The History of Small Nations in Modern Europe
This course is presented by the University of Galway.
The Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) “The History of Small Nations in Modern Europe” explores the importance of size in shaping historical experience.
Using the examples of Belgium, Estonia, Ireland and Slovakia, it addresses the historical experiences of small nations at a time when they are under threat from an unstable global order.
Taught by a transdisciplinary team, the course was designed to run for four years and to be hosted consecutively by Galway, Tartu, Ghent, and Bratislava. It was launched in autumn 2024, with a group of 22 students, both undergraduates and postgraduates, coming to Galway for one-week on-site, having already received online induction.
Intercultural communication was built into the course by the division of students into multinational teams who worked together for the week. The immediacy of the challenges faced by small nations today and the teaching methods produced a high level of student engagement. The host location provided opportunities for experiential learning – visits to national cultural institutions and very popular Irish-language and dancing classes. Students considered challenges, such as why the potato blight of the 1840s produced such high mortality in Ireland, but not in Belgium, or why the people in many small states are so tall
Contact: Róisín Healy,