Material Culture & Artefact Studies MSc/PgDip
Landscape and Environment in Gaelic Scotland ARCH5118
- Academic Session: 2026-27
- School: School of Humanities
- Credits: 20
- Level: Level 5 (SCQF level 11)
- Typically Offered: Semester 2
- Available to Visiting Students: Yes
- Collaborative Online International Learning: No
- Curriculum For Life: No
Short Description
This course explores the mutual dependencies, collaborations and conflicts between a wide range of landscape partners, including rock, soil, water, weather, plants, and animals - both human and non-human. It will use case studies from across the Highlands and Islands of Scotland from the 17th to the 21st centuries, though with some earlier material where relevant. A key feature will be the integration of archaeological, historical, ethnographic and environmental data.
Timetable
10 two-hour discussion seminars
1 day-long field trip (on a Saturday)
Excluded Courses
None
Co-requisites
None
Assessment
The standard assessments for this course are:
■ Project proposal - 40%
■ Project Report - 60%
If required, for instance where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, the following alternatives are available:
■ There is no alternative to the project proposal, but flexible deadlines can be offered as reasonable adjustments (students should follow the usual process for extensions)
■ There is no alternative to the project report, but flexible deadlines can be offered as reasonable adjustments (students should follow the usual process for extensions)
Further reasonable adjustments may be provided where necessary. Students are encouraged to consult with the course convenor.
Course Aims
This course aims to:
■ explore and explain archaeological and ecological landscapes in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland from the 17th to 21st centuries;
■ stimulate students to interpret the landscape as an intricate web of socioecological relationships;
■ demonstrate ways of integrating social and ecological analysis of the landscape, using a range of interdisciplinary data.
Intended Learning Outcomes of Course
By the end of this course students will be able to:
■ identify a wide range of human and non-human agents in the landscape, and some of their interactions and interdependencies;
■ interpret archaeological and ecological dynamics in landscapes in the Scottish Highlands and Islands in the 17th-21st centuries;
■ integrate archaeological, historical, ethnographic and environment evidence to support their argument;
■ evaluate and critique past representations of landscape;
■ communicate their interpretations using different writing styles and an appropriate range of media.