Journal profile · HUMANITIES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY
Sign Systems Studies
ISSN 1406-4243 · eISSN 1736-7409 · University of Tartu Press · Estonia
Sign Systems Studies: CAS Zone 4 · Philosophy (2025 upgraded edition); diamond open access (no APC); no APC; review about 8 weeks (community reports); 29 articles in 2025; indexed in AHCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Sign Systems Studies is published by University of Tartu Press and is in Zone 4 of Philosophy in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Origins and Evolution of Life, Language, Metaphor, and Cognition and Translation Studies and Practices, together about 23.5% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Sign Systems Studies is is an international journal of semiotics and sign processes in culture and living nature. It publishes original scientific papers, review articles and book reviews on semiotics of culture and nature. Since 2009, each volume includes four issues. The official language is English. Sign Systems Studies is indexed in Web of Science Core Collection (Clarivate Analytics), in Scopus and other relevant databases.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): HUMANITIES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named Denmark 3, Italy 2, United States 1, United Kingdom 1, Germany 1 (14 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Origins and Evolution of LifePhysics and Astronomy7.9%
- Language, Metaphor, and CognitionPsychology7.9%
- Translation Studies and PracticesArts and Humanities7.7%
- Semiotics and Representation StudiesArts and Humanities7.2%
- Legal and Regulatory AnalysisSocial Sciences5.5%
- Linguistic, Cultural, and Literary StudiesSocial Sciences5.4%
- Military Technology and StrategiesEngineering5.4%
- Pragmatism in Philosophy and EducationArts and Humanities5.1%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Philosophy Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Philosophy | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Humanities, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Philosophy Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Philosophy | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Humanities, Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Literature Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Literature | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Humanities, Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
Database indexing
AHCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of SciencePublisher website
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.2LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.56LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.45LetPub ·
- h-index
- 34OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 179OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.91OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 38.5%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 24LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,003 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 14 | 14 | 0 |
| 2025 | 29 | 29 | 13 |
| 2024 | 27 | 27 | 51 |
| 2023 | 31 | 31 | 96 |
| 2022 | 31 | 31 | 115 |
| 2021 | 37 | 37 | 185 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 8 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 8 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Diamond open access (no APC)DOAJ
Every article is open access and authors pay no article processing charge.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | No APC | No | CC BY-NC-ND | |
| LetPub | No APC | No | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–200 words
- Keywords
- 5–8
- Reference style
- Author–date
Article types accepted3
- book reviewspublishes original scholarly papers, review articles and book reviews on all areas of semiotics.Length not stated
- original scholarly paperspublishes original scholarly papers, review articles and book reviews on all areas of semiotics.Length not stated
- review articlespublishes original scholarly papers, review articles and book reviews on all areas of semiotics.Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Conflicts of interest, Publication ethics, Open access, Peer review
- AI use 3. AI policy
We discourage the use of LLMs in the process of research and writing of scientific articles. If absolutely necessary, LLMs can be used to edit and translate fragments of text (not the whole manuscript). The authors must declare how they have used LLMs, and must take full responsibility for writing the submitted articles. The journal retains the right to reject articles if there are doubts of misus…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Conflicts of Interest
SSS adheres to the COPE Guideline for Handling Conflicts of Interest.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement
Sign Systems Studies (SSS) follows the ethical guidelines elaborated by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), including the COPE Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing. Duties of Editors Publication Decisions: The editor is responsible for deciding on accepting, rejecting or requesting modifications to the manuscript. In some instances, the editors may require m…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access Policy
This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. All papers are published under CC BY-NC-ND licence. Authors retain copyright without restrictions. This journal does not have article processing or submission charges. Authors may deposit a copy of their paper in an institu…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review Process
All manuscripts will be reviewed. The journal uses double anonymous review process.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- University of Tartu Press
- Country or region
- Estonia
- Language
- English, Russian
- ISSN
- 1406-4243
- Electronic ISSN
- 1736-7409
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Sign Systems Studies
What CAS zone is Sign Systems Studies in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Sign Systems Studies is in Zone 4 of Philosophy, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Humanities, Multidisciplinary. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Philosophy. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
How long does peer review take at Sign Systems Studies?
Authors report an average review time of about 8 weeks. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Sign Systems Studies?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–200 words; Keywords: 5–8; Reference style: Author–date. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Sign Systems Studies based?
Of the 14 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Denmark (3), Italy (2) and United States (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Sign Systems Studies?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Sign Systems Studies is indexed in AHCI, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists Web of Science; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Sign Systems Studies open access, and what is the APC?
Sign Systems Studies is a diamond open-access journal (no APC). It charges no article processing charge.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, DOAJ, Publisher website; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .