Presentation of the Cahiers d’Études Germaniques
German speaking worlds
Peer-reviewed journal
Plan
Haut de pageBackground
The Cahiers d’Études Germaniques were created in 1972 at the University of Provence (Aix-Marseille I). Their initial aim was to present to a French and foreign public the research in Germanic studies conducted within this University. The first contributors were professors and PhD students from the University of Provence, who published the results of their research in an annual issue.
Over the following decade, the research laboratories in Germanic Studies at the Lyon II and Nice Sophia Antipolis Universities (1986), followed in 1988 by Montpellier III University joined the project. Specialists in Germanic studies at a fifth university – Toulouse II – became associated in 2008. The University of Nice withdrew in 2013, but its researchers in Germanic studies remain individually associated with the journal. Today, the Cahiers d’Études Germaniques bring together the research centers in Germanic Studies in the South of France.
The journal's website was set up on the initiative and under the direction of Hélène Barrière (2013-2018). The journal is currently edited by Susanne Böhmisch and Hilda Inderwildi. Nathalie Schnitzer is responsible for the electronic edition.
Originally independent, in 2015 the paper publication of the Cahiers began to be organized by the Presses Universitaires de Provence, thus participating in the synergy put into place by the Research Department at the Faculty of Arts, Literature, Languages and Humanities (ALLSH) of Aix-Marseille University (AMU).
Operation
The operation of the CEG is original, currently associating four universities (AMU, Lumière-Lyon 2, Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3 and Toulouse-Jean Jaurès) within the framework of an inter-university convention. Each university contributes equally to the financing of the publication. The journal enables both a fruitful partnership and the opening of this network to extensive national and international collaborations.
The journal has an editorial committee elected by the researchers in Germanic studies from the four laboratories concerned. The editorial orientation of the journal is shaped by an international scientific committee and the selection of the texts is carried out by a reading committee at the national level. The editorial committee meets in Aix-en-Provence twice a year.
In accordance with the origins of the publication, the direction and the administrative support of the CEG have been, from the beginning, in Aix-en-Provence. The Research Department of AMU’s UFR ALLSH is currently in charge of financial management, reception of committees, inventory management (up through CEG issue 67) and support for online implementation. The board consists of five members (one from each partner university, plus, since 2018, the person responsible for electronic publication).
Biannual publication
The CEG publish two thematic issues per year (200 to 300 pages each). Starting from 1986, the publication of non-thematic issues has gradually been abandoned.
The journal welcomes not only volumes coordinated by the members of the four partner universities, but also those organized by other French or foreign researchers. A Charter of Volume Editor(s) defines the responsibilities associated with this commitment.
The publication languages are German and French, occasionally also English. The published texts must be original ones.
Each contribution undergoes two single blind reviews, read by the editorial committee, and a third in case of disagreement. The final decision is collegial.
The print edition has a circulation of 120 copies and is distributed via subscriptions and in bookstores. The journal (from no. 62 on) is freely accessible on OpenEdition Journals and has been part of the freemium programme since January 2024. The journal archive (no. 1 to 61) can be found on the website Persée.
Editorial orientations
A broadline journal
At the beginning, the CEG received contributions from all fields of Germanic Studies, at this time listed under the headings “Civilization”, “Linguistics”, “Literature”. The journal has kept this general orientation in their publishing policy.
The chronological scale of texts ranges from the Middle Ages to the 21st century.
The cultural areas considered include all German-speaking countries.
An interdisciplinary and international dynamic
A large part of the published articles comes from foreign researchers, German-speaking or not.
For a long time, the journal has given much space to cross- and transcultural issues.
At present, the journal is open to a wider range of disciplines, specialties and approaches (Arts, Intermedial Studies, History, History of ideas, Linguistics, Literature, Cultural Studies, Gender Studies...). This is seen in the extension of the specialties represented in the scientific committee. Additional proof of this expansion in topics is the participation, in some volumes, of artists, philosophers, rhetoricians, theatrical specialists, sociologists… as contributors or editors.
In accordance with clear and rigorous selection criteria, the CEG are keen to create an open, evolving publication space whose articles, proposed by French and foreign specialists, are intended for Germanists, but also for all those who are interested in German language and culture.