1. STYLE GUIDELINES FOR ARTICLES IN TURKISH

DÎVÂN Interdisciplinary Studies Journal publishes scholarly articles intended for a broadly educated readership. While submissions may address technical or specialized subjects, authors are required to write in a manner accessible to non-specialist readers with a general academic background.

Accordingly, authors must observe the following principles:

• The central argument, purpose, scholarly contribution, and significance of the article must be stated clearly and explicitly.
• Authors must not assume specialized prior knowledge on the part of readers. Concepts, historical background, and theoretical discussions essential to the argument must be explained sufficiently, even when they are not original to the author.
• Key terms introduced or employed in the article must be clearly defined and contextualized. Readers should not be expected to consult external sources in order to understand the terminology.
• The language of the article must conform to current standards of academic writing. The stylistic features of historical or technical sources cited must not dominate the author’s own scholarly voice.
• Quotations from Ottoman Turkish must, where necessary, be rendered into modern Turkish to ensure clarity.

2. TURKISH SPELLING STANDARDS

Modern Turkish usage must conform to the Spelling Guide of the Turkish Language Association. Authors are required to follow the spelling and orthographic conventions established therein.

https://www.tdk.gov.tr/tdk/kurumsal/yazim-kilavuzu/

https://sozluk.gov.tr/

3. OTTOMAN TURKISH, ARABIC, AND PERSIAN USAGE

a. Personal Names

For personal names that have established and widely accepted Turkish forms in the scholarly tradition, the standard Turkish form must be used.

Example: Abdurrahman, Nasiruddin, Nizamülmülk (not Abdu’r-rahman, Nasirü’d-din, Nizamü’l-mülk).

b. Other Personal Names

For personal names without established Turkish forms, transliteration into the Latin alphabet must be employed. Special characters are not permitted.

• Ayn and hamza must be indicated by (’) when they occur in the middle or at the end of a word. They are not indicated in other positions.
• The prefix al- (nisba) at the beginning of a name must be omitted.
  Example: Kindi, Farabi, Me’mun (not al-Kindi, al-Farabi, al-Me’mun).
• In compound personal names, only the first word must be capitalized.
  Example: Aynü’l-kudat (not Aynü’l-Kudat).
• Diacritical marks indicating long vowels must not be used.
  Example: Ibn Sina, Taşköprizade (not Ibn Sînâ, Taşköprîzâde).
  Diacritical marks may be used where necessary to avoid ambiguity or when referring to lesser-known individuals (e.g., Mustafa Âlî, Îcî).
• When historical figures are mentioned for the first time, their date of death (if known) must be provided in parentheses.
  Example: Harun al-Rashid (d. 809), Hegel (d. 1831).

The Abstract and the main text are treated as separate documents for this purpose. Therefore, the date of death must be provided at first mention in each section.

c. Arabic and Persian Quotations

Arabic and Persian quotations must be presented either in modern Turkish translation alone or together with the original text.

d. Ottoman Turkish Quotations

Ottoman Turkish quotations must be provided in transliteration. Where necessary, they must also be paraphrased in modern Turkish for clarity.

If a quotation is taken directly from a previously published work, the original transliteration must be preserved.

If the author provides the transliteration:

• Words commonly used in modern Turkish must conform to the form specified in the Spelling Guide.
• For words not commonly used in Turkish:
  • Transliteration into the Latin alphabet must be used.
  • Special symbols must not be used.
  • If ayin or hamza occurs in the middle of a word, it must be indicated by (’) or (‘); otherwise, it must not be indicated.
  • A diaeresis must be used to indicate long vowels.

4. TERMS

Technical terms must be italicized upon first occurrence and presented in regular type thereafter.

• Terms commonly used in Turkish must conform to the form specified in the Spelling Guide.
  Example: fazilet, kadı, kazasker, şeyhülislam.
• For terms not commonly used in Turkish:
  • Transliteration into the Latin alphabet must be used.
  • Special symbols must not be used.
  • Ayn and hamza must be indicated by (’) or (‘) when they occur in the middle or at the end of a word.
  • A diaeresis must be used to indicate long vowels.
    Example: fezâil, tabakât.

5. DATES

• Centuries must be written in Roman numerals (e.g., XIX century, VI century).
• The Gregorian date must be provided in all cases.
• The Hijri date may be provided alongside the Gregorian date.
  Example: September 8, 1549 / 15 Sha'ban 956; 1549 / 956.

For Hijri dates in which the month and day are unknown, the corresponding Gregorian year may span two years. In such cases, both years must be indicated.
Example: For the Hijri year 1000: 1591/92 or 1591/92 (1000).

6. ABSTRACT

The abstract must be between 150 and 250 words and must include the following elements:

• The subject of the article and its thematic, temporal, and spatial scope;
• The scholarly significance of the study (including the gap it addresses, the new perspective it offers, or the corrections it proposes);
• The methods and primary sources employed;
• The principal argument and its supporting claims.

7. USE OF NUMBERS

• Centuries must be written in Roman numerals (e.g., XIX century, VI century).
• Roman numerals must be used for sultans and monarchs (e.g., Sultan II Abdülhamid, King XIV Louis).
• Percentages must be written using the “%” symbol (e.g., 15%, 28%).

8. HEADINGS, FONT, SIZE, AND MARGINS

• Times New Roman must be used throughout the manuscript.
• The article title must be written in uppercase letters, bold, 14-point font.
• Main section headings must be written in uppercase letters, bold, 12-point font.
• Subheadings must be written in lowercase letters, bold, 12-point font.
• The main body text must be written in regular (non-bold) 12-point font.
• Margins of 2.54 cm must be set on both the right and left sides, including footnotes.

9. FOOTNOTES AND REFERENCES

All footnotes and bibliographical references must conform to The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th edition.

DÎVÂN is committed to upholding the principles of research and publication ethics as established by the Higher Education Council and TR Index, and aligns its editorial policies with internationally recognized ethical standards. Manuscripts submitted to the journal via DergiPark must be original works that have not been previously published, nor are they under consideration for publication elsewhere.

1.     Initial Editorial Assessment

All submissions undergo an initial screening by the Editorial Board. At this stage, manuscripts are evaluated in terms of:

• Relevance to the journal’s scope,
• Originality and scholarly contribution,
• Compliance with academic research methodology,
• Adherence to ethical and formal requirements.

The Editorial Board reserves the right to desk-reject manuscripts that fail to meet these criteria.

2.     Research and Publication Misconduct

The Editor-in-Chief and/or Editorial Board shall reject, suspend evaluation of, or retract a manuscript—before or after publication—if any form of research or publication misconduct is identified, including but not limited to the violations defined under the Higher Education Institutions Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Guidelines:

• Plagiarism: Appropriation of another person’s ideas, processes, results, or words without appropriate attribution.
• Data Falsification: Manipulation of research materials, equipment, processes, or data such that the research is not accurately represented.
• Fabrication: Making up data or results and recording or reporting them.
• Duplicate Publication: Republishing substantially similar content as separate works for academic advancement.
• Salami Publication: Fragmenting research findings in a manner that undermines the integrity and coherence of the study.
• Unjustified Authorship: Granting authorship to individuals who did not contribute substantially; excluding rightful contributors; altering author order without valid justification; or claiming authorship without contribution.

Where misconduct is detected after publication, the journal reserves the right to retract the article in accordance with international retraction standards

3.     Other Ethical Violations

The Editorial Board shall take appropriate action in cases including, but not limited to:

• Failure to acknowledge funding sources or institutional support;
• Use of unpublished theses or studies without authorization;
• Non-compliance with ethical standards in research involving human participants or animals;
• Violation of patient rights or confidentiality principles;
• Conducting biomedical or clinical research in breach of applicable legislation;
• Disclosure of confidential manuscript content during the peer-review process;
• Misuse of research funds, facilities, or equipment;
• Submission of unfounded or malicious allegations of misconduct;
• Publication of participant data without informed consent;
• Failure to obtain required institutional permissions;
• Violation of national legislation or international agreements governing research;
• Misrepresentation of academic qualifications, research outputs, or publication records.

4.     Ethics Committee Approval

In accordance with the 2020 decision of ULAKBİM, Ethics Committee approval is mandatory for research involving human participants or animals. Authors must:

• Upload official Ethics Committee approval documentation at the time of submission;
• Clearly state in the manuscript the name of the approving committee, approval date, and reference number.

Manuscripts requiring ethical approval but lacking documentation shall not proceed to peer review.

5.     Research Requiring Ethical Approval

Ethics Committee approval is required for, but not limited to:

• Studies collecting data from participants through surveys, interviews, focus groups, observations, or experiments;
• Experimental or scientific use of human subjects or animals;
• Clinical research involving human participants;
• Animal research;
• Retrospective studies conducted in accordance with personal data protection legislation.

For case reports, a signed Informed Consent Form must be obtained and declared in the manuscript. Authors must obtain and declare permission for the use of proprietary instruments (e.g., scales, questionnaires, photographs). Compliance with copyright regulations must be explicitly stated for all intellectual and artistic materials used.

6.     Retraction Policy

If an article is retracted, the author shall be formally notified through an official editorial letter stating the grounds for retraction.

In cases of:

• Plagiarism: The affiliated institution and relevant higher authorities may be notified, and disciplinary proceedings may be recommended.
• Ethics approval deficiencies: The manuscript may be reconsidered upon submission of valid documentation.
• Unauthorized data use: Publication may be reconsidered after proper permissions are obtained.
• Peer-review irregularities: The manuscript shall be reassigned to new reviewer(s). An embargo period may be imposed where appropriate.

Retracted articles shall be removed from the electronic archive. In print editions, retracted articles shall not appear in subsequent printings.

7.     Peer Review Process

The journal employs a double-blind peer review system. Based on reviewer reports, the Editor may:

• Accept the manuscript,
• Request minor or major revisions,
• Reject the manuscript.

Revisions must be completed within the specified timeframe. Following satisfactory revision and reviewer approval, the manuscript becomes eligible for publication.

Authors may submit an appeal against rejection via DergiPark. Appeals shall be evaluated objectively, and the manuscript may be reassessed either by a new reviewer or by the original reviewer, at the Editor’s discretion.

8. Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools

DÎVÂN Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies places great importance on ethical principles regarding the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in the academic writing process. The use of AI tools remains a subject of ongoing debate in the international publishing community, and practices in this area continue to evolve.

As stated in the March 2023 COPE forum, AI tools may be considered helpful—especially for non-native English speakers or researchers who face challenges in written expression. However, even in such cases, full transparency and explicit disclosure are essential. According to COPE’s position statement dated February 2023, AI tools cannot be listed as authors. All content—including sections generated with the help of AI—remains the full responsibility of the author(s). Authors must ensure the originality, accuracy, and ethical integrity of the content produced.

If authors have used any AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Grammarly, DeepL, etc.) during the preparation of the manuscript, this must be disclosed at the end of the article under the "Author Declaration" section.