peer review

List of platinum Open Access linguistics journals

This list aims to include all peer-reviewed platinum Open Access journals in general, descriptive, and theoretical linguistics, as long as they are open to submissions from anyone. Due to the fast-moving nature of the field it is likely to be constantly out of date. If you find that your favourite platinum journal is missing, that a link is broken, or that a detail is wrong, let us know on Twitter or by emailing George. The list was last updated in August 2022.

The list is built on the excellent work of Humans Who Read Grammars. It is in alphabetical order.

General linguistics journals

Language-specific or area-specific linguistics journals

Journals not accepting submissions

Full details

Acta Linguistica Asiatica

a journal devoted to the study of Asian languages, their translation and teaching.

  • Languages covered: languages of Asia.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Afrikanistik Aegyptologie Online (AAeA)

Journal in African Studies and Egyptology from University of Cologne. Multilingual, abstracts are welcome in German, English, French, Arabic and larger African languages. Full articles only in German, English or French though.

  • Languages covered: African languages, Egyptology.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Anglophonia

French Journal of English Linguistics. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: English.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Argumentation et analyse du discours

A journal of language sciences which aims to analyse the connexions between discourse analysis, rhetoric and argumentation. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: discourse analysis.

Argumentation et analyse du discours

A journal of language sciences which aims to analyse the connexions between discourse analysis, rhetoric and argumentation. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: discourse analysis.

Arusha Working Papers in African Linguistics (AWPAL)

“a peer-reviewed, open-access, online-only international academic journal whose goal is to provide a forum for discussions about applied and theoretical issues in African linguistics. AWPAL welcomes original contributions on all aspects of African languages and linguistics, in particular those that are data-oriented and descriptive or pedagogical in nature. Nonetheless, manuscripts are accepted across all domains of linguistics.”

  • Languages covered: languages of Africa.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Bhasha: Journal of South Asian Linguistics, Philology and Grammatical Traditions

“an international journal that welcomes submissions that adopt evidence-based approaches to all areas of linguistics related to South Asian literary (classical and modern/contemporary), spoken and/or endangered languages.”

  • Languages covered: languages of South Asia.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Biolinguistics

“BIOLINGUISTICS is a peer-reviewed journal exploring theoretical linguistics that takes the biological foundations of human language seriously. The Advisory Board and the Editorial Board are made up of leading scholars from all continents in the fields of theoretical linguistics, language acquisition, language change, theoretical biology, genetics, philosophy of mind, and cognitive psychology.”

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: biolinguistics.

Cadernos de Etnolingüística

Journal for indigenous South American languages.

  • Languages covered: South American languages.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Cahiers

Web-based journal of the Association for French Language Studies.

  • Languages covered: French.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Cahiers de praxématique

French-language journal devoted to the study of the production and the circulation of meaning. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: pragmatics, discourse analysis, semantics.

Catalan Journal of Linguistics

General linguistics journal supported by the Centre de Lingüística Teòrica of the UAB and the Institut Interuniversitari de Filologia Valenciana.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

CogniTextes

Journal of the French association for cognitive linguistics. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: cognitive linguistics.

Computational Linguistics

The longest-running publication devoted exclusively to the computational and mathematical properties of language and the design and analysis of natural language processing systems. Published by MIT Press.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: computational linguistics.

Constructions+

A multimedia platform for linguistic research concerned with the structure, use, function, and development of ‘constructions’ in language and linguistics. Formerly part of eLanguage.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all, especially construction grammar.

Corela: cognition, représentation, langage

Journal of language science. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Corpus

A journal promoting research in corpus linguistics at various levels, theoretical, methodological and epistemological. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: corpus linguistics.

Critical Approaches to Discourse Analysis Across Disciplines (CADAAD Journal)

Publishes research which highlights, develops or challenges frameworks for understanding the role that structures of discourse play in constructing and sustaining social situations, identities and relations.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: discourse analysis.

Cuadernos de Lingüística de El Colegio de México

Covers all research that advances our understanding of natural languages. Submissions in Spanish or English.

  • Languages covered: all (submissions on under-represented languages encouraged).
  • Subfields covered: all.

Dialogue & Discourse

Deals with language “beyond the single sentence”, adopting an interdisciplinary perspective. Formerly part of eLanguage.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: pragmatics, discourse analysis and related fields.

Études finno-ougriennes

Études finno-ougriennes is the only academic journal in French in the field of Finno-Ugric studies. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: Finno-Ugric, Uralic.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Finno-Ugric Languages and Linguistics

Journal for all aspects of Finno-Ugric and Uralic languages. Continued as the Journal of Uralic Linguistics (not platinum OA) since 2022.

  • Languages covered: Finno-Ugric, Uralic.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Glossa

Full financial support for this journal is provided by LingOA with long-term funding provided by the Open Library of Humanities (OLH). Sprung out of a disagreement between the linguists of Lingua and their publisher.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Glossa Psycholinguistics

Glossa Psycholinguistics “publishes contributions to the field of psycholinguistics in the broad sense. These should combine empirical and theoretical perspectives, and illuminate our understanding of the nature of language. Submissions from all fields and theoretical perspectives on any psycholinguistic topic are appropriate, as are submissions focusing on any level of linguistic analysis … or population … Methods and approaches include e.g. experimentation, computational modeling, corpus analyses, and cognitive neuroscience. Contributions should be of interest to psycholinguists and other scholars interested in language.”

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: psycholinguistics.

ICAME Journal

An annual publication containing articles and reviews on research carried out related to English-language corpora. Part of De Gruyter Open.

  • Languages covered: English.
  • Subfields covered: corpus linguistics.

Indo-European Linguistics (IEL)

IEL is devoted to the study of the ancient and medieval Indo-European languages from the perspective of modern theoretical linguistics.

  • Languages covered: pre-modern Indo-European.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Internationale Neerlandistiek

Journal of the Internationale Vereniging voor Neerlandistiek.

  • Languages covered: Dutch, Afrikaans.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Isogloss

A journal on variation of Romance and Iberian languages.

  • Languages covered: Romance, Iberian.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Italian Journal of Linguistics (IJL)

IJL “seeks to bridge the gap between descriptive and theoretical research, welcoming work which makes complex language data accessible to those unfamiliar with the language or language area under study, as well as work which makes complex theoretical positions more accessible to those working outside that theoretical framework.”

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Jazykovedný casopis

The Journal of Ludovít Štúr Institute of Linguistics, SAV, Slovakia. Part of De Gruyter Open.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Journal de la Société Finno-Ougrienne

International journal from 1886 from the Finno-Ugrian Society.

  • Languages covered: Finno-Ugric languages.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Journal for Media Linguistics (Journal für Medienlinguistik)

Open access journal in the area of language, communication, and media(lity). Publishes articles in English and German.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields: media linguistics.

Journal of Experimental Phonetics (Estudios de Fonética Experimental)

Publishes original research articles related to any branch of experimental phonetics and laboratory phonology. Also publishes theoretical phonetics and book reviews.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: phonetics, laboratory phonology.

Journal of Historical Syntax

Journal focusing on historical and diachronic studies of syntax. Formerly part of eLanguage.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: historical linguistics, syntax.

Journal of Language Modelling

Aims to bridge the gap between theoretical linguistics and natural language processing.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: computational linguistics, natural language processing, and adjacent areas of theoretical linguistics.

Journal of Portuguese and Spanish Lexically-based Creoles (Revista de Crioulos de Base Lexical Portuguesa e Espanhola – RCBLPE)

Journal of the Association of Portuguese and Spanish-Lexified Creoles.

  • Languages covered: Iberian Romance-based pidgin and creole languages, and language contacts involving Portuguese or Spanish.
  • Subfields covered: contact linguistics.

Journal of Portuguese Linguistics

The Journal of Portuguese Linguistics is concerned with all branches of linguistics and aims at publishing high-quality papers in the field of Portuguese linguistics, including the comparison between any varieties of Portuguese and any other language(s). Part of LingOA.

  • Languages covered: Portuguese.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Journal of South Asian Linguistics

JSAL is devoted to the linguistic study of South Asia.

  • Languages covered: languages of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Tibet, and their diasporas.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Laboratory Phonology

Journal of the Association for Laboratory Phonology. Part of LingOA.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: phonetics, phonology.

Language Documentation & Conservation

Journal sponsored by the National Foreign Language Resource Center and published exclusively in electronic form by the University of Hawaiʻi Press.

  • Languages covered: all, especially endangered languages.
  • Subfields covered: language documentation, language policy, language planning, language revitalization, lexicography.

Language Documentation & Description

Journal from Endangered Languages Publishing.

  • Languages covered: all, especially endangered languages.
  • Subfields covered: language documentation, language description, sociolinguistics, language policy, language revitalization.

Language and Linguistics in Melanesia

Previously known as Kivung. The journal of the Linguistics Society of Papua New Guinea.

  • Languages covered: languages of Papua New Guinea and Melanesia, including creoles.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Languages of the Caucasus

Publishes linguistic research on languages of the Caucasus

  • Languages covered: languages of the Caucasus.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Lengas: revue de sociolinguistique

French-language sociolinguistics journal. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: Occitan.
  • Subfields covered: sociolinguistics, language policy.

Lingua Posnaniensis

The Journal of Poznan Society for the Advancement of the Arts and Sciences and Adam Mickiewicz University, Institute of Linguistics.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Linguistic Discovery

Journal supported by Dartmouth College.

  • Languages covered: all, especially endangered languages.
  • Subfields covered: descriptive linguistics.

Linguistic Issues in Language Technology (LiLT)

LiLT focuses on relationships between linguistic insights, which can prove valuable to language technology, and language technology, which can enrich linguistic research. Formerly part of eLanguage.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: computational linguistics, natural language processing, and related theoretical subfields.

Linguistic Typology at the Crossroads

“The journal aims to host research within the field of linguistic typology. It is meant to give space above all, but not exclusively, to studies exploring the crossroads at which linguistic typology meets its closest neighbors. The journal will therefore welcome works dealing especially with the intersections between typology and other areas of linguistics, such as diachrony, sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, corpus-based analysis of speech and discourse.”

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: typology and neighbouring disciplines.

Linguistica Uralica

Journal from the Estonian Academy of Sciences (Eesti Teaduste Akadeemia).

  • Languages covered: Uralic (Finno-Ugric, Samoyedic) languages.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Linguistik Online

A well-established online-only generalist journal.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Modèles linguistiques

French-language general linguistics journal. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Nordic Journal of African Studies

Journal in African studies from Nordic Association of African Studies. Articles welcome in English, French and Swahili.

  • Languages covered: African languages.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Nordlyd

Published by the Department of Language and Culture at UiT The Arctic University of Norway, and primarily features articles with some connection to UiT. Contributions are, however, welcome from others.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Orientalia Suecana

Published by the Department of Linguistics and Philology, Uppsala University. Adopts an open peer review model according to which the identity of the author(s) and the reviewers are known by all participants.

  • Languages covered: Semitic, Iranian, Turkic, Indic, Chinese.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Papers in Historical Phonology

Published by the University of Edinburgh. Employs post-publication peer review.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: historical linguistics, phonology.

Philologie im Netz

Interdisciplinary journal for linguistics, literary, and cultural studies.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Prague Journal of English Studies

English literature and linguistics journal of the Charles University, Prague. Part of De Gruyter Open.

  • Languages covered: English.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Radical: A Journal of Phonology

Phonology journal which “aims to promote studies with provocative, innovative and possibly non-conformist analyses”.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: phonology.

Recherches linguistiques de Vincennes

General linguistics journal. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Rivista di Grammatica Generativa (Research in Generative Grammar)

An Italy-based journal of generative linguistics.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Research in Language

General linguistics journal with an interdisciplinary focus. Part of De Gruyter Open.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Russian Journal of Linguistics

(Vestnik Rossiiskogo universiteta druzhby narodov) “The journal covers functional and socio-cognitive aspects of different languages and publishes a wide range of interdisciplinary studies that focus on the effect of sociocultural contexts on language development and use. This special approach allows the editors to publish research from a broad range of different linguistics subfields such as language and culture, comparative linguistics, sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, cognitive linguistics, pragmatics, discourse analysis, intercultural communication, theory and practice of translation.”

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all (see above).

Semantic Fieldwork Methods

dedicated to the discussion of innovative techniques and materials for use in semantic and pragmatic fieldwork.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: semantics, pragmatics.

Semantics & Pragmatics

Prolific and successful journal supported by the Linguistic Society of America. Formerly part of eLanguage.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: semantics, pragmatics.

SKY Journal of Linguistics

Journal from the linguistic association of Finland. Articles welcome in English, French and German.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Snippets

Tiny little articles. Published by LED Edizioni Universitarie di Lettere Economia Diritto.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Studia Anglica Posnaniensia

An international review of English studies, run from Adam Mickiewicz University.

  • Languages covered: English.
  • Subfields covered: all, particularly historical.

Studia Orientalia Electronica (StOrE)

An offshoot of Studia Orientalia published by the Finnish Oriental Society. Accepts original research articles and reviews in all fields of Asian and African studies.

  • Languages covered: languages of Asia and Africa.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Studies in African Linguistics

SAL’s goal is to provide a public forum within the community of African language scholars for discourse on issues of direct concern to the field of African linguistics. Formerly part of eLanguage.

  • Languages covered: African languages.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Syntaktika

French-language journal. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: Ancient Greek.
  • Subfields covered: syntax, semantics.

Taal en Tongval

Language variation in the Netherlands, Flanders and related languages/areas.

  • Languages covered: Dutch, Frisian, (Low) German, languages spoken in the Netherlands and Flanders.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Taiwan Journal of Linguistics

Based at the Graduate Institute of Linguistics, National Chengchi University. The language of publication is English.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Te Reo: Journal of the Linguistic Society of New Zealand

Journal of the Linguistic Society of New Zealand. Accepts submissions from scholars all over the world and in any subfield.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Topics in Linguistics

Run by the Department of English and American Studies, Faculty of Arts, Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra. Part of De Gruyter Open.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Transactions of the Association for Computational Linguistics

An ACL-sponsored journal that publishes papers in all areas of computational linguistics and natural language processing.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: computational linguistics.

Travaux interdisciplinaires sur la parole et le langage

French-language journal. Part of OpenEdition.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Werkwinkel: Journal of Low Countries and South African Studies

Journal of of Adam Mickiewicz University. Part of De Gruyter Open.

  • Languages covered: Dutch, Flemish, Afrikaans.
  • Subfields covered: all.

Zeitschrift für Sprachwissenschaft

The journal of the German Linguistics Society (DGfS). Covers all aspects of linguistics.

  • Languages covered: all.
  • Subfields covered: all.
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Journal of Historical Syntax: interim report

Note: this post dates from April 2013, before the Journal of Historical Syntax became the Historical Syntax section of Language. It was first posted on my personal blog.

My little Journal of Historical Syntax has been in existence for a year and a half now. The Executive Committee of the LSA has requested some facts and figures on the eLanguage journals, and I thought that readers might be interested to see these numbers as well. Enjoy!

Since its inception in summer 2011, the Journal of Historical Syntax has received 13 submissions: 1 in 2011, 9 in 2012, and 3 so far in 2013.

Of those 13 submissions:

3 were rejected.
4 were advised to revise and resubmit (of which 1 was subsequently accepted).
4 were accepted with changes (plus the 1 mentioned above).
2 are currently under review.

36 individuals have been involved in reviewing. The average time between receipt of the manuscript and date of the decision (not counting papers that were not sent out for review) is 97 days. 2 peer-reviewed papers have so far been published (1 in 2012, 1 in 2013). For these two, the times between receipt of the manuscript and publication were 275 and 187 days respectively. The articles have received 158 and 138 views respectively, and their abstracts have received 454 and 257 views respectively.

2 book reviews have also been published (1 in 2012, 1 in 2013), and a third is in the works. The two reviews have received 200 and 106 views respectively, and their abstracts have received 420 and 184 views respectively.

Many thanks to all our reviewers, authors and readers!