Modern Languages & Linguistics

The Department of Modern Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics offers a variety of courses and degree programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels in Arabic, Mandarin Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Hebrew, Russian, Spanish and Linguistics. The general program of study includes courses in grammar, conversation, composition, reading, culture and civilization, literature, and history of the language. These courses are supplemented with materials available in our state-of-the-art Language Learning Center.

Major, Minor & Flagship

The native language of nearly a quarter billion people, in over 20 countries in the Middle East and North Africa, Arabic is the fifth most widely spoken language today.

Arabic is currently the most requested language from the US government for interpreting. OU’s Arabic Flagship program offers scholarships and the chance to combine five years of Arabic study with any major.

OU has study abroad opportunities in Egypt, Jordan, and Morocco.

Major & Minor

Knowledge of Chinese is increasingly important for the US government as well as for the armed forces, customs officers, immigration officers, foreign services personnel, journalists, and travel agents.

China is one of the largest trading partners of the United States. Many US companies do business in China and have long-term investments there.

Since 2005, 10 OU students have been awarded a prestigious full scholarship offered by the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China through the Chinese Consulate General in Houston to study in China for a year.

Major & Minor

French is an official language in 32 countries and is the second most frequently taught foreign language in the world.

As an official language of the United Nations, International Red Cross, NATO, UNESCO, the international Olympic Committee, and many other international organizations, French offers students global career opportunities.

French is a key language in the EU, the world’s largest economic entity with a population of 350 million and a gross national product larger than the United States.

Major & Minor

German is the most widely spoken first language in the European Union. German is also the second most widely spoken second language in Europe, only slightly behind English.

BMW, Bayer, Siemens, Volkswagen, Deutsche Bank, Krupp, and Mercedes are just a few of the hundreds of large German firms that do extensive business with the US and which recruit American college graduates who both speak German and are willing to work on both sides of the Atlantic.

Although the demand in business, government, diplomacy, journalism, media, and the sciences for Americans who speak German continues to rise sharply every year, the number of Americans who speak German is actually declining. This means that German is a very marketable skill!

Study abroad for a summer, semester, or year at one of our many German-speaking partner universities.

Minor

Hebrew is by far the easiest classical language to learn and use. Hebrew is a valuable tool for students and scholars in a variety of disciplines such as religious studies, Judaic studies, Middle Eastern studies, security, literature, political science, and international studies.

If you want to make a difference in the world, learn Hebrew! You could eventually be an in-demand translator for the United Nations or another NGO.

Major & Minor

More than 125 million people across the world speak Italian. Experience first-hand the rich artistic, literary, and cultural heritage of Italy at home and abroad. OU is the only university in the state to offer both a major and minor in Italian.

As a G8 country, Italy is one of the leading economic powerhouses in the world. Learn Italian and land a job with an Italian corporation in Milan, Rome, or Florence, or explore a career in international diplomacy with NGOs like UNESCO.

The program in Arezzo, Italy is the University of Oklahoma’s signature study abroad site. OU students can study in Arezzo for a semester, year, or summer. Arezzo also hosts a number of faculty led travel seminars through various colleges.

Minor

Japanese is spoken by 130 million speakers, is one of the ten most widely spoken languages, and is the third most used languages on the internet.

OU Students can study abroad in Tokyo, Kyoto, Yamagata, and Yamaguchi in Japan.

Japan is a world leader in economics, science, and technology and in such varied industries as robotics, communications, computers, and automobiles.

Major & Minor

Linguistics overlaps with many other disciplines. Some of the closest connections are with philosophy, literature, language pedagogy, psychology, sociology, and more!

Graduates of undergraduate and graduate programs in Linguistics apply their training in many diverse
areas, including language pedagogy, speech pathology, speech synthesis, natural language interfaces, search engines, machine translation, forensics, code-breaking, naming, and all forms of writing, editing, and publishing.

Portuguese is the sixth most spoken language in the world, with a total of 178,000,000 speakers. In South America, there are as many Brazilian Portuguese speakers as Spanish speakers. In the United States, about 3.5 million people speak Portuguese.

The Portuguese program at OU was recently reinstated, so the classes are still small, which allows students to have individual attention from the instructor.

Brazil’s economy is one of the fastest growing economies in the world today, and Brazil’s rich oil and gas industries open new business possibilities in its dynamic economy.

Major & Minor

OU Students can study Russian at the Nevsky Institute of Language and Culture in St. Petersburg, Russia via reciprocal exchange for up to two semesters! Visit the outstanding collection of art at the Hermitage, explore stunning palaces, and walk in the footsteps of the heroes of Russian literature.

The US government has designated Russian as a critical language. The demand for Russian speakers now exceeds the number of qualified individuals. Opportunities to work within the US government are expanding for those proficient in Russian.

Major & Minor

Spanish is spoken by almost 400 million people worldwide. About half the population in the Western Hemisphere speaks Spanish, and it is the official language in 21 countries. Spanish is also the second most commonly used world language in business.

OU students have said that, “being bilingual in Spanish and English made me more marketable over monolingual English speakers," and “hiring managers told me: I get two for one with Spanish and English job candidates.”

Students can study at universities in Spanish-speaking countries like Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru, or Spain and receive OU credit for their Spanish major or minor. For more information about study abroad at OU, contact Education Abroad at (405) 325-1693, or visit the Education Abroad webpage.

Department of Modern Languages, Literatures and Linguistics
Phone: (405) 325-6181
Email: lagreca@ou.edu
Website: modlang.ou.edu