German and Turkish

German and Turkish is an intellectually distinctive combination, pairing two languages that are significant in quite different ways. German, the most widely spoken first language in the European Union, is central to one of the world's largest economies and carries a remarkable tradition of philosophy, literature, music and scientific thought. Turkish, spoken by around 75 million people in Turkey and large diaspora communities across Europe, connects students to a strategically important country that bridges Europe and Asia, and to a rich literary and cultural heritage that spans the Ottoman period and the modern Turkish republic.

At the University of Oxford, this four-year full-time programme is taught within Oxford's tradition of rigorous philological and area studies scholarship. You will develop advanced proficiency in both German and Turkish through intensive language tuition, literary and cultural study, and translation practice, engaging with the histories, literatures and contemporary societies associated with each language. Oxford's tutorial system means you receive individual academic supervision and the deepest possible engagement with scholarly material in both languages.

The university's considerable research resources in German studies and Middle Eastern studies provide a distinguished intellectual context for this combination.

Graduates with German and Turkish are in an unusual and valuable position. Careers in diplomacy, particularly in the context of EU-Turkey relations, translation and interpreting, academic research, journalism, international business with German and Turkish partners, cultural organisations, area studies and intelligence work are all accessible routes. The combination of a major Western European language with Turkish, which is spoken across a strategically important region, is particularly relevant in any professional context that engages with European or Eurasian affairs.

Postgraduate study in German, Turkish studies, area studies or international relations provides a natural next step for those who wish to develop specialist expertise.