Plan of course description (annotation):
The course is devoted to ethnicity as a historical phenomenon. The course focuses on the
different forms of ethnicity as a tribe, nationality, nation. Much attention is paid to the ethnicity
in the ancient world and the Middle Ages. The focus is made on the processes of formation of
nations. The phenomenon of ethnicity in multiethnic empire also will be considered. Students
will be encouraged to analyze the perspectives of ethnicity in modern European society.
During the session, students will be expected to attend the lectures, to participate in the
seminars, to write one critical commentary, and to take the final examination at the end of the
course.
Name of the course Ethnicity as a historical phenomenon in European social and cultural
space
Department responsible for the course or equivalent
Department of Archaeology and Ancient History
Lecturer (name, academic title, e-mail)
Vdovchenkov Evgeny Viktorovich, Ph.D.,
associate professor of Department of Archaeology and Ancient History
vdovchenkov@yandex.ru
Semester when the course unit is delivered 1
Teaching hours per week 2
Level of course unit Second cycle – Master level
ECTS credits 3
Admission requirements bachelor status
Course objectives (aims)
To study of historical forms of ethnicity in Europe
Course contents
Ethnicity as a historical phenomenon.
Forms of ethnicity: tribe, nationality, nation.
Ethnicity in the ancient world and the Middle Ages.
Processes of formation of nations.
The phenomenon of ethnicity in multiethnic empire.
Perspectives of ethnicity in modern European society.
Learning outcomes
To know the basic forms of ethnicity in Europe;
understanding the impact of political, economic and cultural factors on ethnicity;
be able to identify the main trends in the development of ethnicity in the history of Europe;
an understanding of basic anthropological concepts, theories, and knowledge;
an appreciation and understanding of the similarities and differences among social and ethnic
communities.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods (for ex., lectures with a
variety of examples and practice) Monologic (reading, lecture, briefing), Dialogic
(discussion, brainstorming), Work with text (with textbook, with book).
During the session, students will be expected to attend the lectures, to participate in the
seminars, to write one critical commentary, and to take the final examination at the end of the
course.
Assessment methods and criteria
Student performance assessment, Didactic test, Discussion
Course literature (recommended or required)
Ethnic Constructs in Antiquity. Amsterdam University Press, Amsterdam, 2009.
Colin Kidd. British Identities before Nationalism Ethnicity and Nationhood in the Atlantic
World, 1600–1800
Özkirimli, Umut (2000) Theories of Nationalism: A Critical Introduction, Basingstoke:
Macmillan
Rokkan, S., Saelen, K. and Warmbrunn, J. (1973) Nation-Building, Current Sociology 19, 3, The
Hague: Mouton
Smith, Anthony D. 1991) National Identity, Harmondsworth: Penguin
— (1995) Nationalism in a Global Era, Cambridge: Polity Press
— (1998) Nationalism and Modernism: A Critical Survey of Recent Theories of Nations
and Nationalism, London: Routledge
— (1999) Myths and Memories of the Nation, Oxford: Oxford University Press
— (2001) Nationalism: Theory, Ideology, History, Cambridge: Polity Press
— (2003a) Chosen Peoples: Sacred Sources of National Identity, Oxford: Oxford
University Press
— (2004a) The Antiquity of Nations, Cambridge: Polity Press