About the journal

The reasons behind the foundation of Noctes Romanae are threefold. Firstly, this new editorial initiative stems from the desire to foster dialogue among scholars working on different subjects – specifically, texts produced in various chronological, geographical, and linguistic contexts – yet employing similar methodologies. These methodologies are explicitly outlined in the subtitle of the publication: philology, understood in the narrow sense of textual criticism and the history of tradition, and linguistics. Recognising that, since antiquity, any productive reflection on a text (literary or otherwise) cannot be separated from a consideration of language, and simultaneously acknowledging that in today’s global contemporary world, any exclusively monodisciplinary investigation runs the risk of diminishing impact, this journal aims to provide a dialogical space where individual contributors (and future readers) can benefit from insights derived from diverse hermeneutic experiences and fields of study.

Noctes Romanae seeks to host research in textual criticism, stemmatics, the history of tradition, the history of language, lexicography, general linguistics, and corpora studies, conducted through both traditional methods and the use of digital tools (digital philology, computational linguistics, etc.). Article selection will therefore be based on methodological criteria rather than chronological ones. Consequently, the journal is open to contributions in philology and the history of the Greek and Latin language primarily, but also, for example, research on medieval Latin, Byzantine, Romance, and Italian languages and literatures, reflecting the diversity found in the profiles of the members of the scientific committee and editorial board.

The second objective of this initiative is to involve scholars at various stages of their academic careers, not only as authors but also within the journal’s organizational bodies. This inclusivity spans established scholars to younger academics, within the constraints allowed by the requirements for accreditation by the Agenzia Nazionale di Valutazione del Sistema Universitario e della Ricerca (ANVUR) as a scientific journal of class A.

Finally, on a practical and unavoidable note, the lengthy delays that authors face in the publication process of most journals in this field highlight the space for a new editorial project in scientific communication within the linguistic and philological domains (in the Italian ANVUR classification, the term refers to the A-class journals within Area 10). Therefore, the third reason for the foundation of Noctes Romanae is to create an additional channel in an editorial landscape often perceived as inadequate for the timely dissemination of research results in linguistic and philological fields.

The publication is planned in exclusively digital format and open access. This choice not only aligns with the now-established modes of dissemination for scholarly products but also ensures a swifter dissemination of the works for future contributors to Noctes Romanae. The journal, published by Sapienza University Press and equipped with ISSN and DOI, will have a biannual periodicity; however, individual articles will be published continuously, as they are evaluated and accepted. The two issues each year will be finalized in June and December, respectively. Contributions submitted for publication will undergo a double-blind peer review. Articles in the major European vehicular languages (French, English, Italian, Spanish, German) are accepted.

The chosen title for the journal, Noctes Romanae, holds a dual reference: on one hand, there is an obvious connection to the erudite inquiries of Gellius’s Noctes Atticae, and on the other, it seeks to pay homage to the Roman school of philology of the so-called ‘Accademia degli Scotofili’, the circle of students and friends who gathered at Scevola Mariotti’s house for the famous Saturday night seminars (See S. Rizzo, Augusto Campana maestro a Roma, in R. Avesani (a c. di), Testimonianze per un maestro. Ricordo di Augusto Campana. Roma, 15-16 dicembre 1995, Roma 1997, pp. 79-102: p. 88 and n. 9.). The creators of this editorial project, in turn, are directly or indirectly disciples of those who attended these seminars.

Continuing in the spirit of these two experiences, it is hoped that many of the contributions appearing in Noctes Romanae will also arise from conversations, both nocturnal and otherwise, with mentors and study colleagues. Despite the diversity of research topics (as described above, free from chronological and disciplinary limits), it is envisioned that these contributions will be the result of a rigorous application of investigative methods, achievable only through peer collaboration.

Erit autem id longe optimum, ut qui in lectitando, ‹percontando›, scribendo, commentando numquam voluptates, numquam labores ceperunt, nullas hoc genus vigilias vigilarunt neque ullis inter eiusdem Musae aemulos certationibus disceptationibusque elimati sunt, sed intemperiarum negotiorumque pleni sunt, abeant a noctibus his procul atque alia sibi oblectamenta quaerant (Gell. praef. 19).