• Hot Pursuit by Paul Klee

Welcome to the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures

Discover Life at the Department

Register for an Online Placement Exam

In the Spotlight

Student Spotlight:

Dhruv Goel & Zach Lech

Dhruv Goel and Zach Lech smiling at the camera. Theire headshots are seperate but combined into one picture.Senior concentrators Dhruv (Gaurav) Goel (Math & German) and Zach Lech (German & Gov) have been elected to the Phi Beta Kappa Senior 48! Read more about it in the Harvard Crimson! Join us in congratulating them.

Courses

Courses offered by the department weave a tapestry of German-language literature across the ages, at the intersection of disciplines such as history, philosophy, film studies, and the arts. Undergraduate courses open a window to the infinite possibliities of the humanities. Languages taught include German, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, and Norwegian. 

Browse Courses

Group of students on the steps of Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam, Germany

Study Abroad

Students immerse themselves in language study and the resonant arts and cultural scenes in Berlin and Vienna or visit Århus, Denmark, for a a comprehensive, hands-on exploration of the Viking Age and its legacy in the Middle Ages. Additional opportunities are also available. 

Work Abroad Program

Work Abroad

The only summer internship/work program run by a department in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences affords speakers of German at all levels of proficiency the opportunity to gain work experience in the private or public sector in a German-speaking country or remotely.