The M.A. Specialization in World History
The M.A. Program in World History offers opportunities to study historical connections among peoples of different states, regions, and cultures in order to:
- construct a shared human past;
- stress the connectedness of all human societies;
- allow students to explore historical events across national, political, and cultural boundaries.
Common areas of study are: empire; colonialism; constitutionalism; nationalism; trade routes; trading networks; slavery; international investment; expansion of the world economy; exchange and diffusion of religious, political, technological, and scientific ideas and knowledge; migration; diaspora; immigrant communities; tourism; media; pilgrimage; environmental changes; and exchanges and diffusion of disease.
Such phenomena might be studied transnationally, comparatively, or locally (i.e., how a particular world historical phenomenon has affected a community, village, town).
Please visit the following online resources below for additional information.
View our list of required courses in the World Specialization.
- World History Connected, www.worldhistoryconnected.org
- World History Matters, www.worldhistorymatters.org at George Mason University)
- Ph.D. Program in World History at Northeastern University, www.history.neu.edu/graduate/phd_in_world_history/
A map of the world based on a description by Claudius Ptolemaeus of Alexandria (Ptolemy), who lived in the early second century of our era. The Arabian Peninsula and the Red Sea lie just left of center. Note how the east coast of Africa curves eastward to connect, at far right, with China, thus making the Indian Ocean an enclosed sea.
The map of al-Idrisi dates from 1154, and is oriented with south at the top. Note how the east coast of Africa in this map also turns east but does not connect with China; rather, it opens into the “All-Encompassing Ocean.” Thus in the Ptolemaic view, circumnavigation of Africa is impossible, while in al-Idrisi’s view it is technically possible, though too daunting to undertake.
From: www.saudiaramcoworld.com
