Journal of Israeli History

Journal of Israeli History
Title	Journal of Israeli History
Discipline	History
Language	English
Editor	Tom Segev
Publisher	Routledge
Country	United Kingdom
History	1980–present
Frequency	Quarterly
Issn	1353-1032

Journal of Israeli History is a peer-reviewed academic periodical covering modern Israel and the wider Palestine arena from late Ottoman and British Mandate of Palestine eras to contemporary studies of state formation, society, and culture. The journal publishes original research, historiographical essays, archival studies, and critical reviews engaging topics tied to Zionism, Arab–Israeli conflict, and diasporic linkages with communities such as those in United States, United Kingdom, Russia, Poland, and Morocco. It serves scholars working on intersections with figures and events like David Ben-Gurion, Golda Meir, Yitzhak Rabin, Six-Day War, and Yom Kippur War.

Overview

The journal situates scholarship within conversations about Theodor Herzl, Chaim Weizmann, Irgun, Haganah, Palmach, and the institutional legacies of entities such as the Jewish Agency for Israel and the Histadrut. Articles frequently engage primary sources from archives connected to repositories like the Central Zionist Archives, the Israel State Archives, the British National Archives, and the Yad Ben-Zvi Institute. Readers encounter analyses that reference debates around the Balfour Declaration, the UN Partition Plan (1947), and legal-institutional outcomes such as the consequences of the Law of Return.

History and Development

Founded in the late 20th century amid growing international interest in Middle Eastern studies, the journal emerged alongside journals such as Middle Eastern Studies and Israel Studies. Early editorial boards included scholars connected to institutions like Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv University, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Bar-Ilan University, University of Haifa, and international centers at Columbia University, Oxford University, and Harvard University. Over successive editorial tenures the journal expanded coverage from political narratives to include cultural histories involving figures like Amos Oz, A. B. Yehoshua, and events such as the Yom HaShoah commemorations and the evolution of commemorative sites like Yad Vashem.

Editorial Structure and Publication Details

The journal operates with an international editorial board featuring historians affiliated with institutions including Tel Aviv University, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, King’s College London, Princeton University, University of Chicago, and University of California, Berkeley. Standard issues are organized by guest editors or thematic clusters that have focused on topics such as Aliyah, the experiences of communities from Ethiopia, Iraq, Yemen, Romania, and Argentina. Publication practices follow peer-review protocols common to academic presses including Routledge, with print and electronic distribution and DOI assignment for indexing tied to services used by scholars working on archives like the Mossad Archive and collections connected to The National Library of Israel.

Scope and Content

The journal’s scope encompasses political biographies of leaders such as Menachem Begin, Ariel Sharon, Levi Eshkol, and intellectual studies on figures like Martin Buber, Hannah Arendt, and Judith Butler where relevant to the Israeli context. Thematic issues have treated conflicts such as the Suez Crisis, the First Intifada, the Second Intifada, and peacemaking efforts including the Camp David Accords and the Oslo Accords. Cultural and social history pieces examine cinema by directors like Eytan Fox and Samuel Fuller’s influence, literary histories involving S. Y. Agnon, and urban studies addressing neighborhoods in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, and settlements tied to debates over the West Bank.

Notable Contributors and Articles

Prominent historians and public intellectuals who have contributed include scholars associated with Benny Morris, Ilan Pappé, Ariel Sharon-era analysts, as well as cultural historians like Tom Segev and Anita Shapira. Influential articles have reevaluated archival materials related to figures such as Yitzhak Rabin and reinterpreted military decisions in studies of the Arab Liberation Army and the Palestine Liberation Organization. Special issues have featured work by scholars linked to centers such as the NZ Institute and the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, while review essays have critically assessed monographs published by presses including Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, and Yale University Press.

Reception and Impact

The journal is cited across scholarship in fields intersecting with studies of Zionist movement history, diplomatic history involving actors like Harry S. Truman, Gamal Abdel Nasser, and Winston Churchill, and social histories about communities from Morocco, Poland, and Ethiopia. Reviews in venues such as The Times Literary Supplement, disciplinary citation in databases used by scholars at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and references in course syllabi at universities including Columbia University and Tel Aviv University attest to its impact. It has been part of scholarly debates that involve revisionist interpretations, oral history methodologies, and archival discoveries tied to collections like the British Foreign Office papers.

Abstracting and Indexing

The journal is abstracted and indexed in major services used by historians: citation databases maintained by Clarivate, indexing by Scopus, and inclusion in archival discovery services used by libraries such as the National Library of Israel and the British Library. Its articles are discoverable via academic aggregators utilized by scholars at institutions including Princeton University, Yale University, and University of Cambridge and are cataloged for interlibrary loan across research libraries that support work on archives like the Israel Defense Forces Archives.

Category:History journals