Language in Africa was co-founded in 2019 by the Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow) and by the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography, Russian Academy of Sciences (St. Petersburg).
There is a long and rich tradition of African studies, and especially African linguistic studies in Russia, mainly concentrated in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The Department of African languages of the Institute of Linguistics RAS has for decades been publishing a book series ‘Studies in the languages of Africa’. Its focus and topics are close to those of “Language in Africa”, but the series was not truly periodical and not international.
The Department of Ethnography of Africa of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography, in cooperation with the Department of African Studies in St. Petersburg State University, has already published a biennial series ‘African Collection’. These volumes have a wider focus on African languages and cultures, although linguistics has always played a significant role there.
Starting from 2019, we join the efforts of two leading centers of African Studies in Russia (Moscow and St. Petersburg) and continue to build on the strong traditions of these institutions through local management and editorship. The journal aims to use joint targeting and more intensive integration of Russian African studies into the international network and create opportunities for international cooperation.
The audience of the journal is the international community of scholars working on African languages and related fields, and publishing is open to all scholars working in these spheres. Another aim of the journal is to provide international access to the Russian tradition of African studies which is often unknown internationally due to the language barrier. However, submissions of scholars working on African languages all over the world are welcome!
Supported by an international editorial board of acclaimed scholars from across the field of Africa linguistics, Language in Africa welcomes high-caliber contributions from all areas of African studies, including literature, folklore, written and oral traditions, but pays special attention to research within African linguistics, including ethno- and sociolinguistics. The journal embraces synchronic as well as diachronic perspectives, and carries articles that address language-specific as well as cross-linguistic and typological research questions in African languages. The journal appears four times a year and regularly publishes special issues devoted to particular themes and disciplines. All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial evaluation by the editors, and, if found suitable for further consideration, to double-blind peer review by independent expert referees.
Read the Instructions for Authors for information on how to submit your article.