Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies and History

Celtic and Anglo-Saxon studies combined with history at Aberdeen adds to your exploration of the lives and legacy of the Celtic, Anglo-Saxon, and Scandinavian peoples within a broad study of human activity across time. Celtic and Anglo-Saxon studies is a rare and distinctive discipline that develops skills in the ancient languages, literatures, and cultures of the peoples of early medieval Britain and Ireland, including Old English, Old Irish, Old Norse, and Welsh, alongside engagement with the material culture, religion, law, and social structures of these civilisations. Aberdeen is steeped in 500 years of history, with fabulous collections of historic treasures that provide immediate access to the physical evidence of this past.

At the University of Aberdeen, this four-year full-time programme develops both your linguistic and literary skills in the Celtic and Anglo-Saxon traditions and your broader skills as a historian, engaging with the methods and approaches of historical scholarship across periods and regions of your choosing alongside the specialist expertise of Celtic and Anglo-Saxon studies. A year abroad is part of the programme, giving you the opportunity to engage with related scholarship in another educational and cultural context, perhaps in Ireland, Scandinavia, or another country with strong connections to these early medieval traditions.

With a typical entry tariff of 168 UCAS points, this is a competitive programme offering genuinely rare expertise. You will gain the transferable skills to open up a wide spectrum of career opportunities in education, academic research, heritage and museums, archival work, publishing, the civil service, and any field where the deep literacy, analytical rigour, and cultural knowledge of this degree is valued. Many graduates continue to postgraduate study in medieval studies, history, linguistics, or archaeology, often combining the specialist knowledge of early medieval cultures with broader historical or archaeological training.