Alumni Spotlight: D. Gershon Lewental '02
"Without question, my years as an NES major had an enormous impact on my career path, my scholarship, and my teaching," says Dr. Lewental of his time at Cornell.
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Near East, Middle East, Southwest Asia & North Africa
Near Eastern Studies
We offer undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to study the languages, literatures, cultures, religions and history of regions from ancient Sumer to the modern Middle East. We also help to educate students and the wider academic community about cross-cultural, trans-historical and inter-religious issues related to the region.
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News
Excavation uncovers 2K more artifacts at St. James church site
This semester’s work also featured an end-of-semester mini-field course for local children and youth presented by two Cornell students.
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Spring 2023 courses offered by the department
Pre-enrollment for Spring 2023 begins November 2 for undergraduate students at Cornell. Check out the courses offered by the department.
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Alumni Spotlight: Anna Kawar '06
Anna Kawar '06 started her time at Cornell initially planning on going to medical school; however, after taking courses in areas such as sociology, Near Eastern Studies, history, etc., she decided to broaden her possibilities for a future career.
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Alumni Spotlight: Jonathan Levine '02
After graduating from Cornell University as an NES major and College Scholar in '02, Jonathan Levine moved back to the Washington, DC area to work as an international affairs fellow at the American Jewish Committee, a nonprofit advocacy organization.
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Report shows near-total erasure of Armenian heritage sites
The study compiled decades of high-resolution satellite imagery from the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan.
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New Jewish studies major approved in College of Arts & Sciences
“These efforts recognize the critical questions Jewishness raises and its place as part of a shared heritage.”
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NES graduate student wins poetry award
NES Ph.D. student Sasha Prevost received the UW Madison Summer Program Poetry Award.
Read MoreDepartment Events
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White Hall
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Willard Straight Theatre
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Willard Straight Theatre
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Engage and Learn
Major in Near Eastern studies
Interested in exploring the languages, literatures, cultures, religions, and history of the Middle East from antiquity to the modern day? Consider pursuing a major in Near Eastern studies.
We also offer undergraduate minors in Arabic and Near Eastern studies.
Take a class
Explore the diversity of the Middle East in a class like "Wondrous Literatures of the Near East" (NES 2754) or "Islam and Gender" (NES 2270).
We offer classes on a wide range of topics, regions, and time periods of the Middle East.
Study a Near Eastern language
Take Arabic, Hebrew, Turkish, or Persian to fulfill the College of Arts & Sciences language requirement!
We also offer instruction in some of the ancient Middle Eastern languages like Akkadian and Biblical Hebrew.
See all of the Middle Eastern languages taught in the department.
Get department updates
We send out e-newsletters regularly during the academic school year.
Foster Child: A Midcentury Jewish American Boyhood
Isaac Kramnick
Edited by: Ross Brann
Occasional Publications of the Program of Jewish Studies and the Department of Near Eastern Studies #7, 2022