PhD in Near Eastern Studies - Hebrew Bible and Northwest Semitics in Baltimore United States | Johns Hopkins University

From its inception, the Hebrew Bible/Northwest Semitics graduate program has emphasized equipping students with linguistic skills to examine biblical texts in their original languages (Classical Hebrew and Aramaic), while also exploring key textual traditions through primary sources: the Septuagint (Greek), Dead Sea Scrolls (Qumran Hebrew/Aramaic), Targums (Aramaic), and occasionally the Peshitta (Syriac) and Vulgate (Latin). The Masoretic Text serves as the program's foundation. Each semester, students engage with diverse Hebrew texts. The curriculum's three-year rotation covers Archaic Biblical Poetry, Genesis, Exodus, Deuteronomistic History (Kings), Prophetic Literature (Ezekiel), Wisdom Literature (Job, Ecclesiastes), and Persian Period writings. Courses employ varied approaches including textual analysis, historical linguistics, literary criticism, and socio-scientific methodologies.
Established in 1883, the Near Eastern Studies Department pioneered PhD studies in this discipline in America. Students may specialize in four areas: Assyriology, Egyptology, Hebrew Bible/Northwest Semitic Studies, or Near Eastern Archaeology/Art.