OTAM Journal, published regularly since 1989, is a peer-reviewed journal dedicated to disseminating the results of scholarly research in the field of Ottoman history to the academic community. The journal is published biannually, with issues released in March and September.
OTAM publishes original articles, archival documents, reviews, translations, book critiques, and reports on symposia and congresses related to Ottoman History. Furthermore, other types of scholarly contributions deemed appropriate by the editorial board are also considered for evaluation.
Although the primary language of the journal is Turkish, manuscripts written in English, German, and French are also accepted for publication.
Manuscripts submitted for publication in OTAM Journal are initially subjected to a preliminary evaluation by the editorial board in terms of objective, scope, content, methodology, compliance with stylistic guidelines, and publication policy.
Submissions deemed appropriate are forwarded to two experts in the field to be evaluated for scientific proficiency, during which process no identifying information regarding the author is included in the manuscripts sent to the reviewers.
Peer evaluations are generally based on an examination of the work’s originality, the methodology employed, compliance with ethical rules, the consistent presentation of findings and conclusions, and its contribution to the literature.
If the referee reports are positive, the study is published following an editorial review. In cases where reviewers deem corrections necessary, their opinions and suggestions are conveyed to the author, who is then obligated to fulfill these requests; however, should the author present justified objections to a reviewer's opinion, the editorial board may arrange for the manuscript to be re-evaluated by different referees.
If both referee reports are negative, the decision of "unpublishable" is communicated to the author upon approval of the reports by the editorial board. In the event of conflicting reports—one positive and one negative—the manuscript is sent to a third referee, and the editorial board decides whether to publish the work based on the resulting report.
The editorial board reserves the right to make minor orthographic and formal changes to manuscripts to ensure the stylistic and formal integrity of OTAM Journal. Referee reports remain confidential, and submitted manuscripts are not returned regardless of whether they are published.
Articles submitted to the journal must not have been previously published elsewhere or be currently under consideration for publication. Scientific and legal responsibility for published works belongs to the author, and no royalties are paid to the authors of articles published in the journal. No part of the articles published in the journal may be cited without proper attribution.