The Faculty of Arts came into existence with the inception of the University of Lucknow in the 1921. At that point of time, only a few Departments like Economics and Sociology, Philosophy, History, Sanskrit and Prakrit Languages had been incorporated. Lucknow, being the seat of culture and sophistication in North India, many world scholars were drawn to the University during its initial period. Among the intellectual giants who joined the University during its formative years were Prof. D N Majumdar, the Father of Indian Anthropology and Prof. Radha Kamal Mukherjee, the Father of Indian Sociology. Notable among the early great scholar-teachers who graced the university were the renowned historians Prof C D Chatterjee, Sir E. W. Smith, Prof. Radha Kumud Mukherjee, Prof. Nuru lHasan, the Sankriticist Dr. K. A. Subramania Iyer, the psychologists Prof N.N. Sengupta and Prof. E. Ahmed Shah, and leading Political Scientists Prof. V.S. Ram and Prof. M.V. Pylee.
With the passage of time as need arose, independent departments of Sociology, Anthropology, Psychology, Political Science, Public Administration, Medieval and Modern Indian History, Western History, Social Work, Physical Education, Home Science and Jyotirvigyan were established.
The University runs several Institutes under the aegis of the Faculty of Arts, namely Institute of Tourism Studies, Institute of Women’s Studies, Institute of Development Studies, Population Research Centre, Institute of Human Consciousness and Yogic Sciences, Dr. Girilal Gupta Institute of Public Health, Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma Institute for Democracy, Abhinava Gupta Institute of Aesthetics & Shaiva Philosophy and J.K. Institute of Sociology, Ecology and Human Relations.
The Faculty of Arts envisions an active role for research in its efforts to facilitate academic developments and contribute actively towards the creation of a knowledge base. Apart from the research in traditional subjects, an array of new subjects are on offer, including tribal studies, health, policy studies, tourism, economics just to name a few. This interdisciplinary research approach helps students develop core skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving and along with oral and written communication skills.