The ?rst aim of this work is to present the main results and methods of the theory of Noetherian semigroup algebras. These general results are then applied and illustrated in the context of certain interesting and important concrete classes of algebras that arise in a variety of areas and have been recently intensively studied. One of the main motivations for this project has been the growing int- est in the class of semigroup algebras (and their deformations) and in the application of semigroup theoretical methods. Two factors seem to be the cause for this. First, this ?eld covers several...