Welcome
The University of Leeds has a long Russian Studies tradition; our Department was founded in 1918. Whilst mindful of this tradition, we are pioneering a dynamic twenty-first century approach to the subject, with a multi-media, cross-discipline combination of historical, political, social issues and artistic practices, led by our staff’s latest research.
In 2008 we introduced a new Russian degree programme, that has been praised for its academic rigour, breadth and variety, as well as its ability to equip the modern Arts graduate to be well placed to find employment. It features innovative modules reflecting the latest developments in language teaching, and incorporates subjects important to the modern world, such as visual culture and media, without sacrificing attention to the fundamentals of literature and cultural history.
The programme allows progression in four main thematic areas:
Language, Literature, Visual Culture and Russian Thought.
In your first year, you receive comprehensive training in essential language skills (at beginners or post-A-Level standard) together with an overview of Russian cultural history, and choose options such as From Icons to iPods: Approaches to Russian Culture.
During your Year Abroad, you go to Moscow to study at the prestigious Moscow State University and develop your research skills by embarking on a project of your choice related to contemporary Russia (recent topics have included:. "Political parties of the Russian Federation", "Vladimir Putin", "Homeless children in Moscow", "Moscow underground", "Immigration in Russia", etc.).
In your third year, you branch out into Business Russian and choose options such as Not By Bread Alone: Everyday Culture Under the Soviet Regime and Postcommunist/Postmodernist Identities. You will also be able to begin a new Slavonic language (options currently include Polish, Bulgarian and Czech). You will also take part in a conference dedicated to your Year Abroad research.
The images used on this website are taken from The Cyrillics, a collection of works created by artists from Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Each image is dedicated to a letter of the Bulgarian alphabet. The project was supported by the National Programme for marking the Accession of the Republic of Bulgaria to the European Union in 2007. The images are reproduced here with the permission of the State Culture Institute under the Minister of Foreign Affairs
In your final year, you develop professional skills in translating and interpreting, and combine the contemporary with the classical with options such as The Encounter Between Orthodoxy and Islam, Russian Cinema: Cultural Symbols and Symbolic Structures, Russian (New) Media, and Fyodor Dostoevsky: Artist and Prophet. Spread your wings with a dissertation on a topic of your choice, and showcase your findings in a student research conference. See the 2008-9 programme here.
For full programme details including a full list of modules on offer please see our Admissions page.
The latest undergraduate Russian course newsletter is now available to download. Please click here for your copy
News
23rd April 2009, 4.00pm, Miall Lecture Theatre, Baines Wing
A talk by Vladimir Makanin on his latest novel Asan and the current Russian literary scene. Details.
5th February 2009, 4.00pm, Michael Sadler B37
Why we must laugh at the Underground Man: Humour in Dostoevsky's Notes from Underground
Dr Sarah Hudspith (University of Leeds)
1st December 2008, 4.00 - 5.30 pm
Prehistories and Afterlives: Soviet Rock Music Revisited.
Dr Polly McMichael (University of Nottingham)
30th October 2008, 4.00 pm - Michael Sadler B37
"Towards the True Man or a Reach Too Far".
A film screening and guest lecture by Pavla Alchin, a London-based Czech video artists. Her video and photography pieces have been exhibited in the UK, China, Lithuania, etc.
October 2008 - March 2009
A programme of Russian orchestral and chamber
music as part of the Leeds International Concert Season in various Leeds
venues.
21st November 2008, 1.10pm - Clothworkers Concert Hall
A performance
of Russian choral music by students of the School of Music, (of which
some pieces will have their UK premiere) to mark the centenary of the
death of Rimsky-Korsakov and the 20th anniversary of the death of
Sviridov.
26 September 2008 - 1 February 2009
An exhibition of Mark Rothko, a Latvian-born American painter and printmaker at Tate Modern, London.
25 September 2008 - 11 January 2009
Cold War Modern is the first exhibition to explore international developments in modern art, design, architecture and film in the context of the Cold War; Victoria and Albert museum, London .
18-28 September 2008
The Department supports Russian Film Festival in London organized by Academia Rossica.
7 September 2008
London International Animation Festival presents a showcase of a Russian Animation Studio 'Animose'.
1-7 September 2008
Leeds University holds the first UK visit of the internationally renowned Ukrainian theatre director, Andriy Zholdak, who trained with Anatoly Vasiliev. Zholdak will be running a masterclass for a week and will be presenting a public lecture on his work.