Presentation
Glosas is an academic and scientific journal specialized in the study and analysis of Spanish in and of the United States, and of all topics related to this field. Glosas is published by the North American Academy of the Spanish Language (ANLE). Since the appearance of its first issue in June of 1994, and until recently, it was published on a quarterly basis under the aegis of the Translation Commission.
The original aim of Glosas was to provide guidance to those who use the Spanish Language publically or professionally; information and advice was furnished on neologisms, idiomatic expressions and false cognates used in English to Spanish translations. It also pointed out pitfalls and faulty examples of translations and aimed to serve as a bridge between the successive editions of the Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy (previously DRAE now DLE) as regarded changes and innovations in the fields of science and technology and other subjects of topical interest. In addition, it contained book reviews and articles by academics and specialists in various fields, and especially those in the area of translation.
Much has happened in both the United States and Spain since our inaugural issue. At the time, the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) did not have at its disposal all of the normative volumes and tools it now boasts to carry out its mission; the Academy was focused then primarily on digitalizing its archives and databases so as to facilitate its editorial and pedagogical efforts. Upon achieving this, the Spanish Royal Academy, with the participation and collaboration of all of the academies in the Americas, published the last two editions of the DRAE (now DLE), the new Diccionario Panhispánico de Dudas, the Nueva Gramática and the Diccionario de Americanismos as well as the new Ortografía.
These last broad normative efforts made by the Royal Spanish Academy have decreased our own function to a certain extent, though our function was never to set the standard but to inform. In this we remain constant: we continue to inform our readers as to the most important novelties and changes in both Spanish and English.
As mentioned, until recently, Glosas, in both its earlier paper and now in its electronic formats, was published under the Translation Commission, which was presided over by Joaquín Segura, who is unfortunately no longer with us and who, because of serious health issues, had to step down as director in 2014. He died in August 2015.
Glosas nowadays
Thereafter, the members of the ANLE Board of Directors, upon extensive consultation and deliberation, arrived at the conclusion that it was expedient that the publication become independent of the Commission given that the primary objective of Glosas should be the publication of essays, articles and reviews about the Spanish language in and of the United States, bilingualism and / or diglossia in the United States, the varieties of the Spanish language, without excluding, of course, those works that address issues and peculiarities related to translation.
In July of 2014, Silvia Betti, a corresponding member of the ANLE and an expert in the matter of Spanish in and of the United States, was elected by unanimous vote to step in as director of Glosas.
Until then, Glosas was a quarterly publication. Since December 6th, 2014, Glosas has been published under the new leadership. Starting with second issue of volume 9, March 2017, Glosas has been published every six months, in March and September.