Classics and Spanish

Classics and Spanish brings together the ancient world and the modern Spanish-speaking world in a combination that is as intellectually ambitious as it is distinctive. Classics encompasses the languages, literatures, history and philosophy of ancient Greece and Rome, civilisations whose cultural legacy permeates the Western tradition, including its Spanish-language inheritance. Spanish is the native language of over 500 million people and provides access to a rich literary tradition spanning Spain and Latin America, from the Golden Age of Cervantes through to contemporary fiction and poetry.

Studying both at Oxford means engaging with two of the most culturally productive traditions in human history.

At Oxford, this four-year programme develops your command of both ancient and modern languages within the distinctive tutorial system that requires you to discuss and defend your ideas in close engagement with specialists. You will read classical texts in Greek and Latin, study the history and thought of the ancient world, and develop your Spanish language skills to an advanced level alongside the literature and cultural history of the Spanish-speaking world. The programme encourages you to draw connections across periods and traditions, situating modern Spanish literature and thought in relation to the classical heritage that has shaped it.

The typical entry tariff is 184 UCAS points.

Graduates pursue careers in academia, publishing, journalism, the arts, diplomacy, law, education, cultural institutions and the many professional contexts in which classical learning and Spanish fluency are valued. The Oxford tutorial system produces graduates who can argue precisely and write with exceptional clarity, and the combination of ancient and modern language skills is genuinely rare. Many graduates continue to postgraduate study in classics, Spanish, comparative literature, ancient history or translation.