Hungarian and Russian

Hungarian and Russian is a rare and intellectually ambitious combination, bringing together one of the most distinctive languages in Europe with one of the richest and most geopolitically significant of the Slavic languages. Hungarian belongs to the Finno-Ugric family, making it structurally unlike most of its neighbours and requiring a particular kind of linguistic agility to master. Russian connects you to the literature of Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy and Chekhov, to the cultural and political history of a vast nation, and to a language spoken across a significant portion of the world's land surface.

At University College London the four-year full-time programme is split equally between your two languages, developing skills in speaking, listening, reading, writing and translation in both. Alongside language study you will engage with the cultural, literary, historical, cinematic and political dimensions of Hungary and the Russian-speaking world through a wide range of optional modules. The third year is spent abroad, divided between Hungary and a Russian-speaking country, giving you immersive experience of both languages and cultures in their natural settings.

Graduates of this combination are genuinely uncommon and specifically sought after by organisations working with Central and Eastern Europe, including international organisations, diplomatic services, intelligence and security agencies, energy companies, financial institutions and cultural bodies. The combination of Hungarian and Russian opens doors that few other language combinations can, making graduates rare and valuable wherever geopolitical, economic or cultural engagement with the region is required. Postgraduate study in Slavonic studies, Hungarian, European studies, area studies or translation is a natural further route.