Hear ye, hear ye: The History Department is making a long overdue change to our nomenclature. Until now we have referred to courses on countries and regions outside Europe and the United States as “non-western.”
But think about it: What does “non-western” actually mean? What do we mean by “the West”? (And, while we’re at it, who is “we”?)
As historians do, we have interrogated this term, the work it’s meant to do, and the work it actually does. We’ve considered the historical context surrounding its origins, and we have thought about our present context – and we are banishing it.
Henceforth, the courses formerly known as “non-western” shall be known as LAMA courses.
LAMA = Latin America, Asia, Middle East, Africa
We’ll be slowly rolling out these changes in our department materials, so keep an eye on us and let us know if any stray “non-western” language falls through the cracks!
Yes, we know llama is spelled with 2 Ls, let us ignore the extra L and take this opportunity to enjoy some llamas.
BCHistory News 