The Department of Latin American and Iberian Studies examines the people and cultures of Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries throughout the world. That refers not only to Spain, Portugal, and Latin America, but also to Angola, Mozambique, the Philippines, Macao, and the Chicano and Puerto Rican populations in the U.S.

We approach these crucial parts of the world through the humanities and fine arts as well as through the social sciences and history. Students explore beyond Spanish and Portuguese language and literature to such topics as Latin American anthropology, the history of Spain and Portugal, and the political life of Latino communities.

The undergraduate program focuses on the following areas: culture and art; business and government; teaching, and further academic study of Latin America, Spain, or Portugal. Students may double major with another discipline, such as history, global studies, anthropology, or economics.

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Honoring Home: Students Altarists at the UCSB Library
Honoring Home: Students Altarists at the UCSB Library

Undergraduate student altarists worked with Las Maestras Center to create an altar for display in the Library at UC Santa Barbara. The altarists sat down to talk about their experience creating the altar and having it on display.

A Student Finds Culture and Community at 'Day of the Dead' Workshop
A Student Finds Culture and Community at 'Day of the Dead' Workshop

UC Santa Barbara undergraduate student Bryan Perez attended Las Maestras Center’s ‘Literary Skulls’ event, where the history of Dia De Los Muertos and its traditions were discussed through poetry and verse. In this personal reflection, they explore how the event allowed them to feel more in touch with their own identity.

Black History in the Spanish and Portuguese Speaking World
Black History in the Spanish and Portuguese Speaking World

Jaime Alves, Black Studies professor at UCSB, said that scholars should frame Blackness as a resistance to Latin American colonial narratives that have falsely asserted Blacks were fully integrated into society. This talk was part of the 21st Hispanic and Lusophone Conference, hosted annually by UCSB’s Spanish and Portuguese department.

Luis Leal Award: Rubén Martínez
Luis Leal Award: Rubén Martínez

Known for his literary works about immigrants and Chicano Studies, author and professor, Rubén Martínez, has been awarded UC Santa Barbara’s 17th annual Luis Leal Award for Distinction in Chicano/Latino Literature.

Borders: Past, Present and Future
Borders: Past, Present and Future

Cecilia Méndez, director of the Latin American and Iberian Studies (LAIS) program at UC Santa Barbara, along with Spanish and Portuguese Professor Juan Pablo Lupi organized the second UCSB Latin American and Iberian Studies graduate student conference on the topic of Borders, Power, and Transgression last month. In an interview, Méndez said understanding the connections between power and transgression of borders is a global concern.

Reframing Latin American History for the Next Generation
Reframing Latin American History for the Next Generation

Iridian Pineda, a fourth-year Latin American and Iberian Studies major at UC Santa Barbara works with the Community Based Literacies (CBL) group to present Latin American history to Latinx children. Pineda combines her major in Latin American Studies with a minor in Education.

Nicaragua: How Social Justice and Grief go Hand in Hand
Nicaragua: How Social Justice and Grief go Hand in Hand

UC Santa Barbara’s Latin American & Iberian Studies program hosted “Social Movements, Identity, and Resistance in Contemporary Nicaragua.” A Tertulia – an informal discussion on politics and culture – that discussed how some Nicaraguans are using their grief to fuel their passion for social justice.

History Repeating Itself: How Epidemics Affect Latin America
History Repeating Itself: How Epidemics Affect Latin America

Brazil-based author, researcher, and professor Marcos Cueto examined how contradictory and inadequate government responses to epidemics in Latin America have been an historical trend that reappeared during the current COVID-19 pandemic. 

A Safe Space for UCSB's Latinx Journalists
A Safe Space for UCSB's Latinx Journalists

A new chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists has been started at UCSB. President and vice president, Fabiola Esqueda and Noey Padilla, sat down to discuss what this organization means to them and the Latinx community on campus.

Violence, Memory, and History: Sharing Research in Latin American and Iberian Studies
Violence, Memory, and History: Sharing Research in Latin American and Iberian Studies

Violence, memory and history. That was the theme of the first ever Latin American and Iberian Studies graduate student conference, held this spring at UC Santa Barbara.

The conference gathered 24 graduate students from universities both in the United States and Europe. Each graduate student presented the topics they discussed in their thesis statements.