The Classical Journal joins Hopkins Press

JHU Press is pleased to announce The Classical Journal has joined our growing roster of classical studies scholarly journals. The Classical Journal is the official publication of the Classical Association of the Middle West and South (CAMWS). Established in 1905, the quarterly, peer-reviewed Classical Journal features scholarly articles on the literature, culture, and history of Graeco-Roman antiquity. CJ also includes select book reviews and a Forum of shorter notes on pedagogical methodologies, technologies, and theory at all levels of classical education.

We recently asked Georgia Irby, The Classical Journal Editor and Professor of Classical Studies at The College of William & Mary, to tell us more about her research and her work with the journal. 

Can you tell us a little bit about your academic background? How did you come to study Classics and what is your area of specialty?

I took my first Latin course as an eighth grader (Athens Academy, Athens, GA), and was immediately hooked by the mathematical complexity and elegance of the language, riches to be found in the literature, artful and playful turns of phrase, rhetorical devices,  Caesar, Cicero, Vergil, and Ovid.  Greek soon followed. As an undergraduate at UGA, I was determined to study math but learned that the literature requirement could be fulfilled by advanced Latin. And the rest, as they say, is history. My PhD is from CU-Boulder, where I worked on Military Religion in Roman Britain, and laid the foundations for my work in the history of science which blends these two academic loves--the ancient world and the scientific. My current research focuses on ancient cartography, geography, and hydrology (including sea monsters!). I am the editor of A Companion to Science, Technology, and Medicine in Ancient Greece and Rome (2016, Wiley-Blackwell, 2 vols).  My three recent book projects are: Conceptions of the Watery World in Greco-Roman Antiquity (Bloomsbury 2021); Using and Conquering the Watery World in Greco-Roman Antiquity (Bloomsbury 2021); and Epic Echoes in The Wind in the Willows (Routledge, forthcoming, 2022)
 

You have recently been named Editor of The Classical Journal, did you have other experience with the publication prior to taking the helm as Editor?

Though I have just been a consumer of The Classical Journal, which has always maintained the highest standards of scholarly rigor (my own research has very much benefitted from CJ!), I have published articles on Greek pedagogy in her sister journal Teaching Classical Languages, and I have been an active member of The Classical Association of the Middle West and South, attending every meeting but three since 1992, serving as state and regional Vice President, and as the organization's photographer for over a decade. I have also served as the president of CAMWS-Southern Section. I am now privileged and humbled to be at the helm of CJ, the journal of an organization that has done so much to foster my own career and growth as a scholar-teacher.
 

What sets The Classical Journal apart from other classical studies journals?

CJ features an variety of rigorously researched articles that explore interesting questions in a way that is both scholarly and accessible. We try to balance Greek and Latin, language and culture in a thoughtful, productive way so any reader will find something of value in every issue. 

 
What does your new partnership with Johns Hopkins University Press mean to you and for the journal?

We are excited by the partnership, hoping to attract a wider audience, and continue our dialogue with colleagues in the Classics and related fields. With JHUP, we are in fine company.
 

Can you tell us about any upcoming issues or articles, or special issues that you’re currently working on?

There are gems in every issue, including articles on earthquakes, magic, theatricality, family dynamics, women benefactresses, bastardy/legitimization, homicide law. Contributors tackle interesting questions in a  variety of favorite Classical authors such as Homer, Thucydides, Xenophon, Vergil, Ovid, Statius.  Our contributors are investigating new questions in new ways. There is talk of a special issue on modern screen reception, and I am hoping we can pull together a special issue on science and society in the ancient world.