Ancient History

Ancient history is the study of the human past from the earliest literate civilisations of the Near East, Egypt, Greece, and Rome through to the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the transition to the medieval world. It is a discipline that engages with the origins of much of what Western culture has understood itself to be, from democratic institutions and philosophical traditions to legal frameworks, artistic conventions, and religious ideas. Studying ancient history means working with the fragmentary evidence that has survived, combining literary texts, inscriptions, papyri, coins, and archaeological remains to reconstruct lives and events separated from us by millennia.

At Cardiff University, this three-year full-time degree takes you into the worlds of Greece and Rome and their neighbours and predecessors, developing your skills as a historian working with challenging and incomplete evidence. You will engage with primary sources in translation alongside scholarly debate about how they should be interpreted, and develop your ability to construct careful, evidence-based arguments in writing and in discussion. The programme explores political, social, economic, and cultural history, examining topics such as Athenian democracy, the Roman Republic and Empire, warfare and imperialism, slavery, gender, religion, and the interaction between ancient societies and their neighbours.

Historiographical awareness, understanding how different scholars have approached the same material, is central to the discipline and developed throughout.

Graduates of ancient history programmes pursue careers in education, museums and heritage organisations, publishing, journalism, the civil service, law, and many other fields where rigorous analytical and communication skills are valued. The discipline's combination of linguistic training, historical analysis, and close work with difficult evidence translates into widely transferable graduate competences. Many graduates continue into postgraduate study in ancient history, classical studies, archaeology, or related humanities disciplines.