Scottish Ethnology and Celtic, MA (Hons)

Uncover Scotland's past and help shape its future, while gaining skills that you can apply to any culture.This joint honours programme gives you the opportunity to study the languages, literatures and cultures of Scotland alongside the wider Celtic world, past and present. A highlight of the programme is the chance to work with the rich range of materials in the School of Scottish Studies Archives. These materials include thousands of hours of recordings of songs, music, stories, rhyme and verse in Scots, Gaelic and English, as well as in dialects now extinct.Scottish Ethnology Ethnology is the discipline which studies the culture and traditions of developed societies. It is sometimes described as being at the intersection where history and anthropology meet. While ethnology is commonly offered in universities across Europe, this is the only full undergraduate programme of its kind in the UK. Focusing on Scotland, but also looking at comparative material from elsewhere, you will study the varying ways in which a modern European nation expresses itself culturally.The programme explores questions like:

• How do customs, beliefs, social organisation, language, music and song help to create and shape identity in the modern world?

• How do we use and make sense of the past from within our present?

• How can this understanding help us to shape our future?

Celtic Study Celtic at the University of Edinburgh and you will learn about extraordinarily rich cultures from the Middle Ages to the present day. At all levels of study, we offer courses in language, literature, history, and culture. This enables you to build your programme by developing your own interests in particular areas, periods, and disciplines of Celtic studies. If you choose to learn Scottish Gaelic, you will develop a deeper understanding of Scottish literature and culture by being able to directly engage with primary sources.It doesn't matter if you are a complete beginner in Scottish Gaelic; we stream our Year 1 classes to suit all levels of prior knowledge or none. You can also learn a medieval Celtic language at honours level. The benefits of the four-year degreeOur four-year programme is extremely flexible. In Years 1 and 2, you will choose option courses from a broad list of disciplines, and specialise as you progress through your honours years.You can, for example, learn another language, or explore other world cultures.By the time you graduate, you will have developed the practical and intellectual tools to handle and interpret traditional resources, modern media and digital data. In this way, you will be ready to navigate and influence contemporary culture and society in an increasingly globalised world.