Continuing the Journey . . .
Issue 24
![Continuing the Journey . . .](../upload/thumbs/24/thumb444.jpg)
With the hope, confidence and determination with which it began, the quarterly Folk Culture Journal starts its seventh year as a successful Arab cultural endeavor. Overcoming obstacles along the way, the Folk Culture Journal has grown and exceeded expectations.
In order to achieve excellence and distinction, and to fulfill objectives, Folk Culture has adhered to certain principles and creative policies. Over the years, Folk Culture has become an important contributor to the body of knowledge about folklore in different nations. It also meets academic standards in humanities and folklore studies. The Journal has made its mark on both academic studies and cultural programs and activities.
Serious academic research and quality content are fundamental to the Journal’s success, but from the beginning we realized that the Journal’s appearance would be very important. Academic journals are typically quite plain; we chose to present our content with illustrations and an attractive design. We provide quality academic content in an aesthetically pleasing package. Each issue used to weigh a thousand grams, which added to the cost of distribution. To solve this problem while maintaining paper and print quality, we worked with our printing press and switched to paper imported especially for the Journal.
An academic committee oversees the Journal’s content. The committee’s high standards have resulted in the loss of some authors, who were uncomfortable with the refereeing and the amount of time that it took. The refereeing process takes a considerable amount of time because it involves communicating with referees in different countries; this delays publication. We apologize to the authors who contribute to this Journal. I want to assure them that our goal is to have the best possible relationship with them.
Bahraini Hazawi, the first of Folk Culture’s books, is included with this issue of the Journal. These books will include the findings of folklore and folk culture field studies. This quarterly book is complimentary for our valued readers. The first book is a selection of Bahraini folktales collected and recorded by Dr. Anisa Ahmad Fakhroo. We welcome the works of all scholars who want their work to be published as part of the Folk Culture book project; we will soon release the submission guidelines for these books.
At this Journal, we begin each year with optimism, and we express our sincere gratitude to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain for his continuing support.
With Allah’s blessings, in its seventh year the Folk Culture Journal promises to continue to spread its message about folk heritage from Bahrain to the world.
Ali Abdulla Khalifa
Editor In Chief