Spanish and History

Spanish and history is a combination that allows you to understand the Spanish-speaking world in its full temporal depth. Spanish is one of the most spoken languages on earth, the primary language of twenty countries and the first or heritage language of hundreds of millions of people across Latin America, Spain, and the United States. The history of the Spanish-speaking world is correspondingly vast: from the rise and fall of Islamic Spain, the Reconquista and the Catholic Monarchs, through European empire and colonial encounter in the Americas, to the wars and revolutions of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and the complex democratic transitions and social changes of recent decades.

Studying Spanish alongside history gives you linguistic access to the primary sources of that history and the analytical tools to understand it rigorously.

At the University of Edinburgh, this four-year, full-time programme follows the Scottish honours structure. You will develop advanced Spanish language proficiency alongside a serious engagement with historical study across the periods and themes that matter most to you, guided by Edinburgh's research-active history department. The programme allows you to pursue Spanish history directly, but also to bring your language skills to bear on a wider range of historical questions, and to illuminate your Spanish studies with historical frameworks and perspectives.

Edinburgh's School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures and its History department are both strong, and the combination reflects genuine interdisciplinary depth.

Graduates from Spanish and history programmes work in diplomacy, journalism, international business, education, cultural organisations, the civil service, and academic research. The combination of linguistic competence with historical analytical skills is valued wherever cross-cultural understanding and the ability to engage with a rich and complex past are professionally relevant. Postgraduate study in history, Hispanic studies, area studies, or international relations is a common next step.