Author Guidelines

BYZANTINA SYMMEIKTA accepts submissions in Greek, English, French, German and Italian. The following guidelines are valid for all five languages in which the journal publishes. 

The submission process at a glance

All articles that fall within the scope of the journal are considered on condition that they are original and that they have not been published previously, nor they are under consideration for publication elsewhere, either in print or in electronic form (unless otherwise stated to the comments for the editor).  Articles must be submitted only electronically via the journal’s webpage (https://ejournals.epublishing.ekt.gr/index.php/bz). The Editor will consider articles that reflect a mature stage of research, and which are carefully presented in terms of writing. Articles are accepted for publication solely on the basis of merit, according to the results of a blind peer-review process. Revised articles are published in the journal’s webpage as soon as the editing and layout process is complete and on condition that they are accompanied by all necessary documentation (i.e. any images and the permission(s) for their reproduction). The revised form of an article should take into consideration the changes requested by the reviewers or the author must explain why he has rejected them. He should comply with the formatting standards set by the journal as described below. Articles are published in pdf format. By submitting an article for publication to BYZANTINA SYMMEIKTA the author assumes responsibility for adhering to intellectual property rights law, assures that no violation is caused to the intellectual property rights of third parties, and accepts unobtrusively the copyright policies of BYZANTINA SYMMEIKTA. 

Book reviews

Please send books to be reviewed to: Book Review Editors, BYZANTINA SYMMEIKTA, Institute for Historical Research/Byzantine Section, National Hellenic Research Foundation,

48 Vassileos Konstantinou Av., 11635 Athens, GREECE. 

Initial submission

Manuscripts of no more than 15.000 words should be submitted electronically via the journal webpage in pdf format (images, tables, references included in one file). Longer articles will only be considered in exceptional circumstances. Submissions should include an abstract of no more than 150 words in language other than the language of the article, at the end of the text, as well as 5 keywords in greek and english. The name of the author(s) should not appear anywhere in the document, and references to previous work by the author(s) should be in the third person. The Editorial Board reserves the right to reject a manuscript before the review process begins. Manuscripts are sent to two reviewers. Upon receipt of the reviews, authors are informed in writing of the Editor’s decision to accept, reject or request changes to the article, and the contents of the reviews are made known to the authors. In case of conflicting reviews, the manuscript is sent to a third reviewer. 

Revised submission

Upon notification that an article is accepted for publication the author is asked to submit the final version within two months. The revised version should take into consideration the changes requested by the reviewers or the author must explain why he has rejected them. No changes to the text are permitted after the final submission. The revised submission should conform to the journal guidelines (“Final Submission files”) and should follow the style specifications described below (“Style”). Artwork and copies of all relevant permissions should be submitted to the journal at this time. Revised versions of articles will be forwarded for the final stages of publication (i.e. editing, layout) only upon receipt of all necessary documentation and permissions (i.e. images, plans, permissions to reproduce images), and on condition that the revised article conforms to the journal’s guidelines. Authors have the opportunity to examine the proofread copy of their articles and provide their comments on changes within three working days upon notification. In the absence of a response, the article is published according to the changes proposed by the copyeditor. Authors can follow the progress of their manuscript through all stages of publication via his/her account on the journal’s website. 

Final submission files

A. The following should be submitted as separate electronic files:  (the name of each file should consist of the author’s last name and the type of document it contains according to the examples shown below):

1. Revised article and footnotes in Microsoft Word doc (not docx) and in pdf format, a total of two files (example: PapadopoulosText.doc and PapadopoulosText.pdf).The following should be included in this file in the following order: The title, the author(s)’ name(s), affiliation, full mailing address, e-mail and telephone number, the abstract of the paper, the main text and the footnotes. If there are changes in the title and/or abstract of the paper it should be noted in the letter addressed to the Editor (see below).
2. Illustrations: each as a separate TIFF file, and numbered consecutively in Arabic numerals in the order they appear in the text (see below on the format of images; example: PapadopoulosFigure1.tiff or PapadopoulosPlan1.tiff).
3. List of captions in Microsoft Word doc. List separately in consecutive numbers in Arabic numerals the captions of all the figures in the text (example: PapadopoulosCaptions1.doc).
4. Appendixes or catalogues (where applicable) in Microsoft Word doc and in pdf format, a total of two files (example: PapadopoulosCatalogue1.doc and PapadopoulosCatalogue1.pdf)
5. Tables (where applicable) in Microsoft Word doc and in pdf format, a total of two files per table submitted (example: PapadopoulosTable1.doc and PapadopoulosTable1.pdf). Each table should be accompanied by a self-explanatory caption below it. Tables should be numbered consecutively in Arabic numerals in the order they appear in the text.

B. The following should be mailed to the journal at byzsyminfo@eie.gr

1. A signed letter to the Editorial Board  that must include the following:
   1. An account of how the reviewers’ comments and suggestions were dealt with and why.
   2. An account of all the changes brought by the author(s) to the initial manuscript and the reasons for them.
   3. A list of all the electronic files submitted together with the final version of the paper and their content.
   4. A list of the programs used to create digital artwork, including the specific version.
2. Permissions for reproduction of copyrighted material (such as images). The author is responsible for paying any fees involved. Production of an article will begin only after all permissions have been received.

 Style

Authors are advised to follow current conventions used in each language for capitalization, punctuation, dates and chronological periods etc. and adhere to them with consistency throughout the article. Both British and US English are acceptable as long as consistency is maintained.

Foreign words

Foreign words or phrases that are not commonly used in the language of an article should be italicized.

Fonts

Use Unicode fonts for typing in any language that does not use the Latin alphabet, e.g. Greek or Arabic ecc.. Unicode fonts are available for most languages for free at various sites on the internet.

Transliterations into latin characters

• Authors may follow their preferred system of transliteration, to be used consistently throughout the article.
• In references to publications written in Greek, Cyrillic, Arabic or other alphabet, except the Latin one, the name of the author is transliterated. The title of the work written in Greek remains as in the original, while that in Cyrillic, Arabic or other alphabet should be transliterated in case that the author has not at his disposal the fonts needed.
• The location of the publication of the work remains as in the original. By exception, the location in Greek, Cyrillic, Arabic or other alphabet should be transliterated in the language of the article submitted to BYZANTINA SYMMEIKTA.

Quotations

Quotations of ancient or medieval texts are italicized. It is recommended to cite always the original (Greek, Latin ecc.) texts according to the latest critical edition. Parallel use of english (or in other languages) translation remains to the author's choice. Quotations of modern authors should be placed inside quotation marks.

Illustrations and captions

• Illustrations should be submitted in accordance to the guidelines provided below.
• Numbering of figures, drawings or maps in the text should be consecutive and given in Arabic numerals.
• References to figures, drawings and maps of the texts should follow consecutive numbering in the order of appearance in the text.
• All figures, drawings and maps must include a caption. If they appear in another publication, the credit should include the work and the figure and/or page number in which the work appears. If another party holds the copyright, a credit should be given that complies with the specifications of the copyright-holder.
• Example of Caption: Cross-Reliquary (Σταυρός-Λειψανοθήκη), late 8^th-early 9^th century A.D., The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Inv. No. 17.190-715ab (photo courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art).

Catalogues

Catalogue entries should be numbered consecutively, and consistency should be maintained in the presentation.

Tables

Numbering of tables in the text should be consecutive in Arabic numerals. Tables should be accompanied by self-explanatory captions below.

Numerals and measurements

Numbers from one to nine are spelled out. Larger numbers are given in Arabic numerals, except at the beginning of a sentence. In bibliographic references Arabic numerals are preferable to Latin or Greek for references to journal numbers, series numbers etc. Numerals should be used when units of measurement are abbreviated (e.g. 2 m.). The metric system should be used for measurements in all cases.

 Footnotes

In footnotes the serial number must be subscript and followed by a dot. References are provided in footnotes and not endnotes. References are given in full in the first occurrence and abbreviated thereafter. Full references should list the name of author, the editor or the translator in Small Caps, title of the work, series or journal (where applicable), place of publication, date and page numbers. Abbreviated references should include the last name of the author, a key-word or key-phrase from the title and the page numbers (where applicable). The author-date reference system is not used. Please provide the exact page number(s) in abbreviated references.

Example of a frequently cited full reference: L. JAMES [in small caps], Art and Text in Byzantine Art, Cambridge 2007.

Example of an abbreviated reference: JAMES, Art and Text, 20-76. 

Footnote reference specifications with examples:

Article

G. OSTROGORSKY [in small caps all authors' names], La commune rurale byzantine (Loi agraire - Traité fiscal - Cadastre de Thèbes), Byz. 32 (1962), 139-166.

Article in edited volume

M. GEROLYMATOU, Le commerce, in: La Bithynie au Moyen Age, ed. B. GEYER– J. LEFORT [Réalités byzantines 9], Paris 2003, 485-498 

Article in proceedings

Ch. GASPARIS, Catastica Feudorum Crete: Land ownership and political changes in medieval Crete (13th-15th centuries), in: Diplomatics in the Eastern Mediterranean. 1000-1500, ed. A. D. BEIHAMMER –  M. G. PARANI – Ch. D. SCHABEL, Leiden 2008, 49-61. 

Book by one author

D. NICOL, Studies in Late Byzantine History and Prosopography, London 1986.

Book in a series

T. G. KOLIAS, Byzantinische Waffen. Ein Beitrag zur byzantinischen Waffenkunde von den Anfängen bis zur lateinischen Eroberung [Byzantina Vindobonensia 17], Wien 1988.

Translation

S. VRYONIS, Η παρακμή του μεσαιωνικού ελληνισμού της Μικράς Ασίας και η διαδικασία του εξισλαμισμού (11^ος έως 15^ος αιώνας), trans. K. Galatariotou, Athens 1996.

Reprint

W. HEYD, Histoire du commerce du Levant au Moyen Age, v. 1-2, Leipzig 1885-86 (Amsterdam 1967)

Revised edition

D. A. ZAKYTHINOS, Le despotat grec de Morée (rev.ed. Ch. MALTEZOU), London ²1975.

Book Review

D. J. CONSTANTELOS, book review of A. SHARF, Byzantine Jewry: From Justinian to the Fourth Crusade, New York 1971, in: AHR 77 (1972) 499-500. 

Entry in encyclopedia or corpus

ODB, v. 2, entry Germanos I, patriarch of Constantinople (A. Kazhdan).

Abbreviations of ancient and medieval authors

The first reference to an ancient or medieval author must be given in full, preferably in the latest critical edition. In subsequent references it must be abbreviated in the best probationary way.

Abbreviations of modern works and journals

The following abbreviations of modern works and journals are used, and can be downloaded here in pdf format. 

Images

Illustrations can only be submitted digitally via the journal’s webpage and should be in TIFF format. Authors should inform the Editor of the program(s) used to create digital images including the version of the program(s). Illustrations should be submitted in the desired orientation, and images of objects should have a scale indication whenever possible. All illustrations should be numbered consecutively and cited in the text in the order of discussion. Illustrations will not be embedded in the text, but will appear at the end of the article. The Editor reserves the right to reject digital images of poor quality that do not conform to the journal’s standards. 

Image specifications:

• Black-and-white scans
• Black-and-white scans should be in grayscale mode in TIFF format, and should be produced from originals of high quality. Resolution should be at 350 dpi at 100% of the desired print size.

• Color scans
• Color scans should be submitted in RGB mode in the TIFF format. Resolution should be at 350 dpi at 100% of the desired print size.

• Line drawings, maps, and plans
• Digital line art should be a minimum of 1200 dpi and at 100% of the desired print size. It should be submitted in TIFF format as line art or bitmap. Large files should be saved using the LZW compression provided in the application.  All plans should be accompanied by a north arrow and a scale.

 Permissions of reproduction

The author is responsible for securing permissions to publish copyrighted material, such as photographs and drawings. He/she is responsible for paying any fees involved. Production of an article will not begin until all relevant permissions have been received by the Editor.