Journal of Agrarian Change, Vol. 9 No. 1, January 2009, pp. 1–2.

© 2009 The AuthorsJournal compilation © 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Blackwell Publishing LtdOxford, UKJOACJournal of Agrarian Change1471-03581471-0366© The Author. Journal compilation © Blackwell Publishing Ltd, Henry Bernstein and Terence J. Byres.XXX Original Article

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Editorial NoteEditorial Note

Editorial Note

We are delighted to publish the first single special issue under the new editorialteam. This special issue, guest-edited by Peter Sarris and Jairus Banaji, stands outfor its high standards of scholarship. It brings together some of the leadingscholars in the field of late antiquity and agrarian change, focusing on the socialand economic history of the Mediterranean world and its northern and easternappendages from roughly

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400 to 800. The issue also reflects one of the prioritiesin the mission of the new editorial team. This is to maintain the original visionof

JAC

and particularly the high standards in the

Journal’s

promotion of scholarlyhistorical research on processes of agrarian change and agrarian structures froma long-term historical perspective.

This special issue addresses debates that have gained momentum since thepublication of Chris Wickham’s recent seminal work

Framing the Early MiddleAges: Europe and the Mediterranean, 400–800

(2005). However, as Peter Sarrisreminds us in his introduction, this collection of essays should not be viewed asa review of Wickham’s work, ‘but rather as a series of connected studies that useWickham’s model and analysis as a “springboard”’ for a holistic analysis of theperiod (Sarris, introduction to this special issue).

We also want to take this opportunity to briefly take stock of the

Journal’s

experience since we took over as new editors in January 2008, with the preparationof issue 8.1. Our intention has been to achieve balance both thematically and interms of regions, while publishing work that will be of the utmost interest toour readers. It is worth mentioning the excellent quality of the double specialissue on transnational agrarian movements (8.2/3), bringing together some ofthe top scholars in the field, who have covered a wide range of cases and issues.A striking feature of this issue was the diversity of methods and subjects amongits contributors. We are also delighted that this double issue was subsequentlypublished as a book. A focus on the variety and complexity of various forms ofcollective action and resistance at the global scale is something the

Journal

aimsto promote. The

Journal

issue 8.4 reflects the variety of themes, regions andapproaches that

JAC

wants to encourage now and in the future. In addition, itcontains an expanded review section, a feature we think is essential.

Aside from the central business of producing the

Journal

, the editors havealso engaged in initiatives that we hope will lead to new and exciting futurepublications. In May, we held a workshop and conference entitled ‘Agrarianquestions: lineages and prospects’, which brought together a range of scholarsrepresenting the gamut of approaches and research in the field of the politicaleconomy of agrarian change. The workshop was also a unique occasion to have anopen discussion about the

Journal’s

present and future and to celebrate the out-standing work of Henry Bernstein and Terry Byres, as ‘founding fathers’ of

JAC

.In 2008 we also started the

Agrarian Change

seminar series, which we hope toorganize every academic year at the School of Oriental and African Studies of

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Editorial Note

© 2009 The AuthorsJournal compilation © 2009 Blackwell Publishing LtdJournal of Agrarian Change, Vol. 9 No. 1, January 2009, pp. 1–2.

the University of London, with regular talks by scholars and activists in the fieldof agrarian studies. This seminar series is intended to feed into the

Journal’s

outputs. In November, for example, we hosted a special seminar on the FoodCrisis. In both cases, we intend to not only sponsor the presentation of newresearch, but also to provide an alternative arena for our readers to engage withagrarian topics.

Deborah JohnstonCristóbal KayJens Lerche Carlos Oya