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The Department of Humanities was created from the convergence of numerous homogeneous research groups, broadly representative of our university’s humanities expertise. It currently has 98 teachers and 19 technical administrative staff. It supports the following Bachelor’s and Master's degree courses that provide training in the fundamental knowledge of the humanities:

 

BACHELOR'S DEGREES (Corsi di Laurea triennale)

LITERARY ARTS [Class L-10]

LANGUAGES AND LITERATURE – INTERCULTURAL STUDIES (Palermo Campus) [Class L-11]

LANGUAGES AND LITERATURE – INTERCULTURAL STUDIES (Palermo Campus) [Class L-12]

LANGUAGES AND LITERATURE - INTERCULTURAL STUDIES (Agrigento Campus) [Class L-11]

LANGUAGES AND LITERATURE - INTERCULTURAL STUDIES (Agrigento Campus) [Class L-12]

PHILOSOPHICAL AND HISTORICAL STUDIES [Class L-5]

ARTS, MUSIC AND PERFORMING ARTS [Class L-3]

 

MASTER'S DEGREES (Corsi di Laurea Magistrale)

ITALIAN STUDIES [LM-14]

LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES: CULTURAL STUDIES AND TEACHING [Class LM-37]

LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES: CULTURAL STUDIES AND TEACHING [Class LM-39]

MODERN LANGUAGES AND TRANSLATION FOR INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS [Class LM-38]

PHILOSOPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SCIENCES [Class LM-38]

MUSICOLOGY AND PERFORMING ARTS [Class LM-45]

MUSICOLOGY AND PERFORMING ARTS [Class LM-65

TRANSNATIONAL GERMAN STUDIES [Class LM-37]

DIGITAL HUMANITIES FOR THE CULTURAL INDUSTRY [Class LM-43]

These degree programmes guarantee a wide range of internationalisation experiences and the possibility of periods of study abroad during study, as well as the presence of visiting professors and visiting students, thanks to:

• Erasmus-Socrates exchanges;
• numerous agreements with various foreign universities for the awarding of double degrees;
• bilateral agreements, in the context of European Community programmes (such as the recently concluded Erasmus Mundus' Glitema').

About postgraduate training, the Department offers:

1. A specialisation course in 'Subtitling for the Deaf and Audio Description for the Blind';
2. A 2nd level Postgraduate degree (Master di II livello) in “Theory, Design and Teaching of Italian as a Second and Foreign Language”;
3. A 2nd level Postgraduate degree (Master di II livello) in “Publishing”;
4. A PhD in “Humanities” (international);
5. a PhD in "Migrations, differences, social justice" (established in the 40^th cycle, A.A. 2024-2025, at the Migrare center) Link

Aware of the possibility for humanities to have a profound impact on the life of society and the territory of reference, the Department intervenes in the city with numerous activities of cultural promotion, but also of promotion of cultural enterprise of humanistic competence, which is particularly important today for the conservation of the territory and cultural heritage, and in a broader sense for the renewal and democratic stability of political, social and economic systems, especially in a territory with a profound cultural vocation such as Sicily and Italy in general. In this perspective, the School of Italian Language for Foreigners, the 'Michele Mancini' Multimedia University Laboratory and numerous research centres of the Department (such as, for example, the Sicilian Linguistic Atlas (ALS) link http://atlantelinguisticosicilia.it/cms/ and the University Music Laboratory) are engaged in a fruitful cultural activity in the territory, transferring the knowledge cultivated within the University to the outside world. Furthermore, the Department has signed agreements with important cultural institutions in the area (such as the Teatro Massimo, the Conservatorio' Vincenzo Bellini', the Teatro Libero), which favour experiences of relationship with the world of work in the field of cultural organisation and promotion. Some important cultural institutions are based within the Department under specific agreements: the Centre for Sicilian Philological and Linguistic Studies (link https://www.csfls.it/), the Antonio Il Verso Ancient Music Association (link http://antonioilverso.altervista.org/). Various contracts with secondary schools and the Regional Education Office have also created an intense collaborative relationship with secondary schools, both in terms of in-service teacher training and work experience programmes and in terms of student orientation to continue their education at the University. Through these and many other activities related to the promotion and dissemination of humanistic culture in the relevant social contexts (festivals, book presentations, educational activities, commemorative days, etc.), the Department pursues with increasing attention what is known as the 'third mission', today deeply felt as a task of the University alongside those of research and teaching.

The library's collection of about 150,000 volumes spread over various locations but mainly in building 12 in viale delle Scienze, the former convent of Sant'Antonino and the Library in via Divisi, offers a considerable heritage for research activities, together with innovative and quality services, to support the work of teachers and researchers, but also of students, doctoral candidates as well as extra-institutional users. The Department publishes two journals (InVerbis and Nuove Musiche), a series entitled Lingue e Letterature with the publisher Carocci, a series entitled Musiche Rinascimentali Siciliane with the publisher Olschki, and the series VerbaManent and Clessidre. Dialoghi interdisciplinari sulla memoria, published by Unipa Press. At the same time, individual teachers direct prestigious scientific journals and series or are on the editorial boards of Italian and foreign journals.