The Department of Foreign Languages and Literature, formed in 1996, teaches modern and ancient languages, their literature, and the linguistic and philological study of these languages. The broad departmental structure encourages the development of cross-disciplinary academic undertakings.

The University's Foreign Language course requirements may be satisfied through coursework in the following curricular areas:

Arabic

Arabic courses may be of particular interest to students in the Certificate in Middle Eastern and North African Studies, the International Studies major, the Linguistics major, and the Global Studies degree program. A minor in Arabic is also offered.

Chinese

Courses in Chinese also may be of interest to students pursuing the Asian Studies Certificate, the International Studies major, and the Bachelor of Arts in Global Studies.  A Chinese major can be completed through the Committee Interdisciplinary major; a Chinese minor is also available.

Classics

The Classics program offers instruction in the ancient Greek and classical Latin languages and literature and in the civilizations of Greece and Rome. Courses offered in the area of classical civilization do not require a knowledge of Greek or Latin.

Students planning to pursue graduate study in classics and related disciplines, or teaching certification in Latin, should consult with the Classics Program coordinator early in their undergraduate career.  Students interested in a Classics major may also want to consider the Ancient Mediterranean Studies Certificate.

German

Students who have had no previous training in German should enroll in German 101. Those who have studied German in high school should take the placement exam in German, administered by the Testing Center, before enrolling; the exam is required for those who have had two or more years of high school German. After consultation with the department, a student may enroll in a course one level higher or lower than the one recommended by the placement examination. Both a German major and a minor are available.

Hebrew

A four-semester sequence in Hebrew is offered by the department. All courses are available online. There is also an accompanying Jewish Studies program offered by the College of Letters and Science.

Japanese

Courses in Japanese may be of interest to students pursuing the Asian Studies certificate, the International Studies major, and the Bachelor of Arts in Global Studies.  A Japanese major can be completed through the Committee Interdisciplinary major; a minor is also available.

Korean

Courses in Korean may be of interest to students pursuing the Asian Studies Certificate and/or the International Studies major.  The Department offers a four-semester sequence in Korean.

Slavic Languages

The Slavic Languages program offers coursework in Polish and Russian. Through the study of these languages, students gain exposure to the literature and culture of the eastern European areas in which these languages are spoken. The program offers a major in Russian. In addition, the Slavic languages are an integral part of the Russian and East European Studies Certificate Program.

 

Programs

Ancient & Modern Languages, Literatures & Cultures Courses

Arabic Courses

Chinese Courses

Classics Courses

German Courses

Greek Courses

Hebrew Courses

Japanese Courses

Korean Courses

Latin Courses

Polish Courses

Russian Courses

Scandinavian Studies Courses

NameRankDegreeSchoolGraduate FacultyEmeritus Faculty
Rachel Baum Senior Lecturer (Hebrew/Jewish Studies) PhD University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee No No
Yael Ben-Yitschak Lecturer (Hebrew/Jewish Studies) BA University of Haifa, Isreal No No
Joel Berkowitz Professor (Hebrew/Jewish Studies) PhD City University of New York Yes No
Viktorija Bilic Associate Professor (German and Translation) PhD Heidelberg University, Germany Yes No
Jocelyn Boor Lecturer (Classics) PhD University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee No No
Lixin Cai Lecturer (Chinese) MBA Concordia University No No
Renee Calkins Visiting Assistant Professor (Classics) PhD University of California, Los Angeles No No
Jue Chen Assistant Professor PhD Princeton University Yes No
Justin Court Lecturer (German) PhD University of Wisconsin-Madison No No
Elisabetta Cova Associate Professor (Classics) PM University of Cambridge, U.K Yes No
Garry W. Davis Professor (Department of Linguistics, German) PhD University of Michigan Yes No
Nina Familiant Lecturer (Russian) PhD University of Wisconsin, Madison No No
Katherina P. Filips-Juswigg Professor (Slavic Languages) PhD No Yes
Bernard J. Grossfeld Professor (Hebrew Studies) PhD No Yes
Robert A. Jones Professor (German) PhD No Yes
John Kellogg Lecturer (German) MA University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee No No
Khuloud Labanieh Lecturer (Education, Arabic) MA Cardinal Stritch University No No
Masako Lackey Senior Lecturer (Applied Linguistics, Japanese) MA University of Wisconsin, Madison No No
Sooyeon Lee Lecturer (Linguistics, Korean) PhD University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Coordinator, Korean No No
Veronica Lundback Senior Lecturer (Scandinavian Studies) MA University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee No No
Dana Margolis Senior Lecturer (Hebrew Studies) MSCRP University of Texas - Austin No No
Fahed Masalkhi Lecturer (Arabic) MA University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee No No
Karolina May-Chu Assistant Professor (German) PhD University of Wisconsin – Madison Yes No
Yair Mazor Professor (Hebrew Studies) PhD Tel Aviv University Yes No
Michael J. Mikos Professor (Polish, Slavic Languages) PhD Brown University Yes No
Richard C. Monti Professor (Classics) PhD No Yes
Kevin Mulholland Visiting Assistant Professor (Japanese) PhD University of Michigan No No
David D. Mulroy Professor (Classics) PhD No Yes
Meghan Murphy-Lee Senior Lecturer (Russian) PhD University of Kansas No No
Kevin Muse Associate Professor (Classics) PhD University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Yes No
Hamid Ouali Associate Professor (Department of Linguistics, Arabic) PhD University of Michigan Yes No
Joseph Peschio Associate Professor (Russian) PhD University of Michigan Yes No
Roger W. Philips Associate Professor (Slavic Languages) PhD No Yes
Andrew Porter Associate Professor (Classics) PhD University of Missouri - Columbia Yes No
Aragorn Quinn Assistant Professor (Japanese) PhD Stanford University Yes No
Robert C. Ross Associate Professor (Classics) PhD No Yes
Ruth Schwertfeger Professor (German) PhD Yes Yes
H. James Shey Associate Professor (Classics) PhD No Yes
Sooho Song Assistant Professor (Foreign Languages and Literature, Korean) PhD University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Yes No
Roy Arthur Swanson Professor (Comparative Literature, Classics) PhD No Yes
Shinji Takahashi Lecturer (Curriculum and Instruction, Japanese) MS University of Wisconsin - Madison No No
Thu Anh Than Lecturer (German) No No
Bozena Tieszen Senior Lecturer (Classics and German) PhD University of Wisconsin - Madison No No
Charles A. Ward Professor (Slavic Languages) PhD No Yes
Yuko Wert (Kojima) Senior Lecturer (Language Education, Japanese) MA Obirin University, Japan No No
Deanna Wesolowski Lecturer (Classics) PhD University of Missouri - Columbia No No
Jonathan Wipplinger Associate Professor (German) PhD University of Michigan Yes No
Jason Williamson Senior Lecturer (German) PhD University of Texas at Austin No No
Xue Xia Senior Lecturer (Chinese) PhD University of Hawaii No No