Courses – Autumn 2026
German Scandinavian / Swedish Yiddish
Please note that this webpage will be updated as information becomes available
For additional info about our GE course offerings, please check out our General Education Webpage.
online course / Frazier
German 2254.02 - Grimms Fairy Tales
GE Foundation: Literary, Visual, and Performing Arts (LVPA)
In the present online course, we will be trying to understand the meaning and the enduring appeal of one of Germany’s greatest successes in the realm of cultural exportation—a book whose circulation figures are exceeded in Western culture only by those of the Bible, namely, Grimms’ fairy tales.
This will mean asking a series of interlocking questions:
- How did the fairy tales come about?
- What were the aims of their compilers?
- How do the tales play to those aims?
- How do they exceed them? How do the tales tend to work structurally?
- What have their social and psychological effects been?
- How have they helped shape—and been reshaped by—popular cultures outside Germany, like popular culture in the U.S.
/ Byram
German 2350 - Introduction to German Studies
GE Foundation: Historical and Cultural Studies
This course provides a broad introduction to German history and culture and to the field of German Studies. Taught in English, it is an ideal course for students considering a major or minor in German, or for those with a general interest in German-language history and culture.
The course will have four components
- lectures on history (social, cultural, political, and linguistic)
- lectures on contemporary German-language society and culture
- discussion about works of literature, film, philosophy, art, music, etc.
- introductions to methods for studying language and culture
In the end, students will have a broad overview of German-language history and culture and a catalog of questions that will include tools for analyzing everything from medieval sagas to television shows, political speeches to the words they use.
Taught in English.
online course / Richards
German 3250 -- Citizenship in the Age of Technology: Exploring Social Justice through Science Fiction in Germany
GE Theme: Citizenship for a Diverse & Just World
This online course investigates the promises & pitfalls that technologies once confined to the pages of science fiction pose to our relationships, our communities, and our world, with a specific focus on the challenges they will bring to our concept of citizenship. Recent German science fiction will illuminate the debate on the future of democracy as it unfolds in Germany, the USA & in a broader global context.
-- GE course taught in English!
online course / Beringer
German 3252.02 -- The Holocaust in Literature and Film
GE Theme: Citizenship for a Diverse & Just World
Why, faced with a historical catastrophe of unimaginable proportions, would we devote a class to film and literature about it, rather than to “the facts”?
HOW YOU SAY THINGS MATTERS
Come find out why.
-- GE course taught in English!
/ Reitter *seats are limited
German 3254H -- Representations and Memory of the Holocaust in Film
Taught in English / GE Theme: Citizenship for a Diverse & Just World, Honors Course
Students will view, discuss, and examine major filmic representations of the Holocaust from several countries from the 1940s through the 1990s. Students will learn how these films have contributed to our understanding of a complex phenomenon of WWII and how the directors have coped with the thorny issues of representing something that many people consider to be unrepresentable.
Taught in English!
/ Davidson
German 3351 -- Democracy, Fascism and German Culture
Taught in English / GE Theme: Citizenship for a Diverse & Just World,
Culture of the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany in literature, film, the other arts; the roots of fascism and its echoes in postwar Germany.
Taught in English!
3689 / Brenner
German 3689 - Words Across the World
cross-listed with NESA and Spanish
GE Theme: Lived Environments
Language, at the heart of our social life, drives much of what humans do: converse, convey beliefs & views, label, categorize, include & exclude people. We'll critically examine how we use language to interact with our lived environments (LE) & analyze & discover ways in which words are used & manipulated to impact our LE & how changes & developments in our LE can have a direct effect on language.
-- Taught in English!
Scandvn 3350 / Kaplan
Scandinavian 3350 • Norse Mythology and Medieval Culture
-- taught in English!
GE Theme: Traditions, Cultures, and Transformations
What do we know about Thor and Odin and how do we know it? What do the Norse Myths tell us about the worldview and beliefs of pagan Scandinavia? What did medieval Christians think about these same stories? Students will read the most important surviving textual sources on Scandinavia's pre-Christian mythology and learn to analyze them as vehicles for meaning.
visit our GE section for even more info about our GE courses taught in English
German 1101.01 • German I
4 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
GE World Languages
Unlock a world of opportunities with our German 1101 course! Dive into the language and culture of the German-speaking world, mastering essential communication skills in a fun and interactive way. Whether you're aiming to work with global companies, travel, or simply expand your horizons, this course offers a solid foundation at CEFR Level A1. Join us to gain confidence in speaking, understand cultural nuances, and stand out in the job market. Enroll now and start your journey with expert instructors and a vibrant learning community! Not open to native speakers of this language through regular course enrollment or to students with 3 or more years of high school German. Students with 1+ years of high school German must take the MultiCAT German placement exam. For more information about German Placement exams, contact the CLLC.
German 1102.01 • German II
4 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
GE World Languages
Take your German skills to the next level with our German 1102 course! Build on your foundation with a focus on more complex language structures, sustained interactions, and enhanced reading and writing abilities. This course is designed to deepen your cultural knowledge and improve your communication skills, ensuring you are ready for any professional or personal scenario. Perfect for learners at CEFR Levels A1/A2, join us to continue your journey with expert guidance and a supportive community. Enroll now and elevate your German proficiency!
Prereq: 1101.01, 1101.02 or 4 sem cr hrs of 1101.51
German 1103.01 • German III
4 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
GE World Languages
Elevate your German proficiency with our German 1103 course, designed for independent language use! Engage in dynamic discussions, presentations, writing, and listening/viewing activities that delve into contemporary topics of the German-speaking world. Perfect for learners at CEFR Level A2, this course will enhance your ability to communicate effectively and confidently in various professional and personal contexts. Join us to continue your language journey with expert instructors and a vibrant community. Enroll now and take your German skills to new heights!
Prereq: 1102.01, 1102.02 or 4 sem cr hrs of 1102.51
For more information about German Placement exams, contact the CLLC.
German 1101.02 • 1102.02 • 1103.02 ~ Distance Learning option
GE World Languages
4 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
For more information about German Placement exams, contact the CLLC.
German 2101 • Texts and Contexts I: Contemporary German Language, Culture and Society
Beringer | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
Uskokovic | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
Development of communication skills and knowledge about recent social, cultural, and political developments in German speaking countries through texts, media and film; CEFR level A2/B1. Closed to native speakers of this language.
Prereq: 1103.01, 1103.02, or 4 sem cr hrs of 1103.51, or equiv, or permission of instructor. No audit.
German 2102 • Texts and Contexts II: 20th-Century German Language, History and Culture
Byram | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
Continued development of communication skills; gain an understanding of major social and cultural developments in 20th century German history through texts, media, film. CEFR level B1/B2. Closed to native speakers of this language.
Prereq: 2101 or equiv, or permission of instructor. FL Admis Cond course.
German 3101 • Texts and Contexts III: Historical Perspectives
Grotans | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
Development of intermediate/advanced communication skills; broadening of cultural and historical knowledge through interaction with literary and non-literary materials informed by historical perspective; CEFR level B2. Closed to to native speakers of this language.
Prereq: 2102 or equiv, or permission of instructor.
German 3600 • German Past and Present
Grotans | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
Understanding the German language in its historical development, standardization and its contemporary manifestations. Systematic overview of German phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, and varieties of modern German.
Prereq: 2102 or equiv, or permission of instructor.
Taught in German.
German 4200 • Senior Seminar in German: Literature, Art and Film (German)
Aupiais | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
Focused exploration of topics in German literature, art, and film as cultural expressions within transnational contexts, to improve students' historical knowledge, skills for exploring cultural and critical-intellectual traditions. Taught in German. Counts toward fulfillment of advanced requirement for the major.
Prereq: 3101, and one course at the 3000 level, and Sr standing; or permission of instructor.
Scandinavian 3350 • Norse Mythology and Medieval Culture
Kaplan | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
GE Theme: Traditions, Cultures, and Transformations
What do we know about Thor and Odin, and how do we know it?
This course examines the myths of the Old Norse gods and the sources in which those myths are recorded. Students will gain insight into the world view and beliefs of the medieval North by reading (in English translation) the most important textual sources on Scandinavia's pre-Christian mythology. Place-name, archaeological, and other evidence will also be discussed. Students intrigued by the Viking Age, medieval Northern Europe, or the interpretation of myth will find much of interest.
Taught in English.
Required texts: Carolyn Larrington's Poetic Edda, 2nd edition; Anthony Faulkes’s translation of Snorri Sturluson’s Edda (any edition; 978-0460876162 is fine); John Lindow’s Norse Mythology: A Guide to Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs (ISBN 0-195-153820); Optional: H. Mattingly and S. A. Handford’s translation of Tacitus, The Agricola and the Germania (again, any edition; 978-0140455403 is the most recent)
note:
Swedish language courses are offered online via BTAA CourseShare.
Here is the academic calendar at UMN.
BTAA CourseShare | 4 credit units | Autumn 2026
GE World Languages
- Beginning Swedish
Monday-Thursday, 11:15 - 12:05 pm Central / 12:15 - 1:05 pm Eastern - Intermediate Swedish
Monday-Thursday, 1:25 - 2:15 pm Central / 2:25 - 3:15 pm Eastern
Yiddish 3241 • Yiddish Culture
Zaritt | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
GE Theme: Traditions, Cultures, and Transformations
Taught in English. T/R 11:10-12:30
A bastardized German, a jargon, a woman’s vernacular, an old-world language, a dying tongue, a Hasidic language, a queer language, a radical language—these are just a few of the ways that Yiddish has been labeled over its one-thousand-year history. This course will trace the shifting images attached to the language of Eastern European Jewry, from its early modern beginnings as a tool for translating between Jewish and non-Jewish cultures to its contemporary status as a language of mourning and nostalgia, Jewish American humor, Hasidic isolation, and Jewish radicalism. Through poetry, fiction, essays, and film, we will discover what this language can tell us about modern Jewish culture and what we might learn along the way about diaspora and migrant cultures more generally. All texts will be read in translation.
Cross-listed in Jewish Studies.
Yiddish 5194 • Yiddish Literature
Zaritt | 3 credit units | T/R 2:20-3:40 | Autumn Semester 2026
This seminar explores various aspects of Yiddish literature, from its early modern beginnings to its height in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, and then its subsequent lives and afterlives in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
Texts are taught in translation into English; advanced students are encouraged to read texts in the original.
note:
Yiddish language courses are offered via BTAA CourseShare.
BTAA CourseShare | 4 credit units
GE World Languages
German 6601 • Teaching Practicum
Uskokovic | 1 credit unit | ARR - Autumn Semester 2026
This course is for GTAs who are teaching a 1000-level German language class. The course provides graduate students with instruction and practice in designing and implementing instructional materials for their undergraduate classes. It offers best practices in creating tests, developing speaking portfolios, designing culture components, and becoming reflective practitioners.
Prereq: Grad standing, and permission of instructor. Repeatable to a maximum of 10 cr hrs. This course is graded S/U.
German 6200 • Literary & Cultural History 1750-1850)
Birkhold | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
Prereq: Grad standing, or permission of instructor.
German 6300 • Literary & Cultural Study in the 20th and 21st centuries ~ Intro to Intellectual History and Cultural Studies
Mergenthaler | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
Course Description forthcoming!
Prereq: Grad standing, or permission of instructor.
German 7600 • Teaching World Languages at the College Level
Uskokovic | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
This course examines theory and research that underlie contemporary approaches to communicative language teaching and includes work with the development of materials and activities for the classroom. We will consider and discuss a range of aspects of second language acquisition (SLA) theory and research that have implications for the L2 classroom. It will provide the graduate student with a theoretical and practical foundation.
cross-listed with FRIT 7600
German 8300 • Theories of Translation - Seminar in Intellectual History and Cultural Studies
Reitter | 3 credit units | Autumn Semester 2026
In this course, we will read and critically examine major theories of translation, scrutinizing, for example, their presuppositions about language, meaning, and cultural identity, which will entail thinking about how they connect with different contexts: intellectual, social, etc.
As a seminar, the course puts discussion and active participation at the center of things. Students will be expected to come to each meeting prepared to discuss questions that will be sent around for each reading assignment. Students will also be expected to give a brief report on their final project—an article-length essay on a course-related topic of their choice. German theories of translation will play an especially prominent role here, but the course material will extend beyond then. And, of course, students are welcome to read the assigned texts in translation! These include J.W. Goethe’s “Translations,” Friedrich Schleiermacher’s “On the Different Methods of Translating,” Walter Benjamin’s “The Task of the Translator,” Gayatri Spivak’s “The Politics of Translation,” Katharina Reiß’s “Translation Criticism,” and Kwame Anthony Appiah’s “Thick Translation.”
Please contact Paul Reitter with questions (reitter.4@osu.edu).
*Note German reading ability is not required for this course.
Prereq: Grad standing, or permission of instructor.
Yiddish 5194 • Yiddish Literature
Zaritt | 3 credit units | T/R 2:20-3:40 | Autumn Semester 2026
This seminar explores various aspects of Yiddish literature, from its early modern beginnings to its height in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, and then its subsequent lives and afterlives in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
Texts are taught in translation into English; advanced students are encouraged to read texts in the original.