Department of World Languages & Cultures

Language gives you superpowers.

As language teachers, Pacific’s World Languages and Cultures faculty know that speaking another language is not just good for your job prospects and your cognitive health, but is transformative.

Fluency in another language gives you the power to build relationships across cultures and to understand better your own language and culture. We hear stories every year from our alumni about the value of language learning and impact of international travel on their lives.

The Department of World Languages and Cultures seeks to provide the general student with awareness of and sensitivity toward the cultural and linguistic diversity of an increasingly interconnected world. For students specializing in language study, the Dual Languages and Cultures curriculum teaches proficiency in speaking, writing, reading, and comprehending a modern language. Majors spend a semester or a year in study abroad. The curriculum is designed to ensure mastery of the languages studied through intensive conversational training.

The faculty of the department is diverse and international, with fourteen faculty members representing various countries and cultures. Five languages are represented in the curriculum: Chinese, French, German, Japanese and Spanish. The faculty carry out research or creative writing projects, publish regularly, and participate actively in professional organizations.

All courses in the department are open to non-majors who have the appropriate prerequisites. Students are invited to pursue their area of interest within the framework of departmental offerings.

Headlines

Anjolina Horzynek '22

Horzynek will put her German and Spanish skills to use in Austria, where she will teach English to high schools and perform community engagement work at the Austrian Latin American Institute.

Roma artist Ceija Stojka (left) and Pacific German professor Lorely French

The National Endowment for the Humanities grant provides funding for professor Lorely French to continue her work transcribing notebooks by Roma artist, activist and Holocaust survivor Ceija Stojka.

Pacific University presents "Risky Business: Sports Mega-Events, Tourism, and The Road to Conviviality", a lecture by NYU Professor Christopher Gaffney, who works with municipalities, hospitality enterprises, and civil society on long-term planning and integrated systems design.