History Joint Honours Component (B.A.) (36 credits)
Offered by: History and Classical Studies (Faculty of Arts)
Degree: Bachelor of Arts; Bachelor of Arts and Science
Program credit weight: 36
Program Description
Students wishing to study at the Honours level in two disciplines can combine Joint Honours program components in any two Arts disciplines. The Joint Honours Component History is a flexible program that emphasizes breadth, depth as well as historical methods and research.
Students wishing to complete the Joint Honours History Component should consult a Program Adviser at the beginning of their first year to map out a course of study, and fill out a departmental program advising/audit form. For more information, visit the program’s website: http://www.mcgill.ca/history/undergraduate. Students must also fulfill program requirements in the second honours component and should consult an adviser in that program.
Important note: Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate credits may not be included in the overall credit requirement for history programs.
Degree Requirements — B.A. students
To be eligible for a B.A. degree, a student must fulfil all Faculty and program requirements as indicated in Degree Requirements for the Faculty of Arts.
We recommend that students consult an Arts OASIS advisor for degree planning.
Degree Requirements — B.A. & Sc. students
This program is offered as part of a Bachelor of Arts & Science (B.A. & Sc.) degree.
To graduate, students must satisfy both their program requirements and their degree requirements.
- The program requirements (i.e., the specific courses that make up this program) are listed under the Course Tab (above).
- The degree requirements—including the mandatory Foundation program, appropriate degree structure, and any additional components—are outlined on the Degree Requirements page.
Students are responsible for ensuring that this program fits within the overall structure of their degree and that all degree requirements are met. Consult the Degree Planning Guide on the SOUSA website for additional guidance.
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Required Course (3 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| HIST 399 | History and Historiography. | 3 |
History and Historiography. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The nature and functions of history; changing conceptions of time and of the past; approaches to historical evidence; methods of reconstructing the past; how the discipline of history has changed over time. | ||
Complementary Courses (33 credits)
33 credits of HIST courses or cognate courses (see list below) according to the following requirements.
Distribution requirement:
- 3 credits from Group A
- 3 credits from Group B
- 3 credits from Group C
Note: Cognate courses (see below) may not be used to satisfy the Distribution requirement.
Temporal Breadth requirement:
- At least 3 credits focused on the period before 1800
- At least 3 credits focused on the period after 1800
Notes: The same course may be used to satisfy both a Distribution and Temporal Breadth requirement. HIST 299 The Historian's Craft. and HIST 399 History and Historiography. may not be used to satisfy Temporal Breadth requirements.
Level requirement:
- Minimum 6 credits of honours seminars (500-level D1/D2 courses)
- Minimum 3 additional credits of 400- or 500-level HIST courses.
- Maximum 12 credits complementary courses at 200-level.
GPA requirements:
- 3.30 in program courses
- 3.0 (B) or higher in each program course
- CGPA 3.0 or higher
Group A
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| HIST 202 | Survey: Canada to 1867. | 3 |
Survey: Canada to 1867. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A survey of early Canada, from periods known mainly through archaeological records to the Confederation era. Social, cultural, economic and political themes will be examined. | ||
| HIST 203 | Survey: Canada since 1867. | 3 |
Survey: Canada since 1867. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A survey of the development of Canada from Confederation to the present day. Social, economic and political history will be examined in a general way. | ||
| HIST 211 | American History to 1865. | 3 |
American History to 1865. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to the history of colonial North America and the United States up to the Civil War, in their Atlantic context. | ||
| HIST 212 | Medieval Europe. | 3 |
Medieval Europe. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the history and culture(s) of Europe in the Middle Ages. | ||
| HIST 214 | Early Modern Europe. | 3 |
Early Modern Europe. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Survey of European history from the Late Middle Ages to the eighteenth century. | ||
| HIST 215 | Modern Europe. | 3 |
Modern Europe. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Survey of European history from the eighteenth century to the present. | ||
| HIST 216 | Introduction to Russian History. | 3 |
Introduction to Russian History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The longue durée of Russian history from its origins in Kievan Rus and the Rurik dynasty, through the Romanov dynasty, the Soviet period, and post-Soviet developments. | ||
| HIST 221 | United States since 1865. | 3 |
United States since 1865. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Examines the defining moments and movements in the U.S. since Reconstruction, including populism, progressivism, the World Wars, the New Deal, the Cold War, the sixties and its consequences. Emphasis on the political, social and ideological transformations that ensued. | ||
| HIST 226 | East Central and Southeastern Europe in 20th Century. | 3 |
East Central and Southeastern Europe in 20th Century. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introductory survey of east central and southeastern European history from the twilight of nineteenth-century imperialism to the most recent expansion of the European Union. Consideration will be given to the two world wars and their consequences; nationalism, fascism, and socialism; and the revolutions of 1989. | ||
| HIST 250 | Making Great Britain and Ireland. | 3 |
Making Great Britain and Ireland. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Survey of the development of the multinational state in the British Isles and Ireland from antiquity to the seventeenth century revolutions. Emphasis on state making and ethnicity formation in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, as well as English overseas territories in Europe, Africa, and the Americas. | ||
Group B
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| HIST 200 | Introduction to African History. | 3 |
Introduction to African History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course stresses the interactions of the peoples of Africa with each other and with the worlds of Europe and Islam from the Iron Age to the European Conquest in 1880. | ||
| HIST 201 | Modern African History. | 3 |
Modern African History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. While covering the general political history of Africa in the twentieth century, this course also explores such themes as health and disease, gender, and urbanization. | ||
| HIST 205 | Ancient Mediterranean History. | 3 |
Ancient Mediterranean History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the history of the ancient Mediterranean world, focusing on Greek and Roman civilization. | ||
| HIST 206 | Indian Ocean World History. | 3 |
Indian Ocean World History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the “global” system connecting eastern Africa, the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia, and the Far East, from the earliest times to c. 1900. | ||
| HIST 208 | Introduction to East Asian History. | 3 |
Introduction to East Asian History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the history of East Asian civilization from earliest times to 1600, with emphasis on China and Japan, including social, intellectual, and economic developments as well as political history. | ||
| HIST 209 | Introduction to South Asian History. | 3 |
Introduction to South Asian History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Charts the making of South Asian civilization, 2500 BCE- 1707 CE, through a selection of key themes and major trends. Focus on the transformation of local kinship ties into regional kingdoms and empires, the evolution of religion and the legacy of the expansion of Islam and consequent rise of Turkish, Afghan and Mughal empires in this area. | ||
| HIST 210 | Introduction to Latin American History . | 3 |
Introduction to Latin American History . Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Historical development of Latin America’s peoples through the pre-Columbian, colonial and national periods, c. 1300-2000. Introduces key historiographical debates of the subfield and emphasizes the interpretation of primary source texts (in translation). | ||
| HIST 218 | Modern East Asian History. | 3 |
Modern East Asian History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the history of China and Japan from the seventeenth century to the present, including modernization, nationalism, and the interaction of the two countries. | ||
| HIST 275 | Ancient Roman History. | 3 |
Ancient Roman History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A survey of Roman history from the foundation of Rome to the fall of the Roman Empire. | ||
Group C
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| HIST 207 | Jewish History: 400 B.C.E. to 1000. | 3 |
Jewish History: 400 B.C.E. to 1000. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An overview of Jewish history from the period of Ezra and Nehemiah to the death of Hai Gaon, c. 1035. Focus on the experience of the Jews in Hellenistic and Islamic civilizations. Topics include Jewish sects, rabbinic literature in its various genres, the Karaite schism, and the rise of the Gaonate. | ||
| HIST 213 | World History, 600-2000. | 3 |
World History, 600-2000. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A thematic and comparative approach to world history, beginning with the rise of Islam and ending with globalization in the late twentieth century. Trade diasporas, technology, disease, and imperialism are the major themes addressed. | ||
| HIST 219 | Jewish History: 1000 - 2000. | 3 |
Jewish History: 1000 - 2000. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The Jewish experience from the rise of the European centres to the present. | ||
| HIST 222 | History of Pandemics. | 3 |
History of Pandemics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A regional perspective (based on responsible instructor) to explore relevant pandemics over the long term, introducing the broader historical trends and impacts. The hidden dynamics of social, cultural, legal, and intellectual history while also helping us cope with current and future pandemics reasonably and responsibly. While providing basic medical and epidemiological information, its primary focus falls on the social and political contexts for--and responses to--each pandemic covered. | ||
| HIST 223 | Indigenous Peoples and Empires. | 3 |
Indigenous Peoples and Empires. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. History of Indigenous Peoples of North and South America and their early experiences of European conquest and colonization, c. 1400 - 1800. | ||
| HIST 224 | Introduction to the African Diaspora. | 3 |
Introduction to the African Diaspora. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. African history is global history. Introduction to African civilizations, starting in the medieval period, the emergence of proto-Black racial consciousness, colour/race prejudice and anti-blackness, institutions of resilience (such as spiritual systems and kinship networks), enslavement in North Africa, Mediterranean, Levant, Arabia, Indian Ocean, and Americas, and revolutionary resistance against racial tyranny. | ||
| HIST 238 | Histories of Science. | 3 |
Histories of Science. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the history of science, with attention to conceptual development and to institutional and social settings. Coverage will vary by instructor, but will include a range of periods (from antiquity to the 20th century), geographical settings, and themes (e.g. instrumentation; visualisation; experiment; science and society). | ||
| HIST 240 | Modern History of Islamic Movements. | 3 |
Modern History of Islamic Movements. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Islamic revival in the Middle East which led to the rise of different versions of Islamic traditions and beliefs. Emphasis on the nature and character of leading nationalist and Islamic movements and their ideologues since the late 19th century. | ||
| HIST 249 | Health and the Healer in Western History. | 3 |
Health and the Healer in Western History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The natural history of health and disease and the development of the healing arts, from antiquity to the beginning of modern times. The rise of "western" medicine. Health and healing as gradually evolving aspects of society and culture. | ||
| HIST 262 | Mediterranean and European Interconnections. | 3 |
Mediterranean and European Interconnections. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Introduction to the cultural practices and political experiences that have shaped the Eastern Mediterranean and South-Eastern Europe examined diachronically. Topics adressed include empires and nations, religion, politics of memory and space, archeology and historical legacies, migrations. | ||
| HIST 292 | History and the Environment. | 3 |
History and the Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Sketch of the history of the material aspects of human interaction with the rest of nature. Included will be a historian's view of the social, technical, and ecological implications of the great variety of activities devised by our species. Though global in outlook, this course will emphasize the relevant historiography of France, England and North America. | ||
| HIST 298 | Topics in History. | 3 |
Topics in History. Terms offered: Summer 2025 An introduction to a topic or theme in History. | ||
| HIST 299 | The Historian's Craft. | 3 |
The Historian's Craft. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to the discipline of history. What is history? Where is history done? How is history done? Why do history? Historical writing is emphasized. Recommended for history majors. | ||
Cognate Courses (max. 6 credits)
The following non-HIST courses may be counted toward the History joint honours component. Additional courses may be submitted for consideration to the Undergraduate Program Director. Faculty regulations stipulate that a course may not be counted toward more than one program.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CLAS 303 | Ancient Greek Religion. | 3 |
Ancient Greek Religion. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Focus on the history of Greek religion in the Classical Period. Particular attention will be paid to the Greek concept of divinity, local pantheons, civic festival calendars, the topography of myth and ritual, ideas concerning the afterlife, mystery cults, oracles and games and the literary representations of religion. | ||
| CLAS 304 | Ancient Greek Democracy. | 3 |
Ancient Greek Democracy. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Examines the conceptual history of popular government in the context of Greek political culture, from the 6th century BCE to the Roman conquest of Greece. | ||
| CLAS 305 | Roman Religion. | 3 |
Roman Religion. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Approaches to and problems of Roman religion. The formation of religious topography, problems of religion and empire, the religious interaction between Rome and other Mediterranean peoples, the complex discourse between religion and philosophy, the reformulation of Roman religion during the imperial period, and the rise of Christianity within a pagan Roman world. | ||
| CLAS 345 | Study Tour: Greece. | 3 |
Study Tour: Greece. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A study of Greek history and culture through the sites and monuments of ancient Greece. Includes preparatory meetings, site and museum visits, and specialized lectures on site. A fee is charged of $2400 to cover certain travel expenses within Greece, accommodation including breakfast and entrance fees to all sites visited throughout the tour. | ||
| CLAS 406 | Greek and Roman Historiography. | 3 |
Greek and Roman Historiography. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Seminar on the works of the Greek and Roman historians (in translation) who founded a new literary genre for the exploration of past and present events; interpretation of their approaches towards history and theories for their study. | ||
| ISLA 305 | Topics in Islamic History. | 3 |
Topics in Islamic History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Subject matter will vary year to year, according to the instructor. Topic will be made available in Minerva. | ||
| ISLA 315 | Ottoman State and Society to 1839. | 3 |
Ottoman State and Society to 1839. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The emergence and development of the Ottoman Empire from its beginnings around 1300 until the Tanzimat Edict of Reform in 1839. A trajectory of Ottoman history from a small principality to a centralized empire, then to a decentralized governmental structure. In addition to chronological developments, questions of imperialideology and the management of ethnically and religiously diverse communities across a vast territory. Exploration of the place of the Ottomans in the early modern world, and their ideological and diplomatic rivalry with other major empires. | ||
| ISLA 350 | From Tribe to Dynasty. | 3 |
From Tribe to Dynasty. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The political and intellectual developments shaping Arab and Persian societies from the rise of Islam in the 7th century until the early mid 8th century, including the major social changes, political revolts, religious schisms, and the consolidation of lasting cultural institutions. | ||
| ISLA 355 | Modern History of the Middle East. | 3 |
Modern History of the Middle East. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Assessment of the historical transformation of the modern Middle East concentrating on its internal socio-economic changes, as well as the colonial experience and encounters with the West since the early 19th century. Examination of the historical conditions that led to the rise of nationalism, the nation-state, the Arab-Israeli conflict. | ||
| ISLA 365 | Middle East Since the 1970's. | 3 |
Middle East Since the 1970's. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Changes that have occurred in the Middle East since the 1970's, viewed through the lens of themes such as migration, consumerism, war, communications, and ideology. | ||
| ISLA 410 | History: Middle-East 1798-1918. | 3 |
History: Middle-East 1798-1918. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A study of the Middle East from Napoleon's invasion of Egypt to the end of WWI. Emphasis will be on the emergence of nationalisms in the context of European imperialism; political, social, and economic transformation; religion and ideology; and changing patterns of alliances. | ||
| ISLA 411 | History: Middle-East 1918-1945. | 3 |
History: Middle-East 1918-1945. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The impact of WWI on Middle Eastern society and politics; the British and French mandates; the growth of nationalisms, revolutions and the formation of national states; WW II and the clash of political interests within the region. | ||
| ISLA 511 | Medieval Islam, 10th-12th Century. | 3 |
Medieval Islam, 10th-12th Century. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Socio-political, religious and intellectual developments in Muslim societies following the weakening of the Arab-Sunni Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad during the tenth century. Emphasis will be placed on the historical formation and features of the Seljuq and Buyid dynasties as well as the Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt. | ||
| ISLA 515 | The Medieval School in Islam. | 3 |
The Medieval School in Islam. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Schooling in medieval Islamic society particularly in Iraq, Greater Syria, Persia, and Egypt. Sheds light on the structure of learning, aims of education, the life of students including women, and their relationship to their teachers. Illuminates forms of academic evaluation, and looks closely at the "scholarly license" as an accrediting tool delineating its function and scope. Through a set of representative studies on the medieval school, it brings attention to the heated debates surrounding the academic rigor of this form of learning, and the place of scientific learning in it, as well as the historical connection between it and the early European college. | ||
| ISLA 516 | Medieval Islam, 13th-15th Century. | 3 |
Medieval Islam, 13th-15th Century. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The historical circumstances surrounding the Crusades against Muslims in Greater Syria and Egypt. The socio-economic, political, and cultural transformation of Muslim society following the destruction of the Abbasid Caliphate, and the rise of the Ikl-Khanid Mongols in Iran and Iraq, as well as the Mamluks in Syria and Egypt. Emphasis will be placed on the integration of new Persian, Turkish, and Indian populations into Islamic imperial culture. | ||
| JWST 240 | The Holocaust. | 3 |
The Holocaust. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Consideration of the history of the Holocaust and the literary, theological and cultural responses to the destruction of European Jewry. | ||
| JWST 245 | Jewish Life in the Islamic World. | 3 |
Jewish Life in the Islamic World. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Until the early modern period, most of the world’s Jews spoke Arabic and called the Islamic world home. This course explores the Jewish experience among Muslims from the seventh century until the present. Through close readings of primary sources and historical scholarship, students will learn how Jews under Islam shaped modern Judaism, how engagement with Arabic in Islamic Spain led to the revival of Hebrew, and how the Jewish-Muslim relationship fared in the twentieth century. The course also probes themes of history and memory in light of the departure of Jews from the Islamic world in the 1950s and 1960s. | ||
| JWST 303 | The Soviet Jewish Experience. | 3 |
The Soviet Jewish Experience. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Sovietization both fueled the modernization of Russian Jewry and contributed to its eventual suppression. This experience will be examined from two perspectives: history and literature. The interrelationship between culture and politics and the effects of ideology and censorship on literature will be discussed. | ||
| JWST 311 | Gender in Jewish History. | 3 |
Gender in Jewish History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. How does the inclusion of women and issues of gender change our understanding of the Jewish past? By examining a broad range of historical sources from around the world—including prayer books, letters, newspapers, novels and diaries to music, art and film— this course examines this question from the Middle Ages to the present day. Major topics to be covered include: religion and spirituality, economic life, the body and sexuality, domesticity, relations with non-Jewish neighbours, and political activism. | ||
| JWST 312 | Modern Jewish History. | 3 |
Modern Jewish History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Exploration of major transformations to Jewish society and identity in the modern period. Topics include nationalism, emancipation, acculturation, modernity, relations with non-Jews, popular culture, and literature. | ||
| JWST 334 | Jews and Muslims: A Modern History. | 3 |
Jews and Muslims: A Modern History. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course examines the modern history of Jewish-Muslim relations beyond just conflict. We will look at the experience of Jews and Muslims -- as individuals and communities -- who charted new cultural territory while navigating colonialism, nationalism, war, and decolonization, through close readings of a wide variety of primary sources (including letters, memoirs, fiction, music, film, and photography) and historical scholarship. | ||
| JWST 348 | Modern Jewish Studies. | 3 |
Modern Jewish Studies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Topics in Jewish Studies. Semesters will be devoted to specific issues and periods of the Jewish Experience since 1500 and the literature produced by Jews during this period. | ||
| JWST 365 | Modern Jewish Ideologies. | 3 |
Modern Jewish Ideologies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The rise and development of the various ideologies which attempt to define the Jews in historical, national and socio-cultural terms will be analyzed within the context of modern European nationalism. Selected texts of the Jewish Enlightenment, Science of Judaism, Peretz Smolenskin, Leon Pinsker, Simon Dubnow, Chaim Zhitlowsky and Ahad Ha-Am. | ||
| JWST 366 | History of Zionism. | 3 |
History of Zionism. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An examination of the development of the Zionist idea, the most influential expression of modern Jewish nationalism, which led to the creation of the Jewish state. The transformation of elements of traditional Jewish messianism into a modern political ideology. Hibbat Zion, Political Zionism, Cultural and Synthetic Zionism will be discussed. | ||
| JWST 371 | Jews and the City. | 3 |
Jews and the City. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Examination of Jewish life in metropolitan centres in Europe and beyond. | ||
| RELG 326 | Christians in the Roman World. | 3 |
Christians in the Roman World. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A social-historical examination of Christians within the complex cultural, political, ethnic and religious contexts of later Greco-Roman antiquity, focusing on changing relations among different varieties of Christian, as well as on interactions and conflicts among Christians, Jews and polytheists. Other topics to be considered include martyrdom, orthodoxy and heresy, and Gnosticism. | ||
Notes: 200-level cognate courses count toward the 12-credit limit of 200-level courses allowed for the program.