The Department of Spanish and Portuguese offers Catalan and Quechua language and culture classes. We invite you to explore each section below to learn more about each program!
Catalan
Our instructors and professors are trained in language, literatures and cultures of the Catalan speaking countries and are members or participants of Catalan institutions such as:
- The Institut Ramon Llull
- North American Catalan Society
- Association Française des Catalanistes
- The Institut d’Estudis Catalans
For more information, contact Holly Nibert.
Interested in taking Catalan?
The Ohio State University is a member of the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA).
Students of member universities enjoy expanded access to world-class resources and programs due to a rich array of academic collaborations, such as CourseShare.
The CourseShare framework allows students to register for shared language courses at the same time and in the same manner as regular courses. Grades and credits are reported on the student’s home university transcript.
There are no additional fees associated with shared courses, making them even more attractive to students.
For more information, contact Rachel Sanabria.
Did you know?
- Catalan is spoken by 9+ million people in Catalunya, the Balearic Islands, the Valencian Community, and in the French department of the Pyrenees-Orientales.
- Catalan is an official language in Andorra, Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and the Valencian Community, and a co-official language in the Italian city of Alghero in Sardinia.
- Most Catalan speakers are bi- or multilingual -- Catalan co-exists with 3 other important European languages —Spanish, French and Italian.
- Catalan is a Gallo-Romance and is very similar to Occitan. It has more in common with French & Italian than with Spanish.
Quechua
Learn the latest updates on our Quechua program and Learning Community!
Quechua, the language of the ancient Incas, is spoken by approximately ten million people in the Andean highlands of South America from Colombia to Argentina. The Andean region is known for its rich cultural and linguistic diversity.
The elementary and intermediate Quechua language courses are of special interest to students who want to learn about the Quechua language, culture, and society in the Andes, who are pursuing the inter-disciplinary minor in Andean and Amazonian Studies, or studying or working in areas such as:
- Spanish
- Portuguese
- History
- Anthropology
- Archeology
- Geography
- The Arts
- International studies
- Political Science, and many other disciplines
For more information, please contact Elvia Andia Grageda.
Why Study Quechua?
First, let's consider some of the aspects that one acquires when studying a foreign language:
- A linguistic competency in the select language
- An improved cultural understanding of those who natively speak the language
- New perspectives and outlooks on the world through the lens of the language, among others prospects
While all of these areas can be enhanced by studying a more commonly taught language, they are already so shared throughout the world that the variety they provide in terms of the above aspects is not as strong as for those of a minority language. For example, in nearly all of the commonly taught languages of the world, the concept of time is viewed with the future facing forward, and the past backward. In Quechua, though, it is the opposite: the future is behind us because we cannot see it, and the past is in front of us because we can, indeed, see it. It is this type of novel way of thinking that can be accomplished when studying languages that are less commonly taught. If you want to be able to look at the world through such a distinct type of lens, then Quechua is a good place to start!
Catalan
Our instructors and professors are trained in language, literatures and cultures of the Catalan speaking countries and are members or participants of Catalan institutions such as:
- The Institut Ramon Llull
- North American Catalan Society
- Association Française des Catalanistes
- The Institut d’Estudis Catalans
For more information, contact Holly Nibert.
Interested in taking Catalan?
The Ohio State University is a member of the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA).
Students of member universities enjoy expanded access to world-class resources and programs due to a rich array of academic collaborations, such as CourseShare.
The CourseShare framework allows students to register for shared language courses at the same time and in the same manner as regular courses. Grades and credits are reported on the student’s home university transcript.
There are no additional fees associated with shared courses, making them even more attractive to students.
For more information, contact Rachel Sanabria.
Did you know?
- Catalan is spoken by 9+ million people in Catalunya, the Balearic Islands, the Valencian Community, and in the French department of the Pyrenees-Orientales.
- Catalan is an official language in Andorra, Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and the Valencian Community, and a co-official language in the Italian city of Alghero in Sardinia.
- Most Catalan speakers are bi- or multilingual -- Catalan co-exists with 3 other important European languages —Spanish, French and Italian.
- Catalan is a Gallo-Romance and is very similar to Occitan. It has more in common with French & Italian than with Spanish.
Quechua
Learn the latest updates on our Quechua program and Learning Community!
Quechua, the language of the ancient Incas, is spoken by approximately ten million people in the Andean highlands of South America from Colombia to Argentina. The Andean region is known for its rich cultural and linguistic diversity.
The elementary and intermediate Quechua language courses are of special interest to students who want to learn about the Quechua language, culture, and society in the Andes, who are pursuing the inter-disciplinary minor in Andean and Amazonian Studies, or studying or working in areas such as:
- Spanish
- Portuguese
- History
- Anthropology
- Archeology
- Geography
- The Arts
- International studies
- Political Science, and many other disciplines
For more information, please contact Elvia Andia Grageda.
Why Study Quechua?
First, let's consider some of the aspects that one acquires when studying a foreign language:
- A linguistic competency in the select language
- An improved cultural understanding of those who natively speak the language
- New perspectives and outlooks on the world through the lens of the language, among others prospects
While all of these areas can be enhanced by studying a more commonly taught language, they are already so shared throughout the world that the variety they provide in terms of the above aspects is not as strong as for those of a minority language. For example, in nearly all of the commonly taught languages of the world, the concept of time is viewed with the future facing forward, and the past backward. In Quechua, though, it is the opposite: the future is behind us because we cannot see it, and the past is in front of us because we can, indeed, see it. It is this type of novel way of thinking that can be accomplished when studying languages that are less commonly taught. If you want to be able to look at the world through such a distinct type of lens, then Quechua is a good place to start!