Dear colleagues,
The Editorial Board of the Journal of West African Languages (JWAL) wishes to inform you that we have reached the 50th edition of the journal this year. The year 2023 is JWAL Golden Jubilee Anniversary Year, and is worth celebration! To celebrate this golden jubilee, the Board has agreed to the following theme:
50 Years of Research on West African Languages
Besides publishing the usual JWAL Vol 50.1 and 50.2, we intend to publish a collection or collections of JWAL Vol 50.xx issues to commemorate this anniversary. The difference between the articles in the usual volumes and these anniversary volumes would be that the articles in the anniversary volumes will be REVIEW ARTICLES which are expected to be anywhere from 8000 to 10000 words. Each article will be on a particular topic that has featured prominently in the journal for over the past half century. The article would revisit and review important issues on the topic and summarise the major results achieved, propose new findings, and then point to how the topic might develop in the next 10 to 50 years or so.
Prominent and emerging scholars of West African linguistics are therefore encouraged to submit proposed topics and short abstracts between now and the end of January to be assesssed; a few examples are already provided below. Our goal is to get up to 50 such articles, which will be published online at the journal website as they get assessed and accepted from May until October and then collected together into the special bonanza golden anniversary issue, both in online and hard copy formats. Don't be left out in what is expected to be a rich record of the research in West African linguistics over the past 50 years.
The deadline for submitting a review article is June 30th, 2023.
Proposed Review Articles for JWAL Golden Jubilee Special Issue:
1. Ekkehard Wolff: 'New perspectives on Central Chadic historical phonology and lexical reconstruction'.
2. Flavien Gbeto: Gbe Implosives
3. Annie Rialland: Intonation in West African languages
4. Felix Ameka and co-authors: Variation in Ewe Grammar (several articles)
5. Akinbiyi Akinlabi and co-authors: The syntax/phonology interaction of tone in Dan, a language of Cote D'Ivoire
6. Adams Bodomo and co-authors: Serial verb constructions in West African languages: 50 years on
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NB: SUBMISSION TO THE GOLDEN JUBILEE SHOULD BE SENT TO: