1. Article submission and initial editorial evaluation

Upon receipt of the manuscripts, an acknowledgement will be sent by email as promptly as possible. All the requirements set out in the Submissions section must be met. At this stage, an initial editorial evaluation will be conducted to assess:

a) the manuscript’s alignment with the journal’s thematic scope and its relevance in accordance with the journal’s editorial criteria;

b) compliance with the formatting requirements established by the editorial team;

c) whether any of the rejection criteria established in Section 3 apply.

Upon completion of this initial stage, the authors will be informed whether their manuscript has been rejected or will proceed to the second stage (double-blind peer review).

2. Blind peer-review process 

The journal will engage specialised referees, both national and international, to assess the methodological procedures used in this work. The selection of referees is at the discretion of the journal editors, considering their academic and scientific merits, as well as their professional experience. 

The judgments of the blind peer review for the journal HIKMA: Translation Journal will be objective, and referees will have no conflicts of interest with the research, authors, and/or research funders. The purpose of this review process is to ensure that the article proposed for publication is clear, explicit, and coherent with the formal and content-quality parameters required by the journal's prestige. Referees will maintain the confidentiality of the reviewed articles. 

Following the evaluation, referees will submit a report on the suitability of the article for publication, which will be considered by the Editorial Board. The announcement of the article's publication or, if necessary, recommendations for revision will be communicated to the author along with the referees' reports. If the publication of an article is conditional upon the implementation of feasible revisions (whether major or minor), the manuscript must be revised and resubmitted to the journal. If necessary, the revised version will be sent back to the reviewers. This process will continue until the manuscript is definitively accepted or rejected by the journal. The editorial team of Hikma will make the appropriate editorial decisions after carefully examining the reviewers' reports, paying particular attention, where applicable, to the feasibility of the revisions recommended by the reviewers. 

If the reviewers submit conflicting reports, the journal's editorial team may refer the manuscript to a third reviewer in cases where an editorial decision cannot be reached solely on the basis of those reports.

If the work is deemed publishable but requires minor changes, they will be carried out by an Editorial Board in contact with the author. However, the work may also be returned to the author for the necessary adjustments, as deemed by the Editorial Board. 

Under no circumstances may the journal’s reviewers use AI-based tools during the manuscript review process, as this could put the authors’ intellectual property rights at risk.

If revisions are requested, authors will have 45 days to make the required changes. In such cases, they must submit (1) a revised version of the manuscript, without tracked changes; (2) a revised version of the manuscript, with tracked changes showing the modifications made; and (3) a response letter addressed to the reviewers and the journal’s editorial team, addressing all comments raised by the reviewers. If authors disagree with any specific point raised during the review process, they may provide a reasoned justification for their disagreement so that the reviewers and the editorial team can take their arguments into consideration.

3. Acceptance and rejection criteria 

The decision by journal editors to accept or reject works will consider at least two circumstances: exclusion criteria and inclusion criteria. 

Exclusion criteria for admission of works include: 

1. Not being included in the scientific topics addressed by the journal.
   
2. Not making an original and significant scholarly contribution, whether theoretical, methodological or empirical.

3. Not disclosing the use of generative artificial intelligence tools in the preparation of the manuscript, or using such tools to generate content, data, results or references without appropriate verification and human oversight.

4. Not using the proposed citation system as indicated.

5. Not submitting the work in the specified format.

The inclusion criteria evaluated by expert referees were as follows: 

1. Work must align with the objectives of the section to which they are intended.
2. Works must be original or at least provide a qualitative analysis that proposes valuable information.
3. Novelty, timeliness, and advancements in topics are expected for this publication.
4. Consistency in the methodology and logical presentation of the work presented.
5. A good formal presentation is required for academic expression, text organisation, and presentation tailored to scientific writing.

To ensure the timeliness and diversity of the research published in Hikma: Translation Journal, the editorial policy is to limit the number of articles published by the same author in a given period. In this regard, only one article per author per year will be published in our journal. Furthermore, the publication of more than two consecutive articles by the same author is not allowed. This policy aims to promote the diversity of perspectives and topics covered in each issue, thus fostering an equitable space for the contribution of different researchers. We appreciate the understanding and cooperation of our authors in this initiative, which aims to strengthen the quality and plurality of Hikma: Translation Journal. We are committed to maintaining a dynamic and enriching editorial space for the academic community.

  Starting in 2024, all works will be published in the following formats: PDF, EPUB, and HTML. 

4. Proofreading 

Before the proofreading stage, the secretariat sends each contributor a Word or PDF file containing all types of handwritten or electronic corrections (ortho-typographic, grammatical, and, if necessary, even stylistic).

During the proofreading stage—where the proofs are sent to the author without the original—no significant variations or additions to the text will be accepted unless they follow the reviewers' suggestions. Authors must correct the proofs within a maximum period of fifteen days. Only the first proofs will be sent.

Authors must also indicate whether their work is derived from research that has received funding (this information will be added as a footnote [*] to the article title).

Corrections will only be accepted in PDF format and must be added using Adobe’s tool: Highlight Text > (Double click) > Add Comment.

Data uploaded to the OJS platform cannot be modified after publication.

5. Estimated publication timelines

• Initial review by the Editorial Team: 3 months.
• First blind peer review from the initial review submission: 4 months.
• From acceptance to publication: 6 months - 1 year.

6. Special issues

The journal may publish special issues addressing current topics in the field of Translation and Interpreting Studies. These special issues would be published in addition to the two regular issues scheduled each year.

From 2027 onwards, special issues may be initiated through either of the following procedures:

(1) Direct invitation by the editorial team to an established researcher of recognized standing in the field to coordinate a special issue on a topic proposed by the journal; or

(2) An open call for expressions of interest, allowing researchers interested in coordinating a special issue in Hikma to submit a proposed call for papers. The submission period will be announced in the journal's “Announcements” section. The editorial team will assess the feasibility and relevance of the proposals received and communicate its decision to the prospective guest editors. If a proposal is accepted, the publication timeline will be agreed upon jointly by the guest editor and the editorial team.

In all cases, responsibility for the editorial process and the final decision to accept or reject manuscripts submitted for consideration in special issues will remain with Hikma’s editorial team.

7. Editorial responsibilities 

The editorial board’s responsibilities include accrediting the quality of articles and editorial processes and endorsing the journal's quality with its prestige. In this regard, journal editors assume full responsibility and hold the authority to reject or accept articles. Editors confirm that they have no conflicts of interest with the rejected articles and that an article will only be accepted when its authenticity and originality are certain. If errors are identified, editors will suggest the correction or retraction of incorrect information, preserving the anonymity of the contributors. 

8. Section-specific peer review policy

• Articles Section: Double-blind external peer review. 
• Reviews Section: Review by the review's coordinator.