Criteria for the series

Translation and Commentary Expectation

Manuscript Expectation

Production Expectation

CRITERIA FOR THE SERIES:

• Submissions must be competent, literary translations of significant works in the medieval Islamic philosophical, Arabic scientific, or Eastern Christian traditions.
• The purpose of the series is the serious, respectful, and scholarly presentation of the ideas of these writers to a reading audience of specialists and nonspecialists.
  
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• The translation must be from the language of the oldest surviving manuscript of the work, preferably from the critical edition comparing all documentary source variations.
• Languages such as Arabic, Persian, Hebrew, and Syriac need not be voweled unless the source document for the translation is voweled.
• Transliterated words and names must include all diacritical markings according to the system used by the International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies. Any modifications of this system peculiar to the series will be made by the series editors.
• References to quotations from the Qur'an or the Bible should be provided in the text, in brackets. Qur'anic citations should use the Cairo versification system. All other references and annotations should be cited as notes, using superscripts.
• The translator/editor must include substantial introductory material presenting the history, context, and importance of the work and its author; a full description of the source documents from which the translation was made; thorough annotation; and a complete bibliography of sources used.
• The translator/editor may also include a glossary and other supplementary materials.
  
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• The translator/editor should submit a hard copy of the manuscript on 8.5-by-11-inch paper, double-spaced throughout (including block quotes and notes), one-sided; and electronic copy on a Mac-platform computer disk, preferably saved in Word, WordPerfect, or Nisus. Using either Jaghbub or Koufra as the typeface will ensure that Arabic diacritical markings will be transferred correctly; a translator who does not have one of these available may send on the Mac disk an electronic file containing the typeface that was used.
• The full text in both languages must be submitted in separate electronic files and grouped separately in hard copy.
• For the sake of the editors and book designer, formatting codes should be kept to a minimum (i.e., no full justification, no automatic formatting, same size and style of type throughout each language).
• Disembedded endnotes in a separate electronic file are preferred.
• Style and spelling standards for the series are The Chicago Manual of Style, 14th edition, with style-one documentation used in endnotes and bibliography; Webster's Third New International Dictionary; and Webster's New Biographical and New Geographical dictionaries. Exceptions cannot be made.
• All manuscripts will be peer-reviewed and must be deemed complete and satisfactory before a contract can be offered.
• The translator/editor must provide a current vita, including full name and birthdate for Library of Congress and Copyright Office purposes.
  
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• The translator/editor must remain available to approve editing, read proofs, and help in preparation of the index(es); these must be done in a timely manner. It is expected that the translator/editor will take time for a complete reading of the edited manuscript before page-proof stage.
• Design standards (e.g., layout, typeface, cover, binding) are predetermined for the series; variations cannot be allowed unless the project would be rendered incomplete by the absence of some design or substantive element.
  
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