MA in History - Specialization in Ancient and Medieval Mediterranean Worlds

Radboud University

During the Master’s in History, you’ll develop a set of academic skills such being able to collect different sources and critically analyse them, to interpretate data and to form a constructive argument. You’ll also learn how to clearly present research results and how to enter into a debate with historians and other interested parties.

The Mediterranean was the centre of the ancient, byzantine and medieval Western worlds. It was the seat of some of the greatest empires and civilisations in history, and, by joining three continents, played a strategic role in their development. Emperors and republics, popes and crusades, caliphates and metropoles all flourished around its shores. So too did the greatest cities of this long period: Rome, Constantinople, Cairo and Córdoba jostled for supremacy in a rapidly changing world.

What will you learn?

Ancient and Medieval Mediterranean Worlds offers a unique programme covering ancient and medieval history, as well as Byzantium, the Islamic world and Western Europe in contact and conflict. Taught by a group of specialists who are internationally renowned in these fields of expertise, the programme will offer you a broad treatment of the major questions in Mediterranean history, looking at:

• Cultural identity, cultural memory and imagined communities
• Regionalism, colonialism and conquest
• Continuity and change over the ancient and medieval periods
• Tradition and ideology
• Economic history and trade, including numismatics
• Inter-religious contact, influence and acculturation

At the same time, the programme gives you the freedom of in-depth study through specialised courses and projects, depending on your own interests and future perspectives.

Career prospects

Master's specialisation in Ancient and Medieval Mediterranean Worlds

Graduates of the Master’s specialisation in Ancient and Medieval Mediterranean Worlds are able to address major questions in the development of the Mediterranean as centre of trade, culture and religion through the ancient and medieval periods. Our graduates can identify the reasons behind the Mediterranean’s importance and legacy from antiquity to the present day, as an area of intense contact but also conflict, with crucial importance for understanding current developments. Besides this, they are also able to analyse a historical debate and tackle a problem related to historical developments.

Graduates have concentrated on a very specific historical phenomenon and have acquired skills that open a broad number of career options to them. Our specialisation has produced graduates that are appreciated by employees for their insightfulness and analytical skills of historical developments. They have learned how to delve into historical documents and master them.