070249 UE Working Skills in Global History - (2025W)

This course introduces students to the tools and techniques of historical research, approaching the study of the Red Sea within the methodological framework of global history, and working with a diverse range of texts and primary sources.

The importance of the Red Sea for global trade has been documented since the 1st century of the Common Era, when it was already an important node of trade flows connecting the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean. Its convenient location at the western end of the monsoon system facilitates the movement of goods and people across the Indian Ocean. The Red Sea is also the only waterway in the world to have two of the so-called “choke points” for global trade: to the north, the Suez Canal, to the south, the Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb. This became all too evident in March 2021, when a container ship blocked the Suez Canal for almost a week, interrupting the passage of nearly 10 billion dollars’ worth of goods per day. However, the Red Sea is not only a critical passageway but also an economically and culturally integrated region whose local events also reflect global processes of integration and disruption. The involvement of the Houthis in the events that followed Israel’s military operation in Gaza in response to the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack is a contemporary reminder of the way in which complex local dynamics and global events are intertwined in the globalised world.

In this course, we will analyse how global integration processes were and are reflected in the history of the Red Sea region. The sessions will have a strong emphasis on synchronicity, focusing on the significance of simultaneous processes and events, the way they are connected, and the effect of these processes on the region. Accompanied by general introductions on selected topics in the history of the Red Sea (trade and monetary history, slavery and labour history, as well as the circulation of ideas and the construction of narratives and perceptions), the students will be guided in researching, identifying and analysing relevant primary sources, spanning from the early modern period to the peak of European imperialism, and from the postcolonial era to the present.

During the course, the students will be introduced to the use of the University library system, academic search engines, online databases for primary sources, and citation management software (Zotero).

Working individually and in teams, they will be assigned weekly tasks from engaging with the sources and the literature (writing abstracts, reviews, and short essays) to presenting their results. This includes leading discussions, presenting their papers, and providing feedback.

By the end of the course, the students will be equipped with the relevant working skills to conduct research on primary sources independently, formulate research questions engaging with the relevant literature, and successfully present their results.