One of CMENA’s missions is to create and support opportunities for students to learn about,

travel within, and research North Africa and the Middle East. 

Undergraduate Opportunities

Minor in Middle Eastern and North African Studies. UCSC has a new undergraduate minor in Middle Eastern and North African Studies!

To complete the minor, students need to complete at least three quarters of a Middle Eastern language, one of the required introductory courses, and five upper division courses whose primary focus is the history, politics, languages,
and/or cultures of the Middle East and/or North Africa. Students must take minor-affiliated courses in at least two different departments. Complete details and minor requirements are here.

Fall 2024 Course Offerings

HIS 5C Introduction to the Bible (Professor Anne Kreps)

HIS 159M The Curse of the Mummy (Professors Elaine Sullivan and Renee Fox)

LIT 125H The Modern Arabic Novel (Professor Camilo Gómez-Rivas)

ARBC 1 Arabic: First Year (Professor Abdelkader Berrahmoun)

ARBC 4 Arabic: Second Year (Professor Abdelkader Berrahmoun)

HEBR 1 Hebrew: First Year (Professor Galia Stein-Rosen)

PERS 1 Persian: First Year (Professor Mehran Esfandiari)

PERS 4 Persian: Second Year (Professor Mehran Esfandiari)

Winter Course Offerings 2025

HIS 74A Introduction to Middle Eastern and North African Jewish History: Ancient to Early Modern (Professor Alma Heckman)

HIS 185M Zionism: An Intellectual History (Professor Nathaniel Deutsch)

HIS 194L Exile, Diaspora, and Displacement: Jewish Lives from North Africa to the Middle East (Professor Alma Heckman)

LIT 117A Old Iranian Literature (Professor Martin Devecka)

LIT 168B Islamic Law and Society (Professor Camilo Gómez-Rivas)

POL 184 Shariah & Political Thinking: Law and Politics in Modern Islamic Thought (Professor Yasmeen Daifallah)

ARBC 2 Arabic: First Year (Professor Abdelkader Berrahmoun)

ARBC 5 Arabic: Second Year (Professor Abdelkader Berrahmoun)

HEBR 2 Hebrew: First Year (Professor Galia Stein-Rosen)

PERS 2 Persian: First Year (Professor Mehran Esfandiari)

Spring Course Offerings 2025

CRES 173 Palestine (Professor Jennifer Mogannam)

HIS 41 The Making of the Modern Middle East (Professor Muriam Haleh Davis)

HIS 51 Pyramids of Earth: Religion and Symbol in the Ancient World (Professor Elaine Sullivan)

HIS 74B Introduction to Middle Eastern and North African Jewish History, 1500-2000 (Professor Alma Heckman)

HIS 154 Post-Colonial North Africa (Professor Muriam Haleh Davis)

HIS 185C Communism, Nationalism, and Zionism: Comparative Radical Jewish Politics (Professor Alma Heckman)

HIS 196S Special Topics in Ancient History: Who owns the past? (Professor Elaine Sullivan)

LIT 141E Post-Classical Arabic Literature and Culture (Professor Camilo Gómez-Rivas)

ARBC 3 Arabic: First Year (Professor Abdelkader Berrahmoun)

ARBC 6 Arabic: Second Year (Professor Abdelkader Berrahmoun)

HEBR 3 Hebrew: First Year (Professor Galia Stein-Rosen)

PERS 3 Persian: First Year (Professor Mehran Esfandiari)

Graduate Opportunities

Language Study. Current graduate students at UC Santa Cruz may apply for small grants to assist with funding for language study to support their research. Contact muhdavis@ucsc.edu for details.