/AMST 53]. "Jewish Women in America: A Social History."
JWST 486/AMST 486 [JWST 86/AMST 86]. "Shalom Y'all: The Jewish Experience in the American South."

Department of Asian Studies
HEBR 305 [HEBR 5].  “Advanced Modern Hebrew”
HEBR 306 [HEBR 6].  “Advanced Modern Hebrew”

Department of English
JWST 289/ENGL 289 [JWST 49/ENGL 49].  “American Jewish Literature.” 

Department of Germanic Languages
GERM 56 [German 006i].  First – Year Seminar.  “Germans, Jews, and the History of Antisemitism.” (This course may be taken either for minor credit or for general education credit, but not for both.)
JWST 239/GERM 270/RELI 239 [JWST 61/GERM 61/RELI 85].  “German Culture and the Jewish Question.”

Department of History
JWST 262/HIST 262/PWAD 262 [JWST 50/HIST 50/PWAD 52].  “History of the Holocaust”

Department of Religious Studies
JWST 103/RELI 103 [JWST 21/RELI 21].  “Introduction to Hebrew Bible/Old Testament”
JWST 110/RELI 110/CLAR 110 [JWST 28/RELI 28/CLAR 28].  “Archaeology of Palestine in the New Testament Period”
JWST 243/RELI 243 [JWST 44/RELI 44].  “Judaism in America”
JWST 206/RELI 206 [JWST 57/RELI 57].  “Prophecy and Divination in Israel and Judah"
JWST 143/RELI 143 [JWST 78/RELI 78].  “Judaism In Our Time”
JWST 343/RELI 343 [JWST 79/RELI 79].  “Religion In Modern Israel”
JWST 302/RELI 302 [JWST 92/RELI 92].  "From Many to One:  A History of Monotheism in Israel and Judah"*
JWST 512/RELI 512/CLAR 512 [JWST 111/RELI 111/CLAR 110].  “Ancient Synagogues”*
JWST 444/RELI 444 [JWST 154/RELI 154].  “Gender and Sexuality in Contemporary Judaism”*
JWST 503/RELI 503 [JWST 122/RELI 122].  “Exploring the Dead Sea Scrolls”*

Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures
JWST 412/PLSH 412 [JWST 112/PLSH 112].  “Twentieth-Century Polish Culture”*
JWST 464/SLAV 464 [JWST 164/SLAV 164].  “Jews in Polish and Russian Literature”*
JWST 465/SLAV 465/PWAD 465 [JWST 165/SLAV 165/PWAD 165].  “Literature of Atrocity: The Gulag and the  Holocaust in Russian and East European Literature”*
JWST 469/SLAV 469 [JWST 169/SLAV 169].  “Coming to America:  The Slavic Immigrant Experience in Literature”*

Hebrew Minor

The minor in Hebrew was created due to interest expressed by many students who wanted to focus specifically on Modern Hebrew Language. Students declaring the Hebrew minor include International Studies majors with concentrations in the Middle East, Religious Studies majors, and those from a wide range of majors who desire a more in depth command of the Hebrew Language.

To minor in Modern Hebrew, students must take four courses:

AMST 253 [53]: Jewish Women in America

ENGL 289 [49J]: Jewish-American Literature and Culture of the Twentieth Century

GERM 056 [006I]: Germans, Jews, and the History of Antisemitism

GERM 270 [61]: German Culture and the Jewish Question

HIST 262 [50]: History of the Holocaust: The Destruction of the European Jews

HIST 276 [77A]: The Modern Middle East

HIST 277 [77B]: The Conflict over Israel/Palestine

HIST 538 [197]: The Middle East and the West

RELI 103 [21]: Introduction to the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Literature

RELI 106 [24]: Introduction to Early Judaism

RELI 107 [34]: Introduction to Modern Judaism

RELI 110 [28]: The Archaeology of Palestine in the New Testament Period

RELI 205 [55]: Legends of Genesis

RELI 206 [57]: Prophecy and Divination in Ancient Israel and Judah

RELI 343 [79]: Religion in Modern Israel

RELI 401 [113]: Biblical Hebrew

RELI 402 [114]: Biblical Hebrew

RELI 403 [115]: Intermediate Classical Hebrew

RELI 404 [116]: Intermediate Classical Hebrew

RELI 503 [122]: Exploring the Dead Sea Scrolls

RELI 512 [111]: Ancient Synagogues

RELI 602 [126]: What are the Holy Scriptures? The Formation of the Hebrew Canon

Overview of all courses in Hebrew

HEBR 101-102 [HEBR 1-2]. Elementary Modern Hebrew. The sequence 1,2 introduces the essential elements of modern Hebrew structure and vocabulary and aspects of modern Israeli culture. Aural comprehension, reading, speaking, and writing are stressed in that order.

HEBR 203-204 [HEBR 3-4]. Intermediate Modern Hebrew. Modern Hebrew 3,4 is a two-semester sequence designed to increase reading and writing skills. An introduction to representative literary works is included. Aural comprehension and speaking skills are also stressed.

HEBR 305-306 [HEBR 5-6]. Advanced Modern Hebrew. Students will read and analyze the literary works of well known Hebrew writers including Amos Oz, A.B. Yehoshua, Aharon Meged, Savyon Liebrecht, Yehuda Amichai, S.Y. Agnon, and others.

**The language courses for the minor are 204, 305, 306. What about HEBR 101, 102, 203? Those don't count (technically) as minor courses, but if you are a beginner in Hebrew, obviously they would be necessary as a prerequisite before you could start taking language courses for the minor. So while it's true that the minor requires four courses, since the minor courses have prerequisites, it's also true that someone beginning in Hebrew would need to take 7 courses to finish the minor. HEBR 101, 102, 203 would count for the general College language requirement, and HEBR 204, 305, 306 would then count toward the minor.

If, on the other hand, you had prior Hebrew knowledge, and were able to place into 204, then you could just start right in on the minor courses. Students interested in the minor whose initial Hebrew placement is above 204 should consult with Lori Harris, leharris@email.unc.edu.