Undergraduate Course: Viking Studies (ELCS10034)
Course Outline
| School | School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course addresses the historical developments referred to collectively as the Viking Age, c 800-1066 AD. The intention is to investigate Scandinavian Iron Age society in an attempt to identify possible reasons for the Viking expansion, to survey the various forms the expansion took and to explore the legacy it left behind. There will be a special focus on raids and settlement in the British Isles and the North Atlantic. Emphasis throughout will be on the critical interpretation of the various sources available historical, archaeological, genetic, onomastic, literary as well as the ways in which different kinds of sources can be used to supplement one another. |
| Course description |
W1: General Introduction / History: Written Sources & Historiography
Debate - Perceptions, Points of View & Prejudices
W2: Archaeology
Tutorial: Reading the Material Record
W3: Language & Literacy
Place-Names
W4: Iron Age Scandinavia
The Viking Ship
W5: Life & Death
Social Structure & World View
W6: Scotland before the Viking Age
War or Peace in the Western Isles?
W7: The Gall-Ghàidheil
Ritual & Belief
W8: Student Presentations
W9: The Northern Isles
The North Atlantic
W10: North America and The Vinland Sagas
W11: The Scandinavian Influence on English & Scots
The Viking Legacy: Use & Abuse
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | Familiarity with a modern Scandinavian language or Old Norse would be advantageous. However, as all main texts will be read in English translation, this is not crucial. |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2017/18, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
|
Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Summative Assessment Hours 2,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
172 )
|
| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
70 %,
Coursework
30 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Continuous assessment for Edinburgh University Students and Visiting Students - one essay of 2000 words (30%), plus a two hour exam (70%). |
| Feedback |
Not entered |
| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Hours & Minutes |
|
| Main Exam Diet S2 (April/May) | | 2:00 | |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Demonstrate a sound understanding of the historical developments referred to collectively as 'The Viking Age', and covered by the period c. AD 800-1066, from the reasons for the Viking expansion to the legacy it left behind.
- Execute a critical appraise the various forms taken by the Viking Expansion utilising a wide range of sources, approaches and methods of interpretation, including historical, archaeological, linguistic, and onomastic, crossing disciplines such as philology and history.
- Produce clear, complex reports, articles and essays, which develop arguments both critically and systematically with the use of relevant emphases, subsidiary points, and examples.
- Demonstrate finely honed communication, presentation and interaction skills across a wide range of media and circumstances, both formal and informal, for lay and specialised audiences.
- Consistently exercise autonomy and initiative, taking responsibility for the work of others and for a range of resources to bring about new thinking.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Viking,Expansion,Diaspora,Norse,Old Norse,Archaeology,Scandinavia,Medieval,History,Place-Names |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Alan Macniven
Tel: (0131 6)50 3279
Email: alan.macniven@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Gillian Paterson
Tel: (0131 6)50 3646
Email: Gillian.Paterson@ed.ac.uk |
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