Mission, Goals and Objectives
 The study of the Hebrew Language unlocks linguistic and literary treasures unique in the annals of world culture. The Hebrew language as spoken today preserves and perpetuates remains of the world?s most ancient written languages, themselves long extinct, even as it now coins new terms for expressing the most advanced scientific and philosophical concepts. Having been written and spoken during its long history in both the East and the West, Hebrew embodies the riches of both cultures. In a language echoing the memories of historical man?s earliest thoughts, Hebrew literature today gives voice to the profound themes and questions which engage and challenge the imagination of modern people.
The Hebrew Division of Hunter College offers a comprehensive series of courses covering the major areas of ancient and modern Hebraic studies. The diversified course of study of the Hebrew program fully integrates linguistic, literary, and cultural approaches. Language courses are designed to develop proficiency in spoken and written Israeli Hebrew, and to prepare students for advanced readings in the classics of Biblical, rabbinic, and modern Hebrew literature and thought. A full sequence of courses in Biblical literature draws freely from the wealth of archaeological finds and written texts recovered from the ancient Near East, so as to illuminate the unique contributions of the Hebrew Bible to religion and culture in general, and promote the understanding of the Hebraic and Judaic factor in Western civilization. Offerings in post-Biblical and modern Hebrew literature are designed to stress the Biblical and Talmudic legacy in language, style, and motif and to cultivate a critical appreciation of Hebraic and Judaic literature and thought through the ages, against the background of world civilization.
Hunter?s program in Hebraic Studies is among the most extensive undergraduate programs in the United States. The Hebrew Program at Hunter is predicated on a broad-based historical and philosophical approach to Hebrew culture, and combines professional and academic training which complement each other through a comprehensive series of course offerings. The designed interdependence of our offerings in ancient and modern Hebraic Studies is a critical outgrowth of the broad relevance of Hebraic Studies to the liberal arts in general and to the humanities in particular. The wide variety of course offerings enables students to concentrate their attention on one major period, or to strive for overall proficiency, or to aim for both objectives simultaneously.
The professional goals of the program not only aim at such fields as teaching, library science, publishing, community leadership and diplomatic and trade exchanges, but also at more scholarly in-depth work for the highly qualified students who pursue graduate work and research.
 

Brief History and Present Status

The Hebrew Division at Hunter College was founded by the renowned Hebrew poet and scholar, Professor Israel Efros, in 1941. It was conceived as an academic discipline in the humanities, covering the language, literature and culture of the Jewish people from Biblical times to modern Israel. It rapidly developed as one of the largest programs in Hebraic Studies in the country. about 1,000 students have been graduated from Hunter over the past six decades as Hebrew majors, contributing significantly to such areas of Jewish education, Hebraic scholarship, Jewish social and community work, the rabbinate, and Jewish leadership. It is noteworthy that the Hunter Hebrew Program has produced an unusually high percentage of the instructors who have staffed the New York City high schools and suburban programs in Hebrew over the years, as well as a significant number of professors of Hebraic Studies, who received their Hebrew education in our Program.