If you’re looking for anthropology book publishers, the following list is especially for you.
1. Berghahn Books
Founded by Marion Berghahn in 1994, Berghahn Books is a publishing company headquartered in New York. They specialize in producing academic journals and scholarly books in the social sciences and humanities, particularly in the areas of anthropology, cultural studies, European history, archeology, film and media studies, geography, and mobility studies. Over the years, they have received a number of awards for their contributions to the publishing industry, including the AAA Executive Director’s Award of Excellence for Publishing in Anthropology.
Berghahn Books is always happy to receive book proposals from prospective authors. If you have a manuscript or book idea you are interested in submitting, you can check out their submission guidelines here. Do not send them a full copy of your manuscript unless requested. For general inquiries, you can reach Berghahn Books here.
2. Verso Books
Headquartered in New York, Verso Books is an independent radical publishing house that was established in the late 70s. They publish an average of 100 books each year, mostly non-fiction, in the areas of anthropology and sociology, feminism and gender, cultural and literary theory, art and aesthetics, film and media, race and ethnicity, history, geography, and music, among others. Some of their most recent anthropology books include Latinx by Ed Morales, City of Segregation by Andrea Gibbons, Out of the Wreckage by George Monbiot, and New Dark Age by James Bridle.
Verso Books welcomes non-fiction submissions in the form of book proposals. Proposals should be limited to a maximum of 15 pages and must include the following: an overview of the manuscript’s themes, an annotated table of contents, information on competing books, and a brief background of the author. For more information, you can check out their submission guidelines here. Should you have any additional questions, feel free to contact Verso Books via email.
3. Lexington Books
An imprint of Rowman & Littlefield, Lexington Books specializes in peer-reviewed monographs in the humanities and social sciences. They publish edited collections, single-authored books, and interdisciplinary works in the following areas: anthropology, cultural studies, geography, literary studies, environmental studies, criminology, economics, music, political science and international relations, psychology, and more.
If you are interested in submitting a proposal to Lexington Books, you can send your curriculum vitae, prospectus, and a few sample chapters to the appropriate acquisitions editor. Do not submit your work to more than one editor. For general inquiries and other concerns, you can contact Lexington Books via email.
4. University of Illinois Press
Established in 1918, the University of Illinois Press is an American university press that publishes an average of 120 new books each year, as well as more than 30 scholarly journals, both digitally and in print. Their publishing scope spans a wide range of subjects, including anthropology, language and linguistics, business and economics, mathematics, film and media, popular culture, exploration and travel, radical studies, and more. Their recent anthropology titles include Hot Feet and Social Change: African Dance and Diaspora Communities, Hierarchies of Care: Girls, Motherhood, and Inequality in Peru, and The Second Generation of African American Pioneers in Anthropology.
To submit your work for their consideration, you can prepare a proposal according to their submission guidelines. You can then send your proposal to the appropriate editor. For all other questions and concerns, you can reach the University of Illinois Press here.
5. Stanford University Press
Founded in 1891, Stanford University Press is the publishing division of Stanford University and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. They publish more than 100 titles each year, specializing in academic books in philosophy, anthropology, sociology, literary studies, Asian studies, Latin American studies, Middle East studies, politics and policy, economics and finance, history, law, and more.
If you would like to submit your work to SUP, you can send them a prospectus by mail. Make sure your submission is addressed to the appropriate acquisitions editor. For additional information on preparing your prospectus, you can check out their submission guidelines here. You can also contact SUP should you have any additional questions.
6. University Press of Colorado
Established in 1965, the University Press of Colorado is a non-profit publisher supported by several schools in the western United States, including Colorado State University, Adams State University, Fort Lewis College, University of Colorado, University of Northern Colorado, Western State Colorado University, Metropolitan State University of Denver, and Utah State University. They publish more than 40 titles a year, specializing in anthropology, history, literature, Colorado and the West, Native American studies, sociology, art history, and more.
If you are interested in getting published by the University Press of Colorado, you can submit a prospectus to their acquisitions department. Your prospectus should include a clear description of your book, a table of contents, a current curriculum vitae, information on the intended audience of the book, and a list of any competing books. Get more information on what to include in your prospectus here. Submissions may be sent online or by mail.
7. University of Arizona Press
Founded in 1959, the University of Arizona Press is the leading publisher of regional, literary, and academic books in the state of Arizona. They publish an average of 55 new books each year, with more than 1,600 currently in print. Their catalog includes award-winning fiction and poetry, as well as scholarly titles in anthropology, the space sciences, history, environmental studies, Latin American studies, and archeology.
UAP welcomes submissions from authors and scholars from all over the globe, and they are interested in academic and general interest books in all the areas they publish. Proposals must be sent to the appropriate editor via email and must include an overview of the manuscript, the manuscript’s significance to the field, its target audience and competing titles, and a sample chapter. Learn more by checking out their submission guidelines here.
8. University of Minnesota Press
Founded in Minneapolis in 1925, the University of Minnesota Press specializes in publishing books in the areas of geography, film and media, Minnesota and the Upper Midwest, literature, political science, cultural criticism, education, Native American studies, and more. They have also published many anthropology books, including Power and Progress on the Prairie, Fictionalizing Anthropology, The Construction of Equality, and When the Hills Are Gone, among others.
To submit a proposal to UMP, you can start by checking out their submission guidelines here. If you have any questions about the submission process, you can contact them via email.
9. Wayne State University Press
Wayne State University Press is Detroit-based publisher that specializes in the following subject areas: African American studies, Jewish studies, the Great Lakes, anthropology, media studies, popular culture, film theory and criticism, folklore, and more. Some of their most recent anthropology books include Concrete Boxes: Mizrahi Women on Israel’s Periphery, Crow Never Dies: Life on the Great Hunt, and The Meaning of Citizenship.
If you would like to submit your work to WSU Press, you can send a proposal to the appropriate editor via mail or email. Proposals should include a summary of your work, detailed table of contents, and a few sample chapters. Be sure to check out their submission guidelines for more information. For general inquiries, you can contact them here.
10. University of Wisconsin Press
Founded in 1936, the University of Wisconsin Press is a non-profit university press that publishes peer-reviewed journals and books. They now have more than 1,400 titles in print, and new books are added to their list each year. Their areas of interest include anthropology and ethnography, media studies, folklore, Native American studies, popular culture, African American studies, environmental studies, and more. All of the books and journals they publish go through a rigorous review process conducted by their staff and outside experts.
If you are working on a project you think UW Press might be interested in, you can submit a proposal to the appropriate acquisitions editor. Your proposal and all accompanying documents must be sent as an email attachment. For information on what to include in your proposal, check out their submission guidelines here.
11. Pluto Press
Pluto Press is a radical, award-winning publishing house located in London. Founded in 1969 with the goal of supporting activism and political debate, they continue to publish non-fiction books that promote critical thinking, with a focus on the fields of politics, anthropology, international studies, current affairs, media studies, law and human rights, race and ethnicity, labor and social movements, history, and more. They have published the works of some of the world’s greatest thinkers, including Noam Chomsky, Karl Marx, Hamid Dabashi, Alastair Crooke, John Holloway, Jonathan Cook, and Susan George.
Interested in submitting to Pluto Press? Check out their submission guidelines here. Do note that they do not accept fiction or poetry submissions. If you have any additional questions, you can contact them via email.
12. Sean Kingston Publishing
Based in the UK, Sean Kingston Publishing is a small, family-owned press that specializes in academic texts in the social sciences, particularly anthropology. The press was founded in 2004 by Sean Kingston, an award-winning anthropologist, and he remains involved in the review and publication process of all the books they release. They are responsible for publishing many renowned anthropology books, including Giancarlo M.G. Scoditti’s Notes on the Cognitive Texture of an Oral Mind, Paul Sillitoe’s Made in Niugini, and Elizabeth Bonshek’s Tikopia Collected.
Sean Kingston Publishing is actively looking for scholars and authors to collaborate with. If you have a book idea you’d like to submit, you can reach Sean Kingston Publishing via email.
13. HAU Books
Founded in 2015 by Giovanni Da Col, HAU Books is a London-based publisher dedicated to producing quality texts in advanced and classic anthropological theory. Although they are a relatively young publisher, their books have received sponsorships from some of the most distinguished research institutions and anthropology departments in the world. Their titles include The Chimera Principle: An Anthropology of Memory and Imagination, The Meaning of Money in China and the United States, Magic: A Theory from the South, and The Relative Native.
For manuscript proposals and other editorial concerns, you can get in touch with HAU Books here.
14. Emerald Publishing
Emerald Publishing is a UK-based academic publisher with a portfolio of more than 3,100 peer-reviewed books, journals, and case studies. They add an average of 250 new titles to their list each year, spanning a wide range of topics such as anthropology, economics, research methods, health and social care, politics, engineering, and more.
Emerald Publishing welcomes submissions of new book ideas. If you are interested, you can send them a completed book proposal form along with a sample chapter. You can find their proposal form and the rest of their submission guidelines here. For any other questions and concerns, you can reach the Emerald Publishing team here.
15. Talonbooks
Talonbooks is an independent Canadian publisher based in Vancouver. Originally founded as a poetry magazine in 1963, they started publishing poetry books in 1967. Since then, they have expanded their publishing scope and now publish poetry, fiction, and drama, as well as non-fiction books in the areas of anthropology and ethnography, cultural studies, social and environmental issues, and more.
Talonbooks welcomes book proposals from Canadian authors, but they do not accept genre fiction, children’s books, self-help books, personal memoirs, how-to books, or cookbooks. All submissions must be sent by mail. For more information, check out their guidelines here. If you have any additional questions, you can reach Talonbooks through their online contact form.
16. University of British Columbia Press
Founded in 1971, the University of British Columbia Press is committed to publishing innovative works of non-fiction for academics and general readers. They publish more than 60 titles each year, particularly in the fields of the humanities and social studies, including anthropology, law, history, psychology, political science, sociology, gender studies, and more. They do not publish fiction, poetry, or unrevised dissertations.
Should you be interested in getting published by UBC Press, you can send a proposal to the appropriate acquisitions editor. For help preparing your proposal, you can check out their submission guidelines here. You can also learn more about their submission and approval process here.
17. University of Western Australia Publishing
University of Western Australia Publishing produces books of poetry, fiction, and non-fiction. Founded in 1935, they now publish around 30 books each year and have more than 800 titles on their list. They have also published many anthropology books, including Applied Anthropology in Australasia, Crosscurrents: Law and Society in a Native Title Claim to Land and Sea, and more.
UWA Publishing is currently closed for submissions, but prospective authors can visit the submissions page on their website to stay notified about future reading periods and submission calls. For general inquiries, contact UWA Publishing here.
Do you know of any other anthropology book publishers? Please tell us about them in the comments box below!
Hiten Vyas is the Founder and Managing Editor of Writing Tips Oasis.