Australian Journal of Anthropology

Australian Journal of Anthropology
Title	Australian Journal of Anthropology
Discipline	Anthropology
Abbreviation	Aust. J. Anthropol.
Publisher	Wiley-Blackwell
Country	Australia
Frequency	Quarterly
History	1951–present
Issn	1035-8811

Australian Journal of Anthropology

The Australian Journal of Anthropology is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering anthropological research with emphasis on Australia, the Pacific, and Indigenous studies. Founded in the mid-20th century, the journal has published work by scholars associated with institutions such as the Australian National University, University of Sydney, University of Melbourne, University of Queensland, and Monash University, and has engaged debates connected to figures and events like Bronisław Malinowski, Claude Lévi-Strauss, Margaret Mead, the Mabo decision, the Native Title Act 1993, and the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.

History

Established in 1951, the journal evolved alongside postwar institutions including the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, the Australian Anthropological Society, the University of Western Australia, and the Museum of Anthropology at the University of Cambridge. Early issues reflected intellectual currents tied to Franz Boas, A. R. Radcliffe-Brown, Marcel Mauss, and Ruth Benedict, while later decades engaged with the work of Levi-Strauss, Mary Douglas, Pierre Bourdieu, and Clifford Geertz. The journal has intersected with landmark events such as the 1967 Australian referendum, the Mabo v Queensland (No 2) decision, the Keating government’s policies, the Wik decision, and transnational projects involving the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum and the Pacific Islands Forum.

Scope and focus

The journal publishes empirical and theoretical research on topics including Indigenous Australian societies, Torres Strait Islander communities, Pacific Island ethnography, Southeast Asian anthropology, urban anthropology in Sydney and Melbourne, kinship studies related to Bronislaw Malinowski and David Schneider, ritual studies linked to Émile Durkheim, and political anthropology engaging with developments like the High Court, the Australian Human Rights Commission, and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Contributors often address intersections with disciplines and institutions such as the British Museum, the Smithsonian Institution, the Australian Museum, Harvard University, Oxford University, Yale University, Stanford University, and the Max Planck Institute.

Editorial structure and publisher

The editorial board has included scholars affiliated with the Australian National University, University of New South Wales, University of Adelaide, La Trobe University, the University of Tasmania, and Macquarie University. The journal is published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of associated scholarly bodies and is managed through editorial offices that liaise with systems like ORCID, CrossRef, Scopus, and Web of Science. Past and present editors have held positions at institutions such as the Australian National University, University of Sydney, University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, University of Chicago, and the London School of Economics.

Abstracting and indexing

The journal is abstracted and indexed in major services including Scopus, Social Sciences Citation Index, Arts & Humanities Citation Index, ProQuest, EBSCO, and the MLA International Bibliography. It is discoverable via platforms and tools associated with the National Library of Australia, Trove, HeinOnline, JSTOR, and library consortia at the National Library of New Zealand, the British Library, the Library of Congress, and university libraries at the University of California, Berkeley, Columbia University, and the University of Toronto.

Notable articles and impact

Notable articles have engaged with themes central to the Mabo litigation, the Native Title Act 1993, land rights campaigns led by figures connected to Eddie Mabo, Vincent Lingiari, and the Gurindji strike, as well as theoretical contributions dialoguing with Claude Lévi-Strauss, Marshall Sahlins, David Graeber, and Marilyn Strathern. The journal has influenced policy debates involving the Australian Law Reform Commission, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, the Productivity Commission, and submissions to parliamentary inquiries, and its articles have been cited in works published by Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, Routledge, and ANU Press.

Access and publication model

Published quarterly by Wiley-Blackwell, the journal operates a subscription and hybrid open-access model consistent with policies from funders and institutions such as the Australian Research Council, the Wellcome Trust, the European Research Council, and national repositories like the Australian National Data Service. Submission, peer review, and publication workflows are managed through editorial systems integrated with CrossMark, DOI registration, and indexing services used by Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed Central where applicable.

Category:Anthropology journals Category:Academic journals established in 1951 Category:Wiley-Blackwell academic journals