The Faculty of Classics is one of the constituent departments of the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

. It teaches the

Classical Tripos The Classical Tripos is the taught course in classics at the Faculty of Classics, University of Cambridge. It is equivalent to '' Literae Humaniores'' at Oxford University. It is traditionally a three-year degree, but for those who have not previ ...

. The Faculty is divided into five caucuses (i.e. areas of research and teaching); literature,

ancient philosophy This page lists some links to ancient philosophy, namely philosophical thought extending as far as early post-classical history (). Overview Genuine philosophical thought, depending upon original individual insights, arose in many cultures ro ...

ancient history Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian language, ...

Classical art Ancient Greek art stands out among that of other ancient cultures for its development of naturalistic but idealized depictions of the human body, in which largely nude male figures were generally the focus of innovation. The rate of stylistic d ...

and

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...

, and interdisciplinary studies. The Faculty runs the Museum of Classical Archaeology on the first floor of the faculty building on the

Sidgwick Site The Sidgwick Site is one of the largest sites within the University of Cambridge, England. Overview and history The Sidgwick Site is located on the western side of Cambridge city centre, near the Backs. The site is north of Sidgwick Avenue an ...

. The three-storey building was built in 1968 and includes lecture and seminar rooms, offices, and a library on the ground floor. The faculty building was refurbished and extended in 2010.

Courses offered

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education, usually in a college or university. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, ...

level, the faculty offers the

as its

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

(BA) degree. For students who have taken Latin at

A-Level The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational ...

this is a three-year course, and for those who have not studied Latin beyond

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

it is a four-year course. At

postgraduate Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor' ...

level, the faculty offers two degrees:

Master of Philosophy A Master of Philosophy (MPhil or PhM; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. The name of the degree is most often abbreviated MPhil (or, at times, as PhM in other countries). MPhil are awarded to postgraduate students after completing at leas ...

(MPhil) and

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of Postgraduate education, graduate study and original resear ...

(PhD). It also contributes to the teaching of the

Postgraduate Certificate in Education The Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE/PGCertEd) is a one- or two-year higher education course in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and South Africa -where it can take up to three years- which provides training in order to allow graduate ...

(PGCE) in Classics offered by the Faculty of Education. The MPhil is a nine-month taught course, which is examined by three essays and a 10,000 word thesis, or two essays, a language-exam/exercise, and the thesis. The PhD is a three-year research course, and it is examined by a doctoral thesis of up to 80,000 words. There is no formal teaching as the degree is completed through independent research. However, doctoral students may attend graduate seminars, undergraduate lectures, and can receive additional training in languages and/or specific disciplines (such as

epigraphy Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

numismatics Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals, and related objects. Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also inclu ...

Notable academics

There are a number of

professorships Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...

, including endowed chairs, within the department: * Regius Professor of Greek (currently

Tim Whitmarsh Timothy John Guy Whitmarsh, (born 23 January 1970) is a British classicist and Regius Professor of Greek at the University of Cambridge. He is best known for his work on the Greek literary culture of the Roman Empire, especially the Second Sophi ...

) * Kennedy Professor of Latin (currently Stephen Oakley) * Professor of Ancient History (currently Robin Osborne) *

Laurence Professor of Ancient Philosophy The Laurence Professorship of Ancient Philosophy at Cambridge University was established in 1930 as one of the offices endowed by the bequest of Sir Perceval Maitland Laurence; it is the oldest chair of ancient philosophy in the world. One woman, ...

(currently Gábor Betegh) * Laurence Professor of Classical Archaeology (currently Michael Squire) * A. G. Leventis Professor of Greek Culture (currently

) Other notable current academics include: * Mary Beard, Professor of Classics * James Clackson, Professor of Comparative Philology *

Peter Garnsey Peter David Arthur Garnsey, (born 22 October 1938) is a retired classicist and academic. Born in Australia, where he studied classics at the University of Sydney as a member of St Paul’s College, he has spent most of his career at Cambridge. H ...

, Professor of the History of Classical Antiquity * Simon Goldhill, Professor of Greek Literature and Culture * Nigel Spivey, Senior Lecturer in Classics (Classical Art & Archaeology) Former and retired academics: *

Myles Burnyeat Myles Fredric Burnyeat (; 1 January 1939 – 20 September 2019) was an English scholar of ancient philosophy. Early life and education Myles Burnyeat was born on 1 January 1939 to Peter James Anthony Burnyeat and Cynthia Cherry Warburg. He re ...

, Laurence Professor Emeritus of Ancient Philosophy * P. E. Easterling, Regius Professor Emerita of Greek * J. G. W. Henderson, Professor Emeritus of Classics *

G. E. R. Lloyd Sir Geoffrey Ernest Richard Lloyd (born 25 January 1933), usually cited as G. E. R. Lloyd, is a historian of ancient science and medicine at the University of Cambridge. He is the senior scholar in residence at the Needham Research Institute ...

, Regius Professor Emerita of Greek * Joyce Reynolds, Reader in the Epigraphy of the Roman World * Anthony Snodgrass, Laurence Professor Emeritus of Classical Archaeology * Martin Millett, Laurence Professor Emeritus of Classical Archaeology

References

External links

Faculty of Classics website
{{Authority control Classics, Faculty of