CALL FOR PAPERS — ARTICLES IN INDIGENOUS LANGUAGES OF THE AMERICAS

Linguistic rights have been a central part of the history of Indigenous peoples since the beginning of colonial processes worldwide. For several decades, the current of epistemologies of the South has emphasized the need for epistemic justice, which entails the recognition and appreciation of Indigenous languages in the construction of knowledge beyond Eurocentric paradigms. At the same time, Indigenous peoples have demanded that states protect and value their languages, leading to the establishment of international treaties aimed not only at protecting them, but above all at promoting their revitalization.

In the history of Latin America, the first evangelizing processes adapted their discourses and languages to those of Indigenous peoples, resulting in the creation of dictionaries and doctrinal manuals in Indigenous languages. At the same time, Indigenous languages influenced various spheres of historical life, and can be found in legal, political, and economic contexts—going beyond the evangelizing sphere.

However, some colonial projects, as well as those of the emerging republics, imposed prejudices against Indigenous languages, considering them “languages of the devil” that linked societies to idolatry, and later as expressions of “savage” societies to be eradicated under the Western civilizing mandate. These processes, which gave rise to racist practices and attitudes, ultimately excluded the culture and languages of Indigenous peoples from public spaces. Today, building democratic societies that respect diversity in its broadest sense remains our great challenge.

Like any cultural sphere, language is dynamic over time and undergoes transformations; therefore, it is important to analyze not only its use and permanence over time, but also its historicity.

On its 30th anniversary, the Revista de Historia Social y de las Mentalidades inaugurates a section of articles written in the languages of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, as a way of contributing to the revitalization of Indigenous languages and their recognition in the academic sphere.

We invite academics, intellectuals, and Indigenous writers to submit proposals for articles or historical essays in any of these languages. The texts must relate to historiographical research or the memory of Indigenous peoples.

The articles will undergo a special evaluation focusing both on their historical content and on the consistency of the Indigenous alphabet used.

You can review the submission guidelines and the evaluation rubric for academic articles on the journal’s website or request them by email: revista.historia@usach.cl.