Welcome to the Egyptian Hieroglyphs DeCal! In this DeCal, we will introduce you to the history and culture of Ancient Egypt through the lens of its mystical language – Hieroglyphs. Hieroglyphs is a magical combination of art and language. As a language, it tells us how the Ancient Egyptians communicate and think; as an art form, it shows us the world in Ancient Egyptians’ eyes and the stories of their lives. In this class, we will focus on the classical period of Egyptian language – the Middle Egyptian Hieroglyphs, a stage of language that has been used as written language for almost 2000 years, from ca. 2100 BCE to 300 CE. Here, you can learn to write (or maybe we should say, to draw) dozens of Egyptian glyphs and words, to learn the elementary Middle Egyptian grammar, and to appreciate the writings in the context of other Egyptian art forms such as on reliefs, sculptures, and minor arts. You will also have the opportunity to see how “Ancient Egyptian theme” and Egyptian Hieroglyphs are portrayed in modern productions like movies, comics and television shows and (finally) become able to judge the authenticity of these productions. Our goal is for you to become comfortable dealing with hieroglyphs, to have a better understanding of Ancient Egypt, and to have a head start if you decide to take the official Middle Egyptian class that Berkeley offers (official language class sequence starts with Egypt 100A by Professor Richter and taught every other year). We hope that this DeCal will be a fun and rewarding experience for everyone. Let’s looking forward to a magical and fulfilling semester!
Class will begin with quiz (you will be told ahead of time if it is just vocabulary or vocabulary and grammar) that will include basic words allowing you to read texts. Class time will combine lecture and group activities. Activities include working with stele translation, writing on papyrus, and practice drawing the hieroglyphs. This course will cover fundamental grammar and vocabulary which will allow students to read stelae and tomb reliefs and create short sentences. Time will be set aside for themed movies and/or documentaries in which we will discuss the portrayal of Ancient Egypt and identify hieroglyphs. Students will also be required to research a topic of their choosing and report back to the class with a small (5-10minute), low-key presentation and submit a short write-up (half to a full page, single-sided). Students will also have the opportunity to influence topics covered.
As with all language courses, attendance is extremely important. You are not allowed to have more than 2 unexcused absences.
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Section | Facilitator | Size | Location | Time | Starts | Status | CCN(LD) | CCN(UD) |
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Section | Christine Laymon and Yein Ra | 20 | 247 Dwinelle | [Th] 6:30PM-8:00PM | 1/26/2017 | Full | -- | 34412 |
Name | Download Link | ||
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Egyptian DeCal Syllabus Spring 2017 as of 1-15-17 | Download |