2022-23

This introductory course deals with the main features of Byzantine art from the Early Christian period to the Late Byzantine times. To do so, it looks at various representative monuments and works of art, such as wall painting, portable icons and manuscript illustrations. Particular emphasis will be placed upon the social, historical, theological and iconological context and on archaeological evidence

The course starts with a summary of education in Classical antiquity and in Hellenistic and Roman times.  It then deals with the fate of ancient Greek literature in early Byzantium.  The course examines the primary and secondary education system of the Byzantines, the organization of the university of Constantinople (AD 425), the Magnavra Scholē (mid 9th c.), the state Law School (mid 11th c.) and the Patriarchal School of Constantinople (12th c.).  The course both introduces students to the study of Byzantine education and acquaints them with the various literary forms that developed in th

Στόχος του μαθήματος είναι να εισαγάγει τους φοιτητές στην επιστημονική προσέγγιση της ισλαμικής ιστοριογραφίας, του μέρους εκείνου δηλαδή της αραβοϊσλαμικής γραμματείας που έχει ως αντικείμενο την ιστορική αφήγηση. Ειδικά θα μελετηθούν και θα αναλυθούν συγγραφείς και έργα που σχετίζονται με την ισλαμική – αλλά όχι μόνο – ιστορία, με ιστοριογραφικά κείμενα γραμμένα στην Αραβική από τις αρχές του 8ου αιώνα μέχρι τις αρχές του 19ου αιώνα.

The subject of the course is the study of religious folklore and, in particular, of the forms of popular religiousness and the traditional religious behavior of the Greeks. The course also examines forms of custom and ritual over time and in their contemporary manifestations. It places particular stress upon customs associated with the life cycle, the yearly festival calendar and on new forms of custom and ritual that define the life of contemporary man.

The course examines the development of history as a discipline from ancient times to the 20th century. It deals with the principle theoretical approaches to the subject that have influenced various forms of historiography. It analyses the most important questions in current discussion about history and the relations between history and the social sciences. The aim of the course is to introduce students to the ongoing interdisciplinary dialogue on the development of contemporary history.