We are one of the largest, most interdisciplinary German departments in the UK, with links to Film, Intercultural, Translation and Gender Studies as well as History, Politics and Linguistics. We collaborate with partners within and beyond the academy. Together we are redefining the boundaries of German Studies and centring marginalised perspectives.
We focus on 20th and 21st Century German studies in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, with strengths in the following areas:
Holocaust and Post-conflict Memory Studies
We explore the history and cultural representation of the Nazi dictatorship and the Holocaust, and the resonance of Holocaust memory in contexts such as Ukraine and South Africa.
We also work to uncover the local and international memory of WW1.
Histories of protest, activism and resistance
We research movements and individuals who have challenged dominant narratives and protested against inequality, discrimination, war, and climate collapse.
German-speaking cultures in the world
We focus on Language, Linguistics and Translation, exploring the complexity of language use and intercultural communication, and how these are reflected in the language classroom.
Teaching and supervision
Research and scholarship are at the heart of our curriculum: we learn from and inspire original research from our students, postgraduates and visiting scholars. German colleagues feed into other programmes and subject areas within the University, building bridges between German and anglophone cultures.
