Regional studies: Asia/Africa (Bachelor of Arts, B.A.)
Area Studies Asia/Africa is a multidisciplinary and multi-regional B.A. course dealing with the regions of Africa, East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia and Central Asia.
Please choose
- Monobachelor
- Minor Field
Table of Contents
At a glance
Course structure and content
The Bachelor's programme in Regional Studies Asia/Africa at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin is multidisciplinary and multiregional, covering the regions of Africa, East, South, and Southeast Asia, as well as Central Asia. Students acquire fundamental knowledge in three key areas: language and communication (including linguistics, sociolinguistics, and philology), culture and identity (literary studies, religious studies, cultural studies, and ethnology), and society and transformation (historical, ethnological, and social science perspectives).
Mono-bachelor students can choose a regional focus.
They learn to analyze regional developments using sound methodologies, apply relevant theories, and form their own scholarly judgments. Furthermore, they develop skills in research, analysis, academic writing, and presentation. Gender studies issues are also integrated into the curriculum. Thus, the programme comprehensively prepares students for independent academic work and critical engagement with the cultures and societies of Asia and Africa.
You will acquire fundamental language skills to communicate fluently both orally and in writing and to develop strong reading comprehension.
Languages/choice of language
The first semester begins with a mandatory introductory week, during which, among other things, the available languages are presented in more detail. You can find information about the current language offerings in the course catalogue in AGNES and at the HU Language Centre. Courses will only take place if a minimum number of students have registered.
At the Department of Asian and African Studies, we teach the following languages:
Region of concentration | Language |
| Africa | Hausa, Setswana2, Kiswahili, Afrikaans2, Bambara2 |
| East Asia | Chinese (modern), Japanese1 |
| Southeast Asia | Bahasa Indonesia, Thai, Vietnamese, Myanma |
| South Asia | Hindi, Urdu |
| Central Asia | Dari-Persian, Pashto2, Mongolian, Tibetan, Tajik2, Uzbek |
| transregional | Arabic3 |
1 If you choose Japanese, we recommend acquiring a knowledge of the Hiragana and Katakana alphabets before beginning the course.
2 Not permanently available.
3 Offered in collaboration with the Language Centre and recognised as an external language course on the B.A.
Due to capacity limitations, students taking minoring in Regional Studies: Asia/Africa may not be able to choose every language course they wish, particularly Kiswahili, Japanese, Chinese, Hindi, Bahasa Indonesia, Thai, and Dari.
Registration for one of the offered African or Asian languages takes place online via the AGNES portal during the introductory week.
Students who already possess knowledge of African or Asian languages can obtain information about the recognition procedures from the study subject counselling in the respective departments.
Mandatory module (10 CP)
Module 1: Introduction (10 CP)
Mandatory elective modules (50 CP)
1. Core curriculum:
Choose 1 of the following modules:
| Module 2 | Society/Transformation basic course | 10 CP |
| Module 3 | Culture/Identity basic course | 10 CP |
| Module 4 | Language/Communication basic course | 10 CP |
2. Advanced curriculum:
You can either choose up to 4 modules from the mono bachelor's course catalogue (modules 02–04, 09, 11–13) or up to 4 language modules (modules 05–08):
| Module 5 | Language course I | 10 CP |
| Module 6 | Language course II | 10 CP |
| Module 7 | Language course III | 10 CP |
| Module 8 | Language course IV | 10 CP |
| Module 9 | Methods | 10 CP |
| Module 11 | Society/Transformation advanced course | 10 CP |
| Module 12 | Culture/Identity advanced course | 10 CP |
| Module 13 | Language/Communication advanced course | 10 CP |
General elective course offerings for students coming from other courses of studies
| Module 2 | Society/Transformation basic course | 10 CP |
| Module 3 | Culture/Identity basic course | 10 CP |
| Module 4 | Language/Communication basic course | 10 CP |
| Module 19 | Asian/African languages I | 10 CP |
| Module 20 | Asian/African languages II | 10 CP |
| Module 21 | Asian/African languages III | 10 CP |
| Module 22 | Asian/African languages IV | 10 CP |
Special features
Thanks to the Asian/African Studies bachelor’s course, Humboldt-Universität is the only university in Germany to offer a basic course combining a wide-ranging introduction with the ability for in-depth study in the field of regional studies for Asia and Africa.
The course at the Department of Asian and African Studies provides a theoretical and methodological foundation. It enables the study of relevant regional languages, providing the skills for the detailed treatment of a region and a subsequent, discipline-oriented master’s programme.
In the job market, it also opens up the opportunity to enter trans-regional fields and to specialise in a particular cultural area.
The course primarily targets theoretical and methodological approaches which are relevant for examining Asia and Africa. You should be interested in at least one of the regions of concentration and enjoy learning languages. You have knowledge of the regions or countries (e.g. geographic, cultural) or will find out about them during the course. Future students should also be prepared to critically question perceptions of non-European cultures and be open to new ideas.
Subject-specific admission and enrolment rules
Career opportunities & prospects
The institute offers a postgraduate Master's programme in Asian/African Studies.
Please also see the Master's programmes in Global History and Global Studies, and for further Master's programmes, see the overview of study programmes.
You can find additional degree programmes throughout Germany and Berlin in the Hochschulkompass database.
Your degree qualifies you for further academic training as well as for careers in international cooperation, journalism, business and political consulting, social and political organisations, and intercultural and cultural work.
More information on career prospects and alternatives can be found in the Berufenet database.
General Study subject counselling
Dr. Sarah Holz, iaaw.bachelor-aa@hu-berlin.de
Regional focus Africa: Study subject counselling and recognition of credits
Mr Dr. Lesage, Invalidenstr. 118, room 411, phone: +49 30 2093-66006, jakob.lesage@hu-berlin.de
Regional focus Arabic: Study subject counselling and recognition of credits
Ms Dr. Holz, Invalidenstr. 118, room 301, phone: +49 30 2093-66077, iaaw.bachelor-aa@hu-berlin.de
Regional focus China, Taiwan, Korea: Study subject counselling and recognition of credits
Ms Alice Trinkle,Johannisstr. 10, room 206, alice.trinkle@hu-berlin.de
Regional focus Japan: Study subject counselling and recognition of credits
Mr Dr. Salomon, Johannisstr. 10, room 305, phone: +49 30 2093-66923, harald.salomon@rz.hu-berlin.de
Regional focus South Asia: Study subject counselling and recognition of credits
Ms Dr. Bajwa, Invalidenstr. 118, room 216, phone: +49 30 2093-66058, sadia.bajwa@asa.hu-berlin.de
Regional focus Southeast Asia: Study subject counselling and recognition of credits
Mr Dr. Bultmann, Invalidenstr. 118, room 115, phone: +49 30 2093-66020, daniel.bultmann@hu-berlin.de
Regional focus Central Asia: Study subject counselling and recognition of credits
Mr Dr. Schmoller, Invalidenstr. 118, room 209, Tel. 2093-66050, jesko.schmoller@hu-berlin.de
Contact information for the institute
Department of Asian and African Studies
Institutsgebäude, Invalidenstraße 118, 10115 Berlin