MAS2301 – The settlement of the North Atlantic
Course description
Course content
The topic is the Norse colonization and settlement of the North Atlantic isles during the Viking and Middle Ages. The subject is cross-disciplinary, but with a heavy emphasis on historical archaeology. The archaeological sources will be presented and examined, together with some written sources that have been regarded central to the interpretation of the archaeological material. The settlement history of the Norse in the Faroes, Iceland, Greenland and Canada will be examined, and seen in context with Viking and Medieval history of Scandinavia and Europe. Central subjects will be the transformation of religion, church history, terrestrial and marine economies, climate and politics.
Learning outcome
The students should know the basic historical framework of the North Atlantic ca. 800-1500 AD, and be familiar with the most important archaeological and written sources. They should also know the outlines of the research history, and be familiar with the most important academic works in the field. The objective is to give the students an understanding of the different types of sources, how they should be approached from a source-critical point of view, and how to apply them in academic reasoning.
Admission
Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.
If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures.
Singular course students may apply from 14 January 2011, depending on capacity.
Prerequisites
Formal prerequisite knowledge
None
Overlapping courses
10 credits against MAS4301 – The settlement of the North Atlantic (discontinued)
Teaching
The course consists of lectures (7 x 2 hours) and seminars (3 x 2 hours). The students’ written work is an integrated part of the course.
Compulsory assignments: A first draft of the semester assignment is to be submitted halfway through the semester. Deadlines will be published in the detailed teaching plan.
Fronter will be used in this course.
The teaching will be in English, but the students must to a small extent also relate to non-English sources and placenames.
Examination
Towards the end of the semester, each student should submit a maximum 10 page written paper (where a page has 2300 characters without spacing) on an individually selected topic. The student will work with this topic during the semester under supervision of the teacher(s). The semester assignment will form the base of the final grade.
The student must hand in an Obligatory statement regarding cheating along with the term paper.
The assessment is integrated in the course lessons and it is therefore not possible to sit for the exam unless the student is registered for the teaching component of the course.
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.
Students can ask for an explanation of the grade. This must be done within a week after the grade was made known to the student. To obtain the explanation, send an e-mail to henvendelser@ikos.uio.no. It is up to the sensor whether the explanation will be given orally or in writing. The student's e-mail must contain information of an e-mail address and a telephone number he or she can be reached on.
Explanations and appeals
Resit an examination
Special examination arrangements
Application form, deadline and requirements for special examination arrangements.
Other
This course is well suited for combination within archaeology or other disciplines dealing with European Viking and Medieval cultural history.
80-group – Fordypning i middelalderensarkeologi og kunsthistorie (80MIDARKKUN) (discontinued)
80-group – Fordypning i middelalderenskulturhistorie (80MIDKULT) (discontinued)
40-group – Middelalderenskulturhistorie (40MIDKULTH) (this course group no longer admits students)
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