Courses for Fall 2025 | Penn Arts & Sciences Department of History

This page allows you to search a particular semester's course offerings in History and filter them by Major/Minor requirement. We also invite you to explore Penn History courses on the Pathways App. This fun, game-like platform allows you to see connections between History courses, so that you can better sequence them. It also encourages you to ask “how can History help us answer big questions?” Give it a try!

	Title	Instructors	Time	Description	Cross listings	Fulfills	Major Concentrations	Major/Minor Requirements Fulfilled
HIST 0108-001	American Origins	Emma Hart	MW 10:15 AM-11:14 AM	The United States was not inevitable. With that assumption as its starting point, this course surveys North American history from about 1500 to about 1850, with the continent's many peoples and cultures in view. The unpredictable emergence of the U.S. as a nation is a focus, but always in the context of wider developments: global struggles among European empires; conflicts between indigenous peoples and settler-colonists; exploitation of enslaved African labor; evolution of distinctive colonial societies; and, finally, independence movements inspired by a transatlantic revolutionary age.		History & Tradition Sector Cultural Diviserity in the U.S.	American	pre-1800, US
HIST 0200-001	The Emergence of Modern Europe	Antonio Feros	TR 8:30 AM-9:59 AM	This course examines the period in European history from the Black Death until the French Revolution (roughly 1348 to 1789). During this period of Renaissance, Reformation, and Enlightenment, early modern Europe experienced a series of crises in authority that ushered in the modern world. The course will explore how new discoveries (both geographical and intellectual) challenged existing worldviews; movements of religious reform challenged the authority of the Church and the unity of Europe; and new political doctrines, accompanied by a series of striking rebellions, challenged the foundations of traditional rule. Our aim will be to excavate the changing social, political, intellectual, and cultural experiences of men and women during this time of renaissance, reformation, enlightenment, and revolution. We will follow the encounter between Europeans and the peoples of the Americas, Africa, and Asia, as well as the “discovery” of new ways to read old books, the “discovery” of new technologies in communications and combat, and the “discovery” of new sciences, arts, and philosophies as they impacted the way Europeans related to the wider world and their place within it.		Cross Cultural Analysis History & Tradition Sector	European, Political	Europe, pre-1800
HIST 0290-401	The Soviet Century, 1917-1991	Benjamin Nathans	TR 10:15 AM-11:14 AM	Out of an obscure, backward empire, the Soviet Union emerged to become the great political laboratory of the twentieth century. This course will trace the roots of the world's first socialist society and its attempts to recast human relations and human nature itself. Topics include the origins of the Revolution of 1917, the role of ideology in state policy and everyday life, the Soviet Union as the center of world communism, the challenge of ethnic diversity, and the reasons for the USSR's sudden implosion at the end of the century.Focusing on politics, society, culture, and their interaction, we will examine the rulers (from Lenin to Gorbachev) as well as the ruled (peasants, workers, and intellectuals; Russians and non-Russians). The course will feature discussions of selected texts, including primary sources in translation.	REES0311401	History & Tradition Sector Cross Cultural Analysis	European, Political	Europe
HIST 0300-401	Africa Before 1800	Cheikh Ante Mbacke Babou	TR 9:00 AM-9:59 AM	Survey of major themes and issues in African history before 1800. Topics include: early civilizations, African kingdoms and empires, population movements, the spread of Islam, and the slave trade. Also, emphasis on how historians use archaeology, linguistics, and oral traditions to reconstruct Africa's early history.	AFRC0300401	History & Tradition Sector Cross Cultural Analysis	World	Africa/Middle East, pre-1800
HIST 0310-401	Warriors, Concubines & Converts: the Ottoman Empire in the Middle East & Europe	Oscar Aguirre Mandujano	TR 1:45 PM-3:14 PM	For almost six hundred years, the Ottomans ruled most of the Balkans and the Middle East. From their bases in Anatolia, Ottoman armies advanced into the Balkans, Syria, Egypt, and Iraq, constantly challenging the borders of neighboring European and Islamicate empires. By the end of the seventeenth century, Constantinople, Jerusalem, Cairo, Baghdad, Sarajevo, Budapest, and nearly Vienna came under Ottoman rule. As the empire expanded into Europe and the Middle East, the balance of imperial power shifted from warriors to converts, concubines, and intellectuals. This course examines the expansion of the Ottoman sultanate from a local principality into a sprawling empire with a sophisticated bureaucracy; it also investigates the social, cultural, and intellectual developments that accompanied the long arc of the empire's rise and fall. By the end of the course, students will be able to identify and discuss major currents of change in the Ottoman Empire and the Middle East. The student will have a better understanding of the roles of power, ideology, diplomacy, and gender in the construction of empire and a refined appreciation for diverse techniques of historical analysis.	MELC0450401	History & Tradition Sector Cross Cultural Analysis	Diplomatic, World	Africa/Middle East, pre-1800
HIST 0360-401	History of the Middle East Since 1800	Eve M. Troutt Powell	TR 8:30 AM-9:59 AM	A survey of the modern Middle East with special emphasis on the experiences of ordinary men and women as articulated in biographies, novels, and regional case studies. Issues covered include the collapse of empires and the rise of a new state system following WWI, and the roots and consequences of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the Iranian revolution and the U.S.-Iraq War. Themes include: the colonial encounter with Europe and the emergence of nationalist movements, the relationship between state and society, economic development and international relations, and religion and cultural identity.	MELC0650401	History & Tradition Sector Cross Cultural Analysis	Political, World	Africa/Middle East
HIST 0400-401	Colonial Latin America	Marcy Norton	MW 12:00 PM-12:59 PM	The colonial period (1492- 1800) saw huge population movements (many of them involuntary) within the Americas and across the Atlantic. As a result, Latin America was created from the entanglement of technologies, institutions, knowledge systems, and cosmologies from Indigenous, European, and African cultures. We will learn about colonial institutions such as slavery and encomienda. We will also explore the different strategies pursued by individuals and communities to build meaningful lives in the face of often dire social and environmental circumstances. Class readings are primary sources and the focus of discussions, papers, and exams will be their interpretation.	AFRC0400401, LALS0400401	Cross Cultural Analysis History & Tradition Sector	World	Latin America/Caribbean, pre-1800
HIST 0550-401	History of Modern China	Si-Yen Fei	MW 12:00 PM-12:59 PM	From an empire to a republic, from communism to socialist-style capitalism, few countries have ever witnessed so much change in a hundred year period as China during the twentieth century. How are we to make sense out of this seeming chaos? This course will offer an overview of the upheavals that China has experienced from the late Qing to the Post-Mao era, interspersed with personal perspectives revealed in primary source readings such as memoirs, novels, and oral accounts. We will start with an analysis of the painful transition from the last empire, the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), to a modern nation state, followed by exploration of a century-long tale of incessant reform and revolution. The survey will focus on three main themes: 1) the repositioning of China in the new East Asian and world orders; 2) the emergence of a modern Chinese state and nationalistic identity shaped and reshaped by a series of cultural crises; and finally, 3) the development and transformation of Chinese modernity. Major historical developments include: the Opium War and drug trade in the age of imperialism, reform and revolution, the Nationalist regime, Mao's China, the Cultural Revolution, and the ongoing efforts of post-Mao China to move beyond Communism. We will conclude with a critical review of the concept of "Greater China" that takes into account Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the Chinese diaspora in order to attain a more comprehensive understanding of modern China, however defined, at the end of the last century.	EALC0730401	Cross Cultural Analysis History & Tradition Sector	World	East/South Asia
HIST 0720-401	Strife: A History of the Greeks	Jeremy James Mcinerney	MW 12:00 PM-12:59 PM	The Greeks enjoy a special place in the construction of western culture and identity, and yet many of us have only the vaguest notion of what their culture was like. A few Greek myths at bedtime when we are kids, maybe a Greek tragedy like Sophokles' Oidipous when we are at school: these are often the only contact we have with the world of the ancient Mediterranean. The story of the Greeks, however, deserves a wider audience, because so much of what we esteem in our own culture derives from them: democracy, epic poetry, lyric poetry, tragedy, history writing, philosophy, aesthetic taste, all of these and many other features of cultural life enter the West from Greece. The oracle of Apollo at Delphi had inscribed over the temple, "Know Thyself." For us, that also means knowing the Greeks. We will cover the period from the Late Bronze Age, c. 1500 BC, down to the time of Alexander the Great, concentrating on the two hundred year interval from 600-400 BC.	ANCH0101401, CLST0101401	History & Tradition Sector Cross Cultural Analysis	European	Europe
HIST 0724-401	Portraits of Old Rus: Myth, Icon, Chronicle	Julia Verkholantsev	TR 10:15 AM-11:44 AM	Three modern-day nation-states – Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus – share and dispute the cultural heritage of Old Rus, and their political relationships revolve around interpretations of the past. Has the medieval Rus state been established by the Vikings or by the local Slavs? Is early Rus a mother state of Russia or of Ukraine, and, therefore, should it be spelled ‘Kyivan Rus,’ or ‘Kievan Rus’ in English? Has the culture of Russian political despotism been inherited from the Mongols, or is it an autochthonous ideology? The constructed past has a continuing importance in modern Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus, and it is keenly referenced, often manipulatively, in contemporary social and political discourse. For example, President Putin invaded Ukraine under a pretense that its territory has “always” been an integral part of Russia and its history. The course covers eight centuries of cultural, political, and social history of the lands that are now within the borders of Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus, from early historical records through the 18th century, a period that laid the foundation for the Russian Empire and the formation of modern nations. Students gain knowledge about formative events and prominent figures, as well as social and cultural developments during this period. The course takes multidisciplinary approach by combining the study of textual sources, objects of art and architecture, music, ritual, and film in their social and historical contexts. Students learn to analyze and interpret primary sources (historical documents and literary texts), identify their intellectual issues, and understand the historical, cultural, and social contexts in which these sources emerged. While working with these primary sources students learn to pose questions about their value and reliability as historical evidence. By exposing students to the critical examination of “the uses of the past,” the course aims to teach them to appreciate the authoritative nature of historical interpretation and its practical application in contemporary social and political rhetoric. The study of pre-modern cultural and political history through the prism of nationalism theories explains many aspects of modern Belarusian, Russian, and Ukrainian societies, as well as political aspirations of their leaders. At the end of the course, students should develop understanding of the continuity and change in the history of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, their belief systems, and nationalistic ideologies, and will be able to speak and write about these issues with competence and confidence.	REES0100401, REES6100401	Cross Cultural Analysis History & Tradition Sector	European, Intellectual	Europe
HIST 0730-401	Introduction to the Ancient Middle East	Emily L Hammer	MW 3:30 PM-4:59 PM	The great pyramids and mysterious mummies of Egypt, the fabled Tower of Babel, and the laws of the Babylonian king Hammurabi are some of the things that might come to mind when you think of the ancient Middle East. Yet these are only a very few of the many fascinating -- and at time perplexing -- aspects of the civilizations that flourished there c. 3300-300 BCE. This is where writing first developed, where people thought that the gods wrote down what would happen in the future on the lungs and livers of sacrificed sheep, and where people knew how to determine the length of hypotenuse a thousand years before the Greek Pythagoras was born. During this course, we will learn more about these other matters and discover their place in the cultures and civilizations of that area. This is an interdisciplinary survey of the history, society and culture of the ancient Middle East, in particular Egypt and Mesopotamia, utilizing extensive readings from ancient texts in translation (including the Epic of Gilgamesh, "one of the great masterpieces of world literature"), but also making use of archaeological and art historical materials. The goal of the course is to gain an appreciation of the various societies of the time, to understand some of their great achievements, to become acquainted with some of the fascinating individuals of the time (such as Hatshepsut, "the women pharaoh," and Akhenaten, "the heretic king"), and to appreciate the rich heritage that they have left us.	ANCH0100401, MELC0001401	History & Tradition Sector	World	Africa/Middle East
HIST 0753-401	City & Citizenship: Samurai Politics and Commoner Culture in Early Modern Japan	David Spafford	MW 10:15 AM-11:44 AM	In the early modern period (1600-1867), Japan underwent a staggering urban transformation. Edo, the shogunal capital, grew in barely a century from a new settlement to a sprawling metropolis of over a million. Indeed, most of Japan's current urban centers descend directly from the castle towns built by regional warlords in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries in an effort keep the peace after over a hundred years of civil war. As a result, Japanese cities in the early modern period became a central component of what historians have called a "re-feudalization" of society, and retained strong vestiges of their military origins. At the same time the samurai-centered space of the new cities created opportunities for the development of alternative cultural practices and values by urban commoners. The juxtaposition of the regimented, honor-driven society designed and longed for by samurai and the fluid, money-driven society that grew out of the burgeoning cities' commoner quarters is one of the animating forces of the early modern period. Through study of scholarship and contemporary sources (laws and sumptuary regulations, codes of conducts, but also diaries, novels, plays), this course will explore the many facets of early modern urban society, its medieval antecedents, and its legacies in contemporary Japan.	EALC3742401, EALC7742401	Cross Cultural Analysis	World	East/South Asia
HIST 0811-401	Faculty-Student Collaborative Action Seminar in Urban University-Community Rltn	Ira Harkavy Theresa E Simmonds	W 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	This seminar helps students develop their capacity to solve strategic, real-world problems by working collaboratively in the classroom, on campus, and in the West Philadelphia community. Students develop proposals that demonstrate how a Penn undergraduate education might better empower students to produce, not simply "consume," societally-useful knowledge, as well as to function as caring, contributing citizens of a democratic society. Their proposals help contribute to the improvement of education on campus and in the community, as well as to the improvement of university-community relations. Additionally, students provide college access support at Paul Robeson High School for one hour each week.	AFRC1780401, URBS1780401	Cultural Diviserity in the U.S.	American	US
HIST 0812-401	Perspectives on Urban Poverty	Robert P Fairbanks	M 5:15 PM-8:14 PM	This course provides an interdisciplinary introduction to 20th century urban poverty, and 20th century urban poverty knowledge. In addition to providing an historical overview of American poverty, the course is primarily concerned with the ways in which historical, cultural, political, racial, social, spatial/geographical, and economic forces have either shaped or been left out of contemporary debates on urban poverty. Of great importance, the course will evaluate competing analytic trends in the social sciences and their respective implications in terms of the question of what can be known about urban poverty in the contexts of social policy and practice, academic research, and the broader social imaginary. We will critically analyze a wide body of literature that theorizes and explains urban poverty. Course readings span the disciplines of sociology, anthropology, urban studies, history, and social welfare. Primacy will be granted to critical analysis and deconstruction of course texts, particularly with regard to the ways in which poverty knowledge creates, sustains, and constricts meaningful channels of action in urban poverty policy and practice interventions.	SOCI2944401, URBS4200401	Cultural Diviserity in the U.S.	American, Economic	US
HIST 0850-401	Introduction to Modern India	Ramya Sreenivasan	MW 12:00 PM-1:29 PM	This introductory course will provide an outline of major events and themes in Indian history, from the Mughal Empire in the 16th century to the re-emergence of India as a global player in the 21st century. The course will discuss the following themes: society and economy in Mughal India; global trade between India and the West in the 17th century; the rise of the English East India Company's control over Indian subcontinent in the 18th century; its emergence and transformation of India into a colonial economy; social and religious reform movements in the 19th century; the emergence of elite and popular anti-colonial nationalisms; independence and the partition of the subcontinent; the emergence of the world's largest democracy; the making of an Indian middle class; and the nuclearization of South Asia.	SAST0001401	Cross Cultural Analysis History & Tradition Sector	World	East/South Asia
HIST 0851-401	India: Culture and Society	Ketaki Umesh Jaywant	MW 1:45 PM-3:14 PM	What makes India INDIA? Religion and Philosophy? Architectural splendor? Kingdoms? Caste? The position of women? This course will introduce students to India by studying a range of social and cultural institutions that have historically assumed to be definitive India. Through primary texts, novels and historical sociological analysis, we will ask how these institutions have been reproduced and transformed, and assess their significance for contemporary Indian society.	RELS0008401, SAST0008401	Humanties & Social Science Sector Cross Cultural Analysis	World	East/South Asia
HIST 0870-401	Introduction to Digital Humanities	Whitney A Trettien	M 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	This course provides an introduction to foundational skills common in digital humanities (DH). It covers a range of new technologies and methods and will empower scholars in literary studies and across humanities disciplines to take advantage of established and emerging digital research tools. Students will learn basic coding techniques that will enable them to work with a range data including literary texts and utilize techniques such as text mining, network analysis, and other computational approaches. See the English Department's website at www.english.upenn.edu for a description of the current offerings.	COML1650401, ENGL1650401	Humanties & Social Science Sector
HIST 0876-401	Medicine in History	Rana Asali Hogarth	TR 12:00 PM-12:59 PM	This course surveys the history of medical knowledge and practice from antiquity to the present. No prior background in the history of science or medicine is required. The course has two principal goals: (1)to give students a practical introduction to the fundamental questions and methods of the history of medicine, and (2)to foster a nuanced, critical understanding of medicine's complex role in contemporary society. The couse takes a broadly chronological approach, blending the perspectives of the patient,the physician,and society as a whole--recognizing that medicine has always aspired to "treat" healthy people as well as the sick and infirm. Rather than history "from the top down"or "from the bottom up,"this course sets its sights on history from the inside out. This means, first, that medical knowledge and practice is understood through the personal experiences of patients and caregivers. It also means that lectures and discussions will take the long-discredited knowledge and treatments of the past seriously,on their own terms, rather than judging them by todays's standards. Required readings consist largely of primary sources, from elite medical texts to patient diaries. Short research assignments will encourge students to adopt the perspectives of a range of actors in various historical eras.	HSOC0400401, STSC0400401	History & Tradition Sector	World	Global Issues
HIST 1119-401	History of American Law to 1877		TR 8:30 AM-9:59 AM	This course is designed to explore major themes and events in early American legal history. Because of the richness of the subject matter and the wealth of sources available, we will be selective in our focus. The course will emphasize several core areas of legal development that run throughout colonial and early national history: 1) the state: including topics such as war and other military or police action, insurrection, revolution, regulation, courts, economic policy, and public health; 2) labor: including race and racially-based slavery, varied forms of servitude and labor coercion, household labor, industrialization, unionization, and market development; 3) property: including property in persons, land, and business, and the role of lawyers in promoting the creation of wealth; 4) private spaces: including family, individual rights, sexuality, gender, and private relations of authority; 5) constitutionalism: various methods of setting norms (rules, principles, values) that create, structure, and define the limits of government power and authority in colonial/imperial, state, and national contexts; 6) democracy and belonging: including questions of citizenship, voting rights, and participation in public life. By placing primary sources within historical context, the course will expose students to the ways that legal change has affected the course of American history and contemporary life. The course will be conducted primarily in lecture format, but I invite student questions and participation. In the end, the central aim of this course is to acquaint students with a keen sense of the ways that law has operated to liberate, constrain, and organize Americans. Ideally, students will come away with sharper critical thinking and reading skills, as well. This course is a core requirement for the Legal Studies and History Minor (LSHS).	AFRC1119401	Cultural Diviserity in the U.S.	American, Intellectual, Political	pre-1800, US
HIST 1153-401	Transformations of Urban America: Making the Unequal Metropolis, 1945 to Today	Randall B Cebul	MW 1:45 PM-3:14 PM	The course traces the economic, social, and political history of American cities after World War II. It focuses on how the economic problems of the industrial city were compounded by the racial conflicts of the 1950s and 1960s and the fiscal crises of the 1970s. The last part of the course examines the forces that have led to the revitalization and stark inequality of cities in recent years.	URBS1153401	Society Sector Cultural Diviserity in the U.S.	American, Economic	US
HIST 1171-401	The American South 1865-Present	William Sturkey	TR 10:15 AM-11:14 AM	This course will trace the history of the American South from the end of the Civil War to the present. Charting its course out of the smoldering aftermath of the post-Civil War South, it will track a narrative of politics, economics, and culture across more than 150 years of life in the modern American South. The course will include deep examinations of race, gender, and culture, including a broad set of Southern stories and voices in an interdisciplinary journey across what is perhaps America’s most storied region.	AFRC1171401	Cultural Diviserity in the U.S. History & Tradition Sector	American	US
HIST 1190-001	American Diplomatic History Since 1776	Walter A Mcdougall	TR 10:15 AM-11:44 AM	Survey course tracing the origins and evolution of the great traditions of U.S. foreign policy, including Exceptionalism, Unilateralism, Manifest Destiny, Wilsonianism, etc., by which Americans have tried to define their place in the world. Three hours of lecture per week, extensive reading, no recitations.			American, Diplomatic	US
HIST 1200-401	Foundations of European Thought: from Rome to the Renaissance	Ann Elizabeth Moyer	TR 10:15 AM-11:44 AM	This course offers an introduction to the world of thought and learning at the heart of European culture, from the Romans through the Renaissance. We begin with the ancient Mediterranean and the formation of Christianity and trace its transformation into European society. Along the way we will examine the rise of universities and institutions for learning, and follow the humanist movement in rediscovering and redefining the ancients in the modern world.	COML1201401, ITAL1201401	Cross Cultural Analysis History & Tradition Sector	European, Intellectual	Europe, pre-1800
HIST 1201-001	Foundations of Law	Ada M Kuskowski	MW 10:15 AM-11:44 AM	This course explores the history and conceptual underpinnings of modern law in the West. What exactly is law? What is its relationship with politics and religion? Where do our notions of constitutionalism come from? How have we come to think in terms of rights? Using a historical and comparative approach, we will examine legal thought and culture in the European West from the Greek concept of nomos to the main categories of law developed in Roman antiquity, concepts of constitutionalism and rights crafted in medieval Europe, the development of the two main legal traditions of Europe (Common Law and Civil Law), and the emergence of intellectual property, human rights discourse and modern international law. The course will blend intellectual, political and social history. We will study concepts and intellectual categories such as crime, proof, punishment and the public/private distinction alongside illustrative cases that either exemplified the law or pushed it forward, foundational documents such as Magna Carta, and political developments such as the Peace of Westphalia, credited with the birth of modern state sovereignty and modern international law. Together, these subjects form core foundations of how we think and do law today.			European, Intellectual	Europe, pre-1800
HIST 1222-001	Ireland and the Atlantic World		MW 12:00 PM-1:29 PM	This course examines Ireland before 1800. It considers it in relation to Europe and the Atlantic world — including the expanding English and later British empire — of which it was sometimes part. We will examine Ireland as a site of colonization (or "plantation") and its involvement in colonial settlement, trade, and empire around the Atlantic from the sixteenth century through the eighteenth centuries.			Diplomatic, European	Europe, pre-1800
HIST 1280-401	Origins of Nazism: From Democracy to Race War and Genocide	Anne K Berg	CANCELED	Where did the Nazis come from? Was the Weimar Republic bound to fail? Did the Treaty of Versailles or the Great Depression catapult the Nazis into power? What was the role of racism, of antisemitism? How did the regime consolidate itself? What was the role of ordinary people? How do we explain the Holocaust and what kind of a war was the Second World War? Grappling with these and more questions, the first half of the course focuses on Germany’s first democracy, the Weimar Republic and its vibrant political culture. In the second half, we study the Nazi regime, how it consolidated its power and remade society based on the concepts of race and struggle. Discussions of race and race-making are crucial throughout the course. In the name of “racial purity,” the Nazi state moved ruthlessly against Germany’s Jewish population, cleansed German society of all “undesirable” elements, and waged a brutal war of extermination that aimed to racially reorder all of Europe. Thinking about Nazi racism and genocide, their origins and trajectories, in both its particular specifics and in a larger historical context is the main goal of this course.	GRMN1306401	History & Tradition Sector	European, Political	Europe
HIST 1550-401	East Asian Diplomacy	Frederick R. Dickinson	MW 10:15 AM-11:14 AM	Home to four of the five most populous states and four of the five largest economies, the Asia/Pacific is arguably the most dynamic region in the twenty-first century. At the same time, Cold War remnants (a divided Korea and China) and major geopolitical shifts (the rise of China and India, decline of the US and Japan) contribute significantly to the volatility of our world. This course will examine the political, economic, and geopolitical dynamism of the region through a survey of relations among the great powers in Asia from the sixteenth century to the present. Special emphasis will be given to regional and global developments from the perspective of the three principal East Asian states--China, Japan and Korea. We will explore the many informal, as well as formal, means of intercourse that have made East Asia what it is today. Graduate students should consult graduate syllabus for graduate reading list, special recitation time and graduate requirements.	EALC1711401, EALC5711401, HIST5550401		Diplomatic, Political, World	East/South Asia
HIST 1625-401	Era of Revolutions in the Atlantic World	Roquinaldo Ferreira	MW 7:00 PM-8:29 PM	This class examines the global ramifications of the era of Atlantic revolutions from the 1770s through the 1820s. With a particular focus on French Saint Domingue and Latin America, it provides an overview of key events and individuals from the period. Along the way, it assesses the impact of the American and French revolutions on the breakdown of colonial regimes across the Americas. Students will learn how to think critically about citizenship, constitutional power, and independence movements throughout the Atlantic world. Slavery and the transatlantic slave trade were seriously challenged in places such as Haiti, and the class investigates the appropriation and circulation of revolutionary ideas by enslaved people and other subaltern groups.	AFRC1625401, LALS1625401		Political, World	Latin America/Caribbean, pre-1800
HIST 1740-401	Capitalism, Socialism, and Crisis in the 20th Century Americas	Amy C Offner	MW 8:30 AM-9:59 AM	From the crisis of the Great Depression through the 1970s, the United States and Latin America produced remarkable efforts to remake society and political economy. This course analyzes the Cuban and Guatemalan revolutions, as well as social movements that transformed the United States: the black freedom movement, the labor movement, and changing forms of Latinx politics. In all three countries, Americans looked for ways to reform capitalism or build socialism; address entrenched patterns of racism; define and realize democracy; and achieve national independence. They conceived of these challenges in dramatically different ways. Together, we’ll compare national histories and analyze the relationships between national upheavals.	LALS1740401	Cross Cultural Analysis History & Tradition Sector	American, Economic, Political, World	Latin America/Caribbean, US
HIST 1785-401	American Expansion in the Pacific	Eiichiro Azuma	MW 3:30 PM-4:59 PM	This course examines America's expansion into the Pacific with a focus on the colonization of Hawai'i and the Philippines. The class deals with various issues, including the meaning of "frontier," imperialism, development of capitalist economies and trade relations in the region, diplomacy and militarism, migration and racism, and colonial histories of the US West, the Pacific Islands, and East Asia.	ASAM3100401		American, Diplomatic, World	East/South Asia, US
HIST 2104-401	American Books/Books in America	James N Green John Pollack	R 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	This course investigates book histories and the worlds of readers, printers, publishers, and libraries in the Americas, from the colonial period through the nineteenth century. See the English Department's website at www.english.upenn.edu for a description of the current offerings.	ENGL2604401		Intellectual	Seminar
HIST 2157-401	Petrosylvania: Fossil Fuel and Environmental Justice in Philadelphia	Jared Farmer	M 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	Fossil fuel powered the making--now the unmaking--of the modern world. As the first fossil fuel state, Pennsylvania led the United States toward an energy-intensive economy, a technological pathway with planetary consequences. The purpose of this seminar is to perform a historical accounting--and an ethical reckoning--of coal, oil, and natural gas. Specifically, students will investigate the histories and legacies of fossil fuel in connection to three entities: the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the City of Philadelphia, and the University of Pennsylvania. Under instructor guidance, students will do original research, some of it online, much the rest of it in archives, on and off campus, in and around Philadelphia. Philly-based research may also involve fieldwork. While based in historical sources and methods, this course intersects with business, finance, policy, environmental science, environmental engineering, urban and regional planning, public health, and social justice. Student projects may take multiple forms, individual and collaborative, from traditional papers to data visualizations prepared with assistance from the Price Lab for Digital Humanities. Through their research, students will contribute to a multi-year project that will ultimately be made available to the public.	ENVS2400401		American	Seminar, US
HIST 2201-401	The City of Rome: From Constantine to the Borgias	Ann Elizabeth Moyer	TR 1:45 PM-3:14 PM	The great city of Rome outlived its empire and its emperors. What happened to the Eternal City after “the fall of the Roman Empire in the West?” In this course, we will follow the story of this great city, its people, its buildings old and new, and its legacy across Italy, Europe, and beyond. Rome rebuilt and reshaped itself through the Middle Ages: home for popes, destination for pilgrims, power broker for Italy. It became a great Renaissance and early modern city, a center of art and architecture, of religion, and of politics. We will be reading a mix of primary sources and modern scholarship. All required texts are in English, though students who take this course for Italian Studies credit may choose to read some works in Italian.	ITAL2201401	Cross Cultural Analysis	European, Intellectual	Europe, pre-1800, Seminar
HIST 2261-301	"Dark Continent”: Ethnic Cleansing and Genocide in Modern Europe		W 3:30 PM-6:29 PM	Genocide has caused millions of deaths and untold suffering in twentieth-century Europe; so have the many wars fought on the continent and in European colonies. What is more, genocides mostly took place during armed conflict, while new technologies, especially aerial bombing, resulted in many civilian casualties. Legally categorizing, regulating, or criminalizing these practices occurred at the same time, meaning that the legality of killing non-combatants—whether by their own or another state—was uncertain and contested. What is more, the concept of genocide was invented only in 1944, well after events now often called genocide. This class poses basic questions about this violent period of European history: How and why did armed conflict and violence against civilians occur? How are war and genocide related? How, if at all, does localized violence (the micro-level) relate to broader (the macro-level) processes like state decomposition, formation, and consolidation? Or is racial hatred really the main factor? How were the categories of civilians (“innocent women and children”), war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide constructed in the history of the law of armed conflict (“international humanitarian law”)? How did contemporaries define and categorize violence excess? How is gender implicated in war and genocide? In answering these questions, the class takes a long view of the twentieth century, beginning with the “eastern crisis,” decades before the First World War, when European powers sought to gain advantage in the anticipated demise of the Ottoman Empire. It proceeds chronologically by examining a new type of ethnic warfare waged in the Balkan Wars of 1912/13, and then the experience of civilians during the First World War and Second World Wars, including the Holocaust and other Axis victims. The class also covers the Soviet violence against perceived internal enemies. The question of postwar stability during the Cold War is set against the massive population expulsions of the mid-1940s, and Europeans’ subsequent use of violence to maintain their colonial empires. The class concludes by considering the reasons for the renewal of war and genocide in Europe after the Cold War.			European	Europe, Seminar
HIST 2451-401	Haiti's Odious Debt and Beyond (1825-2025)	Marc R Flandreau	TR 5:15 PM-6:44 PM	This seminar will ponder Haiti's experience of debt and underdevelopment going back to the 19th century. Taking cues from the debate started by the New York Times in 2023, we will read and discuss texts describing debt, debt crisis, focusing on the interaction between global and local politics, the problem of debt forgiveness, etc. The approach will be chronological, with readings that will engage with the manner in which alternative capital markets set up reverberated locally and vice versa. We will also invite a number of Haitian and other scholars through interactive zoom sessions. While the seminar is focused in the case of Haiti we will also discuss broader implications.	ECON0471401, LALS2451401		Economic, World	Latin America/Caribbean, Seminar
HIST 2706-301	Wastes of War: A Century of Destruction	Anne K Berg	CANCELED	This seminar examines the human and environmental consequences of violent conflict from the South African War at the beginning of the 20th century to the War on Terror. War violently transforms the social and physical environment. War reshuffles ideologies, reimagines futures and reshapes alliances, destroys bodies, spaces, societies, habitats, ecosystems and cultures. And of course, there’s no war that doesn’t produce a whole host of wastes, and as a result, inspires a multitude of strategies to combat and eradicate them. In this course, we approach war as an engine of destruction and transformation rather than as politics gone awry. The wastes of war will serve as our focal point as we study the new worlds (technological, social and environmental) that war not merely leaves in its wake but systematically generates. Critically examining two key categories – “waste” and “war” in tandem, we discover how together they fundamentally restructure our social, cultural and natural worlds in unexpected ways.				Global Issues, Seminar
HIST 3160-301	The Vietnam War	Amy C Offner	T 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	This intensive research seminar explores the US war in Vietnam, its contestation, and its afterlives. Students will conduct independent archival research to produce an original essay on a topic of their choice. Papers might explore the political origins and consequences of the war; the catastrophic destruction that the war wrought in Vietnam; the relationship of the war to race, class, and gender inequalities in the trans-Pacific and the United States; the anti-war movement of the 1960s and 1970s; the war’s devastating health and environmental consequences in the US and Vietnam; the experiences of Vietnamese, Korean, Filipino, and US soldiers who fought in Vietnam; US-sponsored programs for capitalist development that formed part of the war; the role of Vietnamese and US religious communities in the war; the GI movement that resisted both the war and racism in the military; the role of US scientists, social scientists and corporations in facilitating the war effort, and the reckoning they faced; the resettlement of Vietnamese refugees across the Pacific and the United States after 1975; postwar initiatives for restitution, justice, and reconciliation; and disability politics that emerged from the war. History majors may use this course to fulfill requirements for the Diplomatic, Intellectual, or Political History concentration, depending on the topic of the research paper.			American, Diplomatic, Intellectual, Political	Research, Seminar, US
HIST 3203-401	Conversion in Historical Perspective: Religion, Society, and Self	Anne O Albert	T 3:30 PM-6:29 PM	Changes of faith are complex shifts that involve social, spiritual, intellectual, and even physical alterations. In the premodern West, when legal status was often determined by religious affiliation and the state of one’s soul was a deathly serious matter, such changes were even more fraught. What led a person to undertake an essential transformation of identity that could affect everything from food to family to spiritual fulfillment? Whether we are speaking of individual conversions of conscience or the coerced conversions of whole peoples en masse, religious change has been central to the global development and spread of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, and reveals much about the people and contexts in which it took place. This seminar will explore the dynamics of conversion across a range of medieval and early modern contexts. We will investigate the motivations for conversions, the obstacles faced by converts, and the issues raised by conversion from the perspective of those who remained within a single tradition. How did conversion efforts serve globalization and empire, and what other power relations were involved? How did peoplehood, nationality, or race play out in conversion and its aftermath? How did premodern people understand conversion differently from each other, and differently than their coreligionists or scholars do today? The course will treat a number of specific examples, including autobiographical conversion narratives and conversion manuals, the role ascribed to conversion in visions of messianic redemption, forced conversions under Spanish and Ottoman rule, missionizing in the age of European expansion, and more. The course aims to hone students’ skills in thinking about—and with—premodern religiosity, opening up new perspectives on the past and present by reading primary texts and analytical research.	JWST3207401, RELS3207401		European, Jewish, World	Europe, Global Issues, pre-1800, Research, Seminar
HIST 3260-301	Connected Histories: Spain and the Americas 1890-1960	Antonio Feros	R 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	This seminar is divided into three parts: Part I focuses on the Spanish-Cuban-Philippine-American War and its consequences (1880-1910). We will examine how the United States, Spain, and Latin American nations interpreted the war and explore its social, political, and international ramifications. Topics include empires and imperialism, the definitive fall of the Spanish Empire following the loss of Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the Philippines, and the rise of the American Empire. Additionally, we will analyze common challenges faced by both sides, such as slavery and racism. Part II centers on the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) and how it was perceived and experienced by Americans and Spaniards. We will read and discuss personal accounts of the war and debate the roles and responsibilities of American nations’ governments regarding the conflict. Part III addresses the consequences of the Spanish Civil War (1939-1960) from both internal and international perspectives. This includes the establishment of the Francoist regime, its internal politics, and the United States’ reactions to Spain during and after World War II. We will conclude with an analysis of the 1953 Pacts of Madrid, which marked the U.S. government’s official recognition of Franco’s regime and its commitment to providing financial aid and international support to Spain.			American, Diplomatic, European, World	Europe, Latin America/Caribbean, Research, Seminar, US
HIST 3350-401	Religion and Colonial Rule in Africa	Cheikh Ante Mbacke Babou	R 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	This course is designed to introduce students to the religious experiences of Africans and to the politics of culture. We will examine how traditional African religious ideas and practices interacted with Christianity and Islam. We will look specifically at religious expressions among the Yoruba, Southern African independent churches and millenarist movements, and the variety of Muslim organizations that developed during the colonial era. The purpose of this course is threefold. First, to develop in students an awareness of the wide range of meanings of conversion and people's motives in creating and adhering to religious institutions; Second, to examine the political, cultural, and psychological dimensions in the expansion of religious social movements; And third, to investigate the role of religion as counterculture and instrument of resistance to European hegemony. Topics include: Mau Mau and Maji Maji movements in Kenya and Tanzania, Chimurenga in Mozambique, Watchtower churches in Southern Africa, anti-colonial Jihads in Sudan and Somalia and mystical Muslim orders in Senegal.	AFRC3350401	Cross Cultural Analysis	Diplomatic, World	Africa/Middle East, Research, Seminar
HIST 3500-401	Women and the Making of Modern South Asia	Ramya Sreenivasan	MW 3:30 PM-4:59 PM	This course on women in South Asian history has four objectives - 1. To acquaint ourselves with the historiography on South Asian women. 2. To gain an understanding of evolving institutions and practices shaping women's lives, such as the family, law and religious traditions. 3. To understand the impact of historical processes - the formation and breakdown of empire, colonialism, nationalism and decolonization - upon South Asian women between the sixteenth and twentieth centuries. 4. To become familiar with some of the significant texts written about and by women in this period. We will read a wide variety of primary sources including a Mughal princess' account, devotional verse authored by women, conduct books, tracts, autobiographies and novels.	GSWS2601401, SAST2260401		Gender, World	East/South Asia, pre-1800, Research, Seminar
HIST 3910-401	Immigration and the Making of US Law	Hardeep Dhillon	MW 10:15 AM-11:44 AM	This course illuminates how debates over immigration have transformed the legal contours of the United States. We examine the evolution of federal immigration policy and the legal battles immigrants waged against exclusionary practices in the U.S. from the mid-nineteenth century to the 1980s. The key federal and state cases explored in this course center on national citizenship, housing segregation, and school segregation. In addition to considering the key legal issues at stake in these cases, this course also encourages an analysis of the roles race, disability, gender, and labor play in shaping U.S. law within the context of immigration history.	ASAM3110401, LALS3911401		American	US
HIST 3965-401	The International Monetary System from Sterling to Cryptocurrency (1720-2020)	Marc R Flandreau	TR 3:30 PM-4:59 PM	The course will cover the modern evolution of the international monetary system going all the way back to the era when sterling became the leading international currencies. It is arranged thematically and chronologically both. The lessons and readings will introduce students to the principal evolutions of the international monetary system and at the same time, it will give them an understanding of regimes, their mechanics and the geopolitical economies behind systemic shifts. Students need not have an economic background but must be prepared to read about exchange rates (and world politics). Special focus on: The early modern international monetary system. How Amsterdam and London captured the Spanish treasure. Beyond the West (Ottoman Empire, India, China). The Napoleonic wars and the rise of sterling. Hong-Kong: Silver, Opium, and the Recycling of Surpluses. The emergence of the Gold Standard. Bimetallism: The US election of 1796. Sterling and Key Currencies before WWI. The First World War and the origins of dollar supremacy. When the dollar displaced sterling (1920s). The collapse of the international gold standard (1930s). The Bretton Woods System. The rise and rise of the US dollar. Currency competition (Dollar, Euro, Yuan Renminbi). The meaning of cryptocurrencies.	ECON0615401		Economic, European, World	Global Issues
HIST 4103-401	Women and the Civil Rights Movement	Marcia Chatelain	CANCELED	This advanced undergraduate course examines women’s role in the U.S. Civil Rights Movement, with an emphasis on women’s activism, impact, and gender dynamics in social movements. This course will use first-hand narratives as well as monographs to provide an overview of women’s experiences in major organizations, including the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee and the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. Through writing assignments, students will have an opportunity to strengthen their expository writing, as well as their primary and secondary research skills.	AFRC4203401, GSWS4203401
HIST 4998-301	Senior Honors in History	Eiichiro Azuma	T 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	Open to senior honors candidates in history who will write their honors thesis during this seminar.				Research, Seminar
HIST 5550-401	East Asian Diplomacy	Frederick R. Dickinson	MW 10:15 AM-11:14 AM	Home to four of the five most populous states and four of the five largest economies, the Asia/Pacific is arguably the most dynamic region in the twenty-first century. At the same time, Cold War remnants (a divided Korea and China) and major geopolitical shifts (the rise of China and India, decline of the US and Japan) contribute significantly to the volatility of our world. This course will examine the political, economic, and geopolitical dynamism of the region through a survey of relations among the great powers in Asia from the sixteenth century to the present. Special emphasis will be given to regional and global developments from the perspective of the three principal East Asian states--China, Japan and Korea. We will explore the many informal, as well as formal, means of intercourse that have made East Asia what it is today. Graduate students should consult graduate syllabus for graduate reading list, special recitation time and graduate requirements.	EALC1711401, EALC5711401, HIST1550401
HIST 6130-301	Topics in 20th & 21st Cent US History: African American History	William Sturkey	T 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	Reading and discussion course on selected topics in 20th & 21st US history.
HIST 6220-301	Topics in Early Mod Euro History: Knowledge & Power in Early Mod Europe		W 3:30 PM-6:29 PM	Reading and Discussion course on selected topics in Early Modern European History.
HIST 6300-301	Topics in Asian History: Transnatinal Asia History & Historiography	Si-Yen Fei	T 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	Reading and discussion course on selected topics in Asian History.
HIST 6500-301	Topics in African History: Reading the Global, Ocean Worlds, Empires and LIves	Roquinaldo Ferreira	T 7:00 PM-9:59 PM	Reading and discussion course on selected topics in African history
HIST 6720-301	Seminar: Transregional Gender Hist: Gender, Race & Sexuality in Comparative Perspective	Kathleen M Brown	R 1:45 PM-4:44 PM	Reading and discussion course on selected topics in Transregional Gender History
HIST 7000-301	Proseminar in History	Ada M Kuskowski	T 8:30 AM-11:29 AM	Weekly readings, discussions, and writing assignments to develop a global perspective within which to study human events in various regional/cultural milieus, c. 1400 to the present. This course is required for all PhD students, and is taken in the first year of study.