Czech is a language spoken by approximately 10 million people, mostly in the Czech Republic. It belongs among the West Slavic languages (as does Polish) and is largely mutually comprehensible with Slovak. Czech is one of the oldest literary languages in Europe, and is the second language in which printed books were produced—six years before the first printed book in English! The Czech capital, Prague, was once the administrative and cultural centre of the Holy Roman Empire, and in more recent times Czech composers such as Smetana, Dvořák, and Janáček have become world famous. Czech has even contributed a few words to the English language (‘robot’, ‘pistol’), and, of course, ‘Pilsener’ beer originates from the west Bohemian city of Plzeň/Pilsen. Czech uses the Latin alphabet, with a few characteristic diacritics such as č, á, or ů.
Taking Czech as an Elective Module (Undergraduate and Postgraduate)
Both undergraduate and postgraduate students on other degree programmes at UCL can take a Czech language module as an elective (programme diet permitting).
Undergraduate
All SSEES social science undergraduate degrees offer the opportunity take Czech language as an elective module. Students in other UCL departments may also select Czech as an elective (programme diet permitting):
UCL students on the following degrees also have the option to take Czech as a chosen language:
- Comparative Literature BA
- Comparative Literature with a Year Abroad BA
- Language and Culture BA
- European Social and Political Studies BA
Postgraduate
Czech can be taken as an elective module for all SSEES MA programmes, as well as for a number of other Postgraduate Taught degrees in other UCL departments.
Modules covering Czech language and culture include: