About this journal

Incorporating Journal of Natal and Zulu History from 2022.

The South African Historical Journal is fully accredited, peer reviewed and internationally regarded as a premier history journal published in South Africa, promoting significant historical scholarship on the country as well as the southern African region. As the journal of the Southern African Historical Society, it has provided a high-quality medium for original thinking about South African history and has thus shaped – and continues to contribute towards defining – the historiography of the region.

Published quarterly, the South African Historical Journal publishes a wide variety of material, encompassing issues ranging in time from those around pre-colonial communities to those pertinent to a society in transition in the early 21st century, the practice and teaching of history and debates about heritage and the commemoration of the past. It includes ground-breaking innovative research, general historical and historiographical overviews, historical debates and rejoinders, interviews with historians and reflections on their work, review articles and critical reviews of important books. It regularly publishes articles in special issues on themes such as: ‘Oral Histories in South Africa’ (2008); ‘Let’s Talk About Bantustans’ (2012); and ’Tswana History’ (2014)

All research articles published in the journal have undergone rigorous peer review, based on initial editor screening and anonymized refereeing by at least two referees. The Journal follows a ‘double-anonymized’ process of evaluation of material: the names of authors are not disclosed to referees, and the identities of referees are not revealed to authors. We request that our referees compile helpful reports which fully motivate their recommendation regarding publication.

The Journal is fully accredited in South Africa, it is listed in the Thomson Reuters Arts & Humanities Citation Index and its contents are accordingly cited, annotated, indexed and/or abstracted.

The Journal aims to reach out to a broad audience that includes students, lecturers, scholars, historians, and academics in the broad field of the social sciences.

Managing Editors

Co-ordinating Editors

PRINISHA BADASSY - University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
THULA SIMPSON - University of Pretoria, South Africa
SANDRA SWART - Stellenbosch University, South Africa
MARC EPPRECHT - Queens University, Canada

Book Review Editor

KUNDAI MANAMERE, University of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe

Social Media Coordinator

SISHUWA SISHUWA, Stellenbosch University, South Africa

Editorial Board

ARIANNA LISSONI - University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
CAROLYN HAMILTON - University of Cape Town, South Africa
CHRISTOPHER SAUNDERS - University of Cape Town, South Africa
GODFREY HOVE - University of Lesotho, Lesotho
GOOLAM VAHED - University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
HILARY SAPIRE - University of London, UK
IAN PHIMISTER - University of the Free State, South Africa
JACOB DLAMINI - Princeton University, USA
JULIE LIVINGSTON - New York University, USA
JULIE PARLE - University of Pretoria, South Africa
KIRSTEN McKENZIE - University of Sydney, Australia
LAURA EFRON - University of Buenos Aires, Argentina
LUVUYO WOTSHELA - University of Fort Hare, South Africa
MARTHA AKAWA-SHIKUFA - University of Namibia, Namibia
NANCY JACOBS - Brown University, USA
NATASHA ERLANK - University of Johannesburg, South Africa
PAUL ZELEZA - Case Western Reserve University, USA
PAUL LANDAU - University of Maryland, USA
REBECCA HODES - University of Pretoria, South Africa
ROB SKINNER - University of Bristol, UK
SAUL DUBOW - Cambridge University UK
SEKIBAKIBA PETER LEKGOATHI - University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
SISHUWA SISHUWA, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
THEMBISA WAETJEN - University of Johannesburg, South Africa
TSHEPO MOLOI - University of Johannesburg, South Africa
VIVIAN BICKFORD-SMITH - University of Cape Town, South Africa
WAYNE DOOLING - SOAS, UK