BA Latin and Spanish / Course details

Year of entry: 2024

Course description

Our BA Latin and Spanish Joint Honours course will enable you to develop your linguistic skills while learning about the literature and culture of both societies.

You can learn Latin either as a beginner or from A-level standard. Once you've reached the appropriate level, your learning will allow you to study literary and historical texts in their original language.

Modern language study offers much more than just language fluency. You'll explore diverse aspects of the culture, society, history, politics and literature of the countries in which the languages are - or were - spoken, helping you to develop intercultural awareness and communication skills - both highly valued by employers.

You'll benefit from excellent teaching, student support and cutting-edge study facilities, as well as from the vibrancy and cultural diversity of Manchester itself, Western Europe's most multilingual city.

With placement options available at partner universities and in professional environments in several Spanish-speaking countries, a compulsory third year abroad gives our undergraduate students unforgettable and invaluable personal and professional experience. Where possible, this includes enrolment on classical courses at an overseas university.

The course unit details listed below are those you may choose to study as part of this programme and are referred to as optional units. These are subject to change and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this programme. Although language units may show here as optional, they are a mandatory part of your modern languages degree and you will take the units relevant to your level of language in each year of study. It is compulsory to study language at all levels of your modern languages degree. 

Special features

Residence abroad

Your  year abroad will offer the opportunity to gain first-hand experience of life in a Spanish-speaking country, and further develop your language skills.

Learn from language experts

Modern language courses are mainly taught by native speakers of the language, giving you a richer learning experience.

Access outstanding resources

Explore the exclusive resources of Manchester Museum and the Special Collections of The John Rylands Library - home to papyri, medieval manuscripts and early printed books, including very early copies of the Homeric poems.

Teaching and learning

The core of most literary and historical course units is provided by lectures, which introduce and survey the main issues, and are supported by small-group tutorials and seminars.

Language classes are taught intensively, with group size capped to encourage participation.

You are encouraged to involve yourself, under guidance, in independent study and original research.

Coursework and assessment

Assessment practices vary between course units, but our aim overall is to achieve a good balance between formal written examinations, continuous assessment and project work, with the option to undertake a final year dissertation supervised by an expert in your field.

Course content for year 1

You will split your study time equally between the two sides of your degree. 

Spanish 

You will take compulsory core units in the modern spoken and written Spanish language (with separate strands for beginners and post-A level students). 

You will also be provided with an introduction to the cultural and historical development of the Hispanic world, and develop the skills required to be successful in your further study of Spain and Latin America. 

Latin 

Core units will give you a grounding in the historical and cultural contexts of life in first century Rome via ancient poetry and the study of Latin language. 

Optional units allow you to start exploring key themes and making links between your fields of study.

Course units for year 1

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

TitleCodeCredit ratingMandatory/optional
Virgil's Aeneid CAHE10422 20 Mandatory
Constructing Archaic Greek History CAHE10011 20 Optional
From Republic to Empire: Introduction to Roman History, Society & Culture 218-31BC CAHE10022 20 Optional
Introduction to Egyptian Hieroglyphs  CAHE10032 20 Optional
The Odyssey CAHE10101 20 Optional
The Making of the Mediterranean CAHE10132 20 Optional
Introduction to the History and Culture of Pharaonic Egypt CAHE10651 20 Optional
Intensive Greek 1 CAHE20151 20 Optional
Intensive Latin 1 CAHE20171 20 Optional
Advanced Latin Language 1 CAHE30110 20 Optional
Advanced Greek Language 1 CAHE30120 20 Optional
Intensive Greek 2 CAHE30162 20 Optional
Intensive Latin 2 CAHE30182 20 Optional
Climate change and societal response: Lessons from the past SALC11011 20 Optional
Cultures of the Hispanic World SPLA10410 20 Optional
Themes in Spanish and Latin American Studies SPLA10420 20 Optional
Spanish Language 1 SPLA51011 20 Optional
Spanish Language 2 SPLA51022 20 Optional
Spanish Language 3 SPLA51030 20 Optional
Displaying 10 of 19 course units for year 1

Course content for year 2

You can study up to two-thirds of your credits on either side of your degree. 

Spanish 

In your second year, you take a compulsory Spanish language course, and options (usually two) across cinema, history, politics and the literature of Spain and Latin America. 

Latin 

With just one compulsory course unit in Latin language, you'll have the flexibility to focus your studies on key areas of interest across both subject areas, selecting from a breadth of historical, literary, cultural and societal themes.

Course units for year 2

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

TitleCodeCredit ratingMandatory/optional
The World of Late Antiquity: Europe and the Med from the Severan Dynasty to the Rise of Islam CAHE20022 20 Optional
The Conquering Hero: The Life, Times and Legacy of Alexander The Great CAHE20041 20 Optional
The Roman Empire 31BC - AD313 Rome's Golden Age CAHE20052 20 Optional
Politics and Society in Classical Greece CAHE20061 20 Optional
Social Life in Ancient Egypt  CAHE20072 20 Optional
Literature, Literacy, and Textual Transmission in Pharaonic Egypt  CAHE20091 20 Optional
From Cloud Cuckoo Land to Atlantis: Utopian thinking in the Ancient World CAHE20142 20 Optional
Intensive Greek 1 CAHE20151 20 Optional
The Emergence of Civilisation: Palaces, Peak Sanctuaries, and Politics in Minoan Crete CAHE20221 20 Optional
Greco-Roman Society and Technology  CAHE20261 20 Optional
Artefacts and Interpretation CAHE20362 20 Optional
Roman Women in 22 Objects CAHE20532 20 Optional
Greek Tragedy CAHE21012 20 Optional
Ovid: the Mythological Poems CAHE21261 20 Optional
National Identity and the Roman Past CAHE23022 20 Optional
Men, Beasts and Marvels: the Limits of Nature in Classical Antiquity  CAHE23361 20 Optional
Nature, Poetry, and Art: Ancient Pastoral and its Reception CAHE24201 20 Optional
Education and Schools in the Greek and Roman Worlds CAHE25211 20 Optional
Advanced Latin Language 1 CAHE30110 20 Optional
Advanced Greek Language 1 CAHE30120 20 Optional
Intensive Greek 2 CAHE30162 20 Optional
Advanced Latin Language 2 CAHE30210 20 Optional
Data Literacy in a Digital World SALC20081 20 Optional
Visual Culture in Modern Spain: Film, Painting and Photography SPLA20062 20 Optional
Writing Women in the Spanish Golden Age SPLA20161 20 Optional
History of Latin America SPLA20361 20 Optional
Spanish Linguistics SPLA20772 20 Optional
Culture and Cold War in Latin America SPLA20871 20 Optional
Modern Latin American Literature SPLA20882 20 Optional
Spanish Language 4 SPLA51040 20 Optional
Spanish Language 5 SPLA51050 20 Optional
Catalan Language & Culture 1 SPLA53010 20 Optional
Displaying 10 of 32 course units for year 2

Course content for year 3

You'll study and/or work for up to a year in a Spanish-speaking country.

Course content for year 4

You can study up to two-thirds of your credits on either side of your degree.

Spanish

Language study in the final year is centred on essay writing, translation and oral work involving discussion of texts, debates and presentations.

You also choose from a wide range of specialised options building effectively on Year 2 study, including Latin American business and politics, Hispanic cinema and Modern Spanish Music.

Students can also choose to write a dissertation.

You can also explore Catalan language and culture.

Latin

Continue to shape your understanding according to specific interests, with interdisciplinary and advanced course unit options, in addition to your advanced Latin language unit.

Course units for year 4

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

TitleCodeCredit ratingMandatory/optional
Classics, Ancient History, Archaeology and Egyptology Dissertation CAHE30000 40 Optional
The World of Late Antiquity: Europe and the Med from the Severan Dynasty to the Rise of Islam CAHE30022 20 Optional
Social Life in Ancient Egypt  CAHE30072 20 Optional
Literature, Literacy, and Textual Transmission in Pharaonic Egypt  CAHE30091 20 Optional
Neolithic Britain CAHE30131 20 Optional
From Cloud Cuckoo Land to Atlantis: Utopian thinking in the Ancient World CAHE30142 20 Optional
Advanced Latin Language 2 CAHE30210 20 Optional
The Emergence of Civilisation: Palaces, Peak Sanctuaries, and Politics in Minoan Crete CAHE30221 20 Optional
Greco-Roman Society and Technology  CAHE30261 20 Optional
Advanced Latin Language 3 CAHE30310 20 Optional
Artefacts and Interpretation CAHE30362 20 Optional
The Roman Army and the North-West Frontiers CAHE30882 20 Optional
Greek Tragedy CAHE31012 20 Optional
Ovid: the Mythological Poems CAHE31261 20 Optional
National Identity and the Roman Past CAHE33022 20 Optional
Men, Beasts and Marvels: the Limits of Nature in Classical Antiquity  CAHE33361 20 Optional
Nature, Poetry, and Art: Ancient Pastoral and its Reception CAHE34201 20 Optional
Education and Schools in the Greek and Roman Worlds CAHE35211 20 Optional
Dissertation in Modern Languages and Cultures LALC30000 40 Optional
Social Issues in Portuguese and Spanish Film SPLA30642 20 Optional
Reading the Rain Forest: Visions of the Amazon SPLA30801 20 Optional
The Politics of Business in Latin America SPLA31092 20 Optional
The Supernatural in Latin American Literature and Film SPLA31132 20 Optional
Memory and Culture in Post-Franco Spain SPLA31141 20 Optional
History of the Spanish Atlantic World: Empire, Trade, War SPLA31151 20 Optional
Spanish Language 6 SPLA51060 20 Optional
Catalan Language & Culture 1 SPLA53010 20 Optional
Catalan Language & Culture 2 SPLA53020 20 Optional
Displaying 10 of 28 course units for year 4

Facilities

The John Rylands Library

At The John Rylands Library , you'll have exclusive access to our internationally significant collections, including papyri, medieval manuscripts and early printed books such as very early copies of the Homeric poems.

Manchester Museum

The UK's leading university museum has more than four million objects spanning millennia, including one of the largest collections of ancient Egyptian artefacts in the UK. Go behind-the-scenes to handle, analyse and interpret rare artefacts, including exclusive material specific to ancient history.

The University Language Centre

Home to language resources, including a new interpreting suite, purpose-built recording rooms and resources for over 70 languages, The ULC also offers multilingual word processing, language learning software, off-air recording and AV duplication, multilingual terrestrial and satellite TV and support and advice.

Societies

The University is home to over 30 international and language related student societies offering a breadth of cultural activities and experiences. Learn more about colloquialisms in language through native speakers and take part in discussion groups and socials. Some of our societies also coordinate trips abroad to language-specific destinations.

Find out more on the Facilities pages for Classics and Ancient History and Modern Languages and Cultures .

Disability support

Practical support and advice for current students and applicants is available from the Disability Advisory and Support Service. Email: dass@manchester.ac.uk