Module THEO53430: Advanced Aramaic

Department: Theology and Religion

THEO53430: Advanced Aramaic

Prerequisites

• Aramaic and/or Syriac at elementary undergraduate level

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• This module is designed to develop and increase the technical skills required for independent research on Ancient Aramaic texts at an advanced level. Special attention is directed towards equipping candidates with the linguistic expertise, knowledge of textual and literary criticism, and insight into exegetical issues necessary for in-depth analysis of ancient Aramaic literature. Candidates will have the opportunity to study various kinds of Aramaic, including the Aramaic of the Jewish Targumim and Aramaic documents preserved among the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Content

• Texts offered for study in this module are chosen with an eye to encouraging the student to work independently, and to bring to the regular seminars such insights as he or she may have gathered in the course of private study. The seminars also give opportunities for full discussion of problems in the text, whether literary, textual, or exegetical. Where the student feels that help is required with the translation of particularly difficult passages, such help is available either in seminars or in one-to-one tutorials specially arranged for the purpose. The teaching of this module is therefore flexible, and can often be tailored to suit the needs of individual students and their interests. For example, those with an interest in Dead Sea Scrolls might elect to study in detail an Aramaic text or texts discovered among those documents. Enthusiasm for the Aramaic language, and a desire to acquire deeper knowledge of it, is an important pre-requisite. Students are encouraged to consult further with the module co-ordinator about specific texts for study.

Learning Outcomes

• to translate accurately and independently Aramaic texts whose language, grammar, and syntax involve a high degree of complexity and difficulty
• to give an accurate, scientific account of the Aramaic language in the texts studied

• to offer solutions to linguistic and exegetical problems encountered in the texts studied, and the basis of independent research
• to engage critically with modern scholarly treatments of the texts studied

• students will acquire the ability to offer independent assessments of the texts studied, and the scholarly treatments of them
• they will be able to demonstrate familarity with other writings which may assist in the explication of the texts they have studied.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Texts offered for study in this module are chosen with an eye to encouraging the student to work independently, and to bring to the regular seminars such insights as he or she may have gathered in the course of private study. The seminars also give opportunities for full discussion of problems in the text, whether literary, textual, or exegetical. Where the student feels that help is required with the translation of particularly difficult passages, such help is available either in seminars or in one-to-one tutorials specially arranged for the purpose. The teaching of this module is therefore flexible, and can often be tailored to suit the needs of individual students and their interests.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Exercises in translation and exegesis

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University