ELTE Institute of German Studies

About

Since its founding in 1992, the Institute of German Studies has become one of the most prominent academic centers for German studies education and research in Hungary. The institute offers comprehensive undergraduate and postgraduate programs.

Its research areas span various fields of both diachronic and—especially—synchronic linguistics (including grammar studies, dialectology, sociolinguistics, lexicography, lexicology, pragmatics, and text linguistics), as well as several subfields of literary and cultural studies (such as literary theory, narratology, German–Hungarian cultural relations, and regionalism).

History

Given our country’s history, the German language has always played a special and privileged role in Hungary: for a long time, German was the official language, and for the past century and a half, there has also been German-language journalism in Hungary. In addition, German-language culture has played a mediating role between Hungarian culture and other cultures for long periods of time.

The predecessor of Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) was the Jesuit University of Nagyszombat, founded in 1635 by Péter Pázmány, but the teaching of German language and literature only began after the university moved to Pest in 1785. Hungarian culture is also notable for its significant German-speaking national minority culture. Before the Institute of Germanic Studies was established at ELTE in 1992, the Department of Germanic Studies and Romanian Philology also served as the centre and coordinator of domestic German dialect research. The diversity of academic programmes and openness towards other cultures and disciplines at ELTE is demonstrated by the presence of Germanic and Scandinavian studies in the Institute of Germanic Studies within the Faculty of Humanities, as well as the accreditation of national German university-level education, which began in 2005.

Teaching

In addition to intensive practical language skills, our institute provides students with comprehensive knowledge of the most important areas of German culture and its development; the structure and historical development of the language, and the rules of its use; research and achievements in the field of German linguistics; the history, periods, authors and works of German literature; methods and trends in general literary studies in German-speaking countries; and the basic knowledge required to develop a multifaceted, inter- and multidisciplinary practical and theoretical approach to the subject. Equipped with their knowledge and skills, graduates can not only pursue careers in the field of education, but also in many areas of cultural life (publishing, written and visual media, cultural institutions, public administration and business), and the most outstanding graduates have the opportunity to carry out academic research as part of their doctoral studies.

The purpose of the bachelor's programme is to train professionals with a wide range of knowledge, fluency in foreign languages and the ability to work successfully in a variety of fields, including business, academia, tourism, international communication, and print and electronic media, and who are able to continue their studies successfully in the master’s programme.

The Institute of Germanic Studies has been running a doctoral programme since the beginning of the restructuring of doctoral education and degree acquisition in 1993. Initially, this was within the Germanic Studies doctoral school with a language and literature programme. Since the restructuring and re-accreditation of doctoral training (PhD), the Germanic Studies language programme has been operating under the ELTE Faculty of Humanities Doctoral School of Linguistics, and the Germanic Studies literature programme under the ELTE Faculty of Humanities Doctoral School of Literary Studies.

Overview of study programs

German Studies Bachelor's Program – BA (6 semesters undergraduate program)

German
German as a minority language
Dutch Studies: Dutch–Flemish language, literature, and culture
Scandinavian Studies: Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish language, literature, and culture

German Studies Minor (5 semesters)
Available for students not majoring in German Studies; can be started from the 1st semester.

Master's Program (BA + 4 semesters)

Master's in German language, literature, and culture
Master's in German minority language and literature
Master's in Dutch Studies
Master's in Scandinavian Studies
Teacher training:
- German as a foreign language
- German as a minority language

PhD / Doctoral Program (MA + 6 semesters)
Available in all fields.

About our institute