Study and Multilingualism
Foreign Language Skills Pivotal for Humanities Research at Princeton
Princeton University, a renowned academic institution, places great emphasis on the study of foreign languages, particularly for students pursuing research in the humanities.
One of the key academic programs at Princeton, the Junior Paper (JP), involves academic work in foreign languages. This focus on language study can guide a student to a research topic, as mastery of a foreign language allows scholars to engage directly with original texts, artifacts, and documents in their authentic linguistic and cultural contexts.
For instance, Princeton’s emphasis on language technology and preservation, as seen in seminars that explore African languages combined with language computing tools, reflects the university’s commitment to integrating language proficiency with research innovation. This integration facilitates the management of historical and cultural data and supports interdisciplinary approaches in humanities research.
Access to Princeton’s extensive resources like the Princeton University Art Museum—with collections spanning over 5,000 years and global cultures—enhances the value of foreign language skills. Researchers can directly engage with curatorial materials, exhibition catalogs, and lectures rooted in non-English languages, thereby enriching their scholarship and broadening research horizons.
The ability to work in multiple languages is often essential for doing good research in the humanities. Knowledge of the original language is necessary to grasp various nuances present in a work. Unstudied or understudied sources are often not available in English and require the knowledge of a foreign language to be studied.
To help students prepare for academic work in foreign languages, Princeton offers the Virtual Global Seminar. This component of the student’s academic journey is designed to immerse students in a foreign language, providing them with the opportunity to jump into foreign language learning and to learn a language off-campus as part of the "Research Abroad" program.
In conclusion, for humanities research at Princeton, proficiency in a foreign language is pivotal in direct engagement with primary sources, guiding and broadening research topics, leveraging university resources that support interdisciplinary and technological approaches to language and culture, and accessing unstudied or understudied sources. The Virtual Global Seminar is an invaluable tool in this regard, offering students the means to learn a language outside of campus and to participate in a research-focused language learning experience.
[1] Princeton University, Department of African American Studies, African Languages and Computing Seminar, https://aas.princeton.edu/undergraduate/courses/african-languages-and-computing-seminar
[2] Princeton University Art Museum, Collections, https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/collections
- Undergraduate research in humanities at Princeton often includes the senior thesis, which frequently requires proficiency in a foreign language as students seek to engage with original texts, artifacts, and documents in their linguistic and cultural contexts.
- Princeton's Virtual Global Seminar, a component of the student's academic journey, is designed to immerse students in a foreign language, enabling them to participate in research-focused language learning experiences, such as the "Research Abroad" program.
- The Junior Paper (JP) at Princeton, involving academic work in foreign languages, can guide students towards their research topics and inspire a broader understanding of education-and-self-development, both through online-education resources and on-campus ones like the Princeton University Art Museum, rich in works from diverse global cultures.
