Danish at the University of Alberta

The Scandinavian program at the University of Alberta includes the study of the culture, the languages and the literatures of Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The University of Alberta is the only university in Canada where a person is able to get a degree in Scandinavian studies. We offer two years of Norwegian and two years of Swedish language, a third year language course which includes Danish, culture and civilization courses and courses in Scandinavian literature. Included among these courses is one on the Vikings (Scand. 340) and another dealing with the life and works of Hans Christiam Andersen (Scand. 355). A new course of special interest, The Scandinavian Immigrant Experience in Canada (Scand. 420), gives a survey of the history of Scandinavian immigration to Canada and its causes, and students read works that deal in particular with the Danish, Icelandic and Swedish communities in this country.

While we recognize that a specific Danish language teaching component is unfortunately still missing in our program, we encourage students interested in Danish but who have no language background to study Norwegian, and staff will assist them in the second year Norwegian class to make the transition to Danish. Also students who already know some Danish are advised to sign up for second-year Norwegian or the third-year language course where they will be given instruction in Danish. Danish culture and literature form a significant part of most other courses, and indeed the content of the Hans Christian Andersen course is totally Danish.

All students may take any of our courses whether or not they have a Scandinavian background. Members of the community who have the time and interest are also welcome to take individual courses. For example, the Viking course is offered in the evening to make it more accessible to those unable to attend during the day.

Most classes are relatively small so students are able to get a fair amount of personal attention. There is a Scandinavian Club at the University, and as well we have links with programs for work and study in Scandinavia itself.

If you would like further information, please contact Christopher Hale (403 492-4141, E-mail chale@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca) or Germanic Languages, Literatures and Linguistics at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2E6 (403 492-3271).