The MELC Department offers six quarters (two years) of Biblical Hebrew, the language of the Hebrew Bible / Old Testament. This sequence starts in the fall quarter in alternate years (fall 2024, 2026, 2028...), so please plan accordingly! These courses may be taken in order to fulfill a foreign language requirement should your college require one.
- BIBHEB 101 "Elementary Biblical Hebrew 1" (offered in fall quarter 2024, 2026, and so on) introduces the Biblical Hebrew alphabet and basic grammar and sentences.
- BIBHEB 102 "Elementary Biblical Hebrew 2" (offered in winter 2025, 2027, and so on) continues the study of Biblical Hebrew grammar, practicing with biblical texts.
- BIBHEB 103 "Biblical Hebrew Prose" (offered in spring 2025, 2027, and so on) equips students to tackle prose texts in the Hebrew Bible.
- BIBHEB 201 "Biblical Hebrew Poetry" (offered in fall 2025, 2027, and so on) guides students through some of the Hebrew Bible's many poetic texts.
- The fifth and sixth slots in the sequence (offered in the winter and spring of 2026, 2028, and so on) can be filled by various advanced courses, such as BIBHEB 203 Biblical Prophetic Texts, BIBHEB 204 Book of Job, BIBHEB 206 Magical Texts in the Bible, BIBHEB 207 Book of Proverbs, BIBHEB 208 Art of Biblical Narrative, BIBHEB 202 Inscriptions from Biblical Times, or even ARAMIC 201 Biblical Aramaic or ARAMIC 202 Aramaic Texts from Antiquity. Exact courses are chosen based on student interest.
First-year courses meet three times a week, while second-year courses meet twice a week. If you have previous experience with Biblical Hebrew and think you may not need the whole sequence, please contact us! For questions about first year Biblical Hebrew or placement within the first year sequence, contact Kathryn Medill (kmed1@uw.edu, office Denny M-220B, check here for office hours: Kathryn Medill | Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures | University of Washington). For questions about second year Biblical Hebrew, Hebrew inscriptions, or Aramaic, or for placement into the second year sequence, contact Scott Noegel (snoegel@uw.edu).
GRADUATE STUDENTS: Please note that all of our BIBHEB and ARAMIC classes also have graduate course numbers: BIBHEB 511/512/513, BIBHEB 521/522/523/524/526/527/528, ARAMIC 521/522. Search the BIBHEB or ARAMIC prefixes on register.uw to easily find current course offerings!