BA History

History is the study of the past, not merely names and dates, but trends, changing ideas, shifting social and cultural conventions. As such, the study of history helps us better understand who we are today and helps explain interactions between peoples and countries. Simply put, history seeks to explain change. It is not that events today are repetitions of the past they aren t but the underlying factors, stresses, beliefs, etc., are products of the past and a failure to understand history thus has distressing implications. To help students better understand these patterns, the Department of History offers a wide array of courses in various topics, including U.S., European, Asian, and Latin American history.