History Minor Requirements – History

To discuss and to ask any questions about the minor, please contact Bill North, Minor Coordinator.

Minor Requirements – 36 Total Credits

Historical knowledge and analysis play a central role in the humanities and social sciences. The skills in research and the evaluation of diverse forms of evidence can be transferred to many other disciplines across the College as well as careers. The global interests of the department’s faculty also means that History is a very good place to develop an interest in a specific region of the world or time-period. The History minor requirements offer students a clear, flexible yet structured exposure to the discipline that provides a valuable complement to their other program/s.

Students must complete a total of 36 credits including:

Elective Courses – Required 30 credits

Historical Field Courses – Required Courses From At Least Two Different Fields

Africa and Its Diaspora
Ancient and Medieval
Asia – South, East, and Central (Middle East)
The Atlantic World
Early Modern and Modern Europe
Environment and Health
Latin America
United States

Modern Era Courses – (Minimum 6 credits)

Pre-Modern Era Courses – (Minimum 6 credits)

ARCN 112: Archaeology of Native North America
CLAS 227: Athens, Sparta, and Persia
CLAS 229: The Collapse of the Roman Republic (not offered 2026-27)
CLAS 230: Hellenistic Greek History (not offered 2026-27)
CLAS 240: Rome: From Village to Superpower (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 100.05: Confucius and His Critics (26/FA)
HIST 131: Saints and Society in Late Antiquity
HIST 136: The Global Middle Ages (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 137: Early Medieval Worlds in Transformation (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 150: Politics of Art in Early Imperial China (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 159: Age of Samurai (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 164: A History of India Through Food
HIST 169: Colonial Latin America (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 201: History, Religion, and Urban Change in Medieval and Renaissance Rome Program: Building Power and Piety in Medieval Italy, C.E. 300-1150
HIST 206: History, Religion, and Urban Change in Medieval and Renaissance Rome Program: The Eternal City in Time: Structure, Change, and Identity
HIST 231: Mapping the World Before Mercator
HIST 233: The Byzantine World and Its Neighbors 750-ca. 1453 (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 234: Constantinople, 1453: History, Experience, Narrative (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 235: Making and Breaking Institutions: Structure, Culture, Corruption, and Reform in the Middle Ages (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 236: The Worlds of Hildegard of Bingen (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 237: Religion and Identity in the Medieval Middle East
HIST 238: The Viking World
HIST 243: The Peasants are Revolting! Society and Politics in the Making of Modern France
HIST 274: The Andes Under Inca & Spanish Rule
HIST 278: The Aztecs and Their World (not offered 2026-27)
HIST 334: Voyages of Understanding
RELG 235: Religion and Identity in the Medieval Middle East

300-Level Seminar – (6 credits)

At least 6 credits must be a Carleton History Department 300-level seminar. Note: a 300-level independent study does not fulfill the 300-level seminar requirement

Methods Course – Required 6 credits

The aim of HIST 298 is to help students reach a more sophisticated understanding of the nature of history as a discipline and of the approaches and methods of historians. Minors may take HIST 298 in either their junior or senior year.

HIST 298: What is History?

Additional Departmental Notes

A maximum of two courses from outside the History department or from Carleton or non-Carleton OCS programs may count towards the minor, subject to departmental approval.

The progress to completion of a minor will be tracked by the Chair or History department adviser with the assistance of the Administrative Assistant for History, all of whom will serve as resources for minors should they require more specific guidance.