The Faculty of Humanities is one of the faculties at Naresuan University. It was established in 1990 through the merger of the Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Social Sciences from Srinakharinwirot University, Phitsanulok Campus, when the latter was elevated to an independent university and officially named “Naresuan University.” Therefore, the Faculty of Humanities has a long history, dating back to June 28, 1974 , the day the College of Education was upgraded to Srinakharinwirot University, Phitsanulok Campus, which offered teaching and learning services across the Faculty of Education, the Faculty of Science, the Faculty of Physical Education, the Faculty of Humanities, the Faculty of Social Sciences, and the Graduate School.
1974
On June 28, 1974 (B.E. 2517), the College of Education was elevated to Srinakharinwirot University, Phitsanulok Campus, which offered teaching and learning services comprising the Faculty of Education, the Faculty of Science, the Faculty of Physical Education, the Faculty of Humanities, the Faculty of Social Sciences, and the Graduate School. Specifically, at the Phitsanulok Campus, the Faculty of Humanities collaborated with the Faculty of Education to be responsible for producing graduates in education through the Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) program, specializing in Thai and English languages.
1990 – 1995
After being elevated to an independent university and officially named Naresuan University, the Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Social Sciences were merged to form the Faculty of Humanities. This faculty initially consisted of 11 departments: the Department of Western Languages, the Department of Thai and Eastern Languages, the Department of Linguistics, the Department of Arts and Culture, the Department of Music, the Department of Library Science, the Department of History, the Department of Geography, the Department of Political Science, the Department of Economics, and the Department of Sociology. Subsequently, the Department of Thai and Eastern Languages was divided into two separate departments: the Department of Thai and the Department of Eastern Languages, resulting in a total of 12 departments. The Department of Eastern Languages offered Japanese and Chinese as minors and free elective courses in preparation for launching Japanese and Chinese as major subjects, which were highly in-demand in the market.
Consequently, the Faculty expanded educational opportunities to Phayao Province, in line with both the university’s and the government’s policies, by offering majors in English and Business Management.
1996
The university implemented a policy requiring the Faculty of Humanities to merge departments with similar subject characteristics. As a result, the Faculty of Humanities currently has only 5 departments remaining: the Department of Languages, the Department of Humanities, the Department of Communication, the Department of Social Sciences, and the Department of Commerce.
2003
The University Council passed a resolution to restructure the Faculty of Humanities by abolishing all existing departments, leaving only the Faculty Secretariat Office. Concurrently, three new faculties were established: the Faculty of Management Science and Information Technology, the Faculty of Law, and the Faculty of Social Sciences. For the restructured Faculty of Humanities, operations were conducted under a division structure, comprising a total of 10 divisions: Thai Language, English Language, Japanese Language, Chinese Language, French Language, Burmese Language, Linguistics, Thai Dramatic Arts, Thai Musicology, and Western Musicology.
2005
At its 120 meeting (4/2005) on September 24, 2005 (B.E. 2548), the Naresuan University Council approved the administrative structure of the Faculty of Humanities, which consists of 1 Faculty Secretariat Office and 4 departments: the Department of Thai and Folklore Studies, the Department of Western Languages, the Department of Eastern Languages, and the Department of Fine and Applied Arts.
2012
The University Council resolved that the Faculty of Humanities shall have the following internal administrative structure: The Faculty Secretariat Office consists of 6 Sections: General Administration, Finance and Supplies, Policy and Planning, Academic Services, Student and Alumni Affairs, and Research and Academic Services. The departments were restructured into 9 departments as follows: Department of Thai Language, Department of Linguistics, Department of Literature and Folklore Studies, Department of English Language, Department of Western Languages, Department of Eastern Languages, Department of Musicology, Department of Performing Arts, and Department of Philosophy and Religion; and the Center for Burmese Studies.
2015
At its 212th meeting (10/2015) on November 1, 2015 (B.E. 2558), the resolution was passed to approve the restructuring of the Faculty of Humanities by abolishing the Department of Philosophy and Religion and approving the new structure as follows: 1) Department of Music, 2) Department of Western Languages, 3) Department of Eastern Languages, 4) Department of Thai Language, 5) Department of Linguistics, 6) Department of English Language, 7) Department of Folklore Studies, Philosophy, and Religion, 8) Department of Performing Arts, 9) The Myanmar Language Learning Center, and 10) The Faculty Secretariat Office.
2018
At its 252nd meeting (10/2018) on September 23, 2018 (B.E. 2561), the resolution was passed to approve the restructuring of the departmental-level units within the Faculty of Humanities as follows: 1) The Faculty Secretariat Office, 2) Department of Western Languages, 3) Department of Eastern Languages, 4) Department of Linguistics, Folklore Studies, Philosophy and Religion, 5) Department of Music, 6) Department of English Language, 7) Department of Thai Language, and 8) Department of Performing Arts.