Angelaki

Angelaki: journal of the theoretical humanities was established in September 1993 to provide an international forum for vanguard work in the theoretical humanities. In itself a contentious category, ’theoretical humanities’ represents the productive nexus of work in the disciplinary fields of literary criticism and theory, philosophy, and cultural studies. The journal is dedicated to the refreshing of intellectual coordinates, and to the challenging and vivifying process of re-thinking.

Angelaki: journal of the theoretical humanities encourages a critical engagement with theory in terms of disciplinary development and intellectual and political usefulness, the inquiry into and articulation of culture, and the complex determination of change and its relation to history. The journal is committed to fostering the theory of minor movements, recognising their significant impact on and dynamic relation to the development of cultures, political spaces and academic disciplines, and emphasising their formative power rather than their oppositional entrenchment.

The journal promotes inquiry into questions of existential and political definition and agency, on the personal, collective and institutional levels, and encourages the work of spirited and experimental theoretical writing in all areas of value production.

Angelaki: journal of the theoretical humanities publishes six issues per volume/year: four themed (Special) issues and two non-themed (General) issues. Articles for consideration for General issues are accepted throughout the year.

The name of the journal and a little history

" Angelaki", pronounced with a hard 'g' and with 'ki' pronounced 'kee', is a Greek word meaning "little angel". " Angelos" in Greek means "messenger, envoy, one that announces". The logo of the journal is a cherub; the cherubim being the order of angels associated with knowledge.

Angelaki arose out of a Gilles Deleuze reading and discussion group, conducted at Oxford University at the beginning of the 1990s. Members of the discussion group, who were at the time largely postgraduate students of the University, formed the original editorial board. A number of founding editors remain involved with the journal. For five years the journal was entirely independent, selling by mail and through bookshops in the UK, Europe and the USA. Independence proved unsustainable, and in 1998 Angelaki signed with its current publisher. One of the strengths of the journal has always been its book-length special issues, currently in the region of 90,000 words (a substantial double issue by ordinary standards). The collections are, in the great majority of cases, also sold as hardback books for library purchase.

Peer Review Policy:
All research articles published in General Issues of the journal have undergone peer review, based on initial editor screening and anonymized refereeing by at least two anonymous referees. Articles published in Special Issues of the journal are normally on invitation. Where a call for papers is issued for Special Issues, submissions passed for review by the Issue Editor are subject to the same review process as submissions to General Issues.

"Each issue of Angelaki arrives like a scouting report from the edge of the known world, the one trembling right now under our feet. Fearless and inventive, this journal has reset the agenda for the theoretical humanities. Long may it thrive."
Peggy Kamuf, University of Southern California, USA

"[L]ively, sharp, imaginative... It aims to break down the division between academic and non-academic writers and readers with the belief that theoretical questions should carry a political force and not be confined to university institutions and the publishing game. And it is dedicated to an interdisciplinary agenda... [I]ssues adventurously address topics and disciplines not normally covered by mainstream theoretical discussions... This is a great magazine."
Jennifer Wallace, Peterhouse, Cambridge University in The Times Higher Education Supplement

" Angelaki has established itself as a leading forum of theoretical reflection, providing a practical refutation of all those who would celebrate "the end of theory." Whether it is focused on thematic issues of the most varied nature, introducing thinkers to English-language readers, or treating a variety of problems in ‘open’ issues, Angelaki challenges the complacency of the self-evident. Required reading for the next millennium."
Samuel Weber, University of California at Los Angeles

" Angelaki has quickly established a space in which theoretical work that aims to acknowledge the boundaries between disciplines by questioning them can flourish. The conversations it enables have been energetic, unpredictable and genuinely productive."
Stephen Mulhall, New College, Oxford University

"…an indispensable part of my library, publishing some of the best new work and signalling some of the most important new directions in cultural studies."
Lawrence Grossberg, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

"…consistently provides innovative and stimulating insights on an exciting array of current critical issues. In an era of diminishing expectations, Angelaki gives new hope for creative, collaborative research."
Charles J. Stivale, Wayne State University

"…the most innovative and exciting new journal in the field of literary and cultural theory to have emerged from Britain in recent years…provoking, attuned to the moment and at the same time surprising."
Nicholas Royle, University of Stirling

‘A strong and surprising publication that is interested in a wide range of cultural studies issues from harder-theory perspectives…’ ‘ Angelaki’s position papers and substantial essays, addressing current concerns in cultural theory zero in on interesting and problematical topics and fields, with results that are resourceful, rigorous, and lively...’ ‘I put Angelaki at the top because I find it refreshingly alive, buzzing with critical energy.’"
From the CELJ Awards transcript

"Refreshing and truly thought-provoking; worthy of all but the smallest college libraries"
Library Journal

"Good to think with…generates an agreeable vitality and iconoclasm…full of promise"
The Times Higher Education Supplement

"Winner, ’Best New Journal’ award, Council of Editors of Learned Journals (CELJ), 1996..."A strong and surprising publication that is interested in a wide range of cultural studies issues from harder-theory perspectives…" " Angelaki’s position papers and substantial essays, addressing current concerns in cultural theory zero in on interesting and problematical topics and fields, with results that are resourceful, rigorous, and lively..." "I put Angelaki at the top because I find it refreshingly alive, buzzing with critical energy."

Authors can choose to publish gold open access in this journal.

Read the Instructions for Authors for information on how to submit your article.