Humanities

What Humanities does

Arc Humanities Press is an independent, privately-held scholarly publisher founded in 2014 and headquartered in York, United Kingdom, with a secondary journals department in Shipley. The press specializes in premodern interdisciplinary studies spanning the late antique, medieval, and early modern periods, with a deliberately global perspective that includes area studies within and beyond Europe, digital humanities, and public engagement with the past. Its product portfolio comprises 224+ published works across multiple book series (The Medieval Globe Books, Arc Companions, Medieval Media and Culture, Past Imperfect, Beyond Medieval Europe, Teaching the Middle Ages, and others), three peer-reviewed journals (The Medieval Globe, Early Middle English, and Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Sources), and individual monographs priced at £19.95–£190 for paperbacks and hardcovers respectively, with journal subscriptions at US$199/£166/€187 annually (2026 rates).

The company operates with approximately 28 employees using a sales-led go-to-market model that combines direct website sales, regional distributors (BTPubservices for North America, Wiley/Liverpool University Press for rest-of-world fulfillment), and institutional platforms (Project MUSE for journal subscriptions, OAPEN for open access distribution). Revenue is generated through three streams: one-time book sales (print and ebook), recurring journal subscriptions, and open access publication fees/subventions. The customer base consists primarily of academic scholars, university and research libraries, and academic authors in medieval studies and related fields, with no disclosed revenue figures, funding rounds, or institutional investors. Recent activity through 2025–2026—including the publication of "The Case for East Roman Studies" and continued catalog expansion—indicates ongoing operations, while the company has launched the CARMEN scholarly network for medievalists as a community-building initiative.

Name

Humanities

Legal name

Arc Humanities Press

Website

https://arc-humanities.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Arc Humanities Press is an independent UK-based scholarly publisher founded in 2014 that produces 224+ monographs, book series, and three peer-reviewed journals on late antique, medieval, and early modern studies, serving academic scholars, university libraries, and humanities researchers globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Scholarly Academic Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (51313), Periodical Publishers (51312)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Humanities & Arts Scholarly Publishing (EDAGAFAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Research Monographs & University Press Publishing (MPAJABAJ), Scholarly Societies & Conference Proceedings Publishing (MPAJABAK)

Keywords

• Academic book publishing
• Peer-reviewed journals
• Medieval studies
• Digital humanities
• Open access publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

York

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Book Sales: One-time purchase revenue from academic books covering medieval studies, digital humanities, and related fields. Books are sold as physical paperbacks and hardcovers, as well as ebooks in various formats including PDF and ePub.
2. Journal Subscriptions: Annual subscription fees for peer-reviewed journals including The Medieval Globe, Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Sources, and Early Middle English. Subscription rates are US$199.00 | £166.00 | €187.00 for 2026. Both journals are now online-only.
3. Open Access Publication Fees: Fees charged for gold open access publication of articles or entire issues. Also green open access is available with watermarked post-print versions for non-commercial academic exchange.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Arc Humanities Press publishes peer-reviewed scholarly journals and a multi-series catalog of academic books and monographs covering late antique, medieval, and early modern studies from a global perspective, including digital humanities. Titles are sold in paperback, hardcover, and digital (PDF/ePub) editions via direct sales, regional distributors, and the Project MUSE and OAPEN platforms, with both subscription and gold open access business models.

Product overview

Arc Humanities Press operates as a scholarly publisher offering a portfolio of journals, book series, and individual monographs focused on premodern interdisciplinary studies. The core products include three peer-reviewed journals (The Medieval Globe, Early Middle English, and Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Sources) and multiple book series (The Medieval Globe Books, Medieval Media and Culture, Arc Companions, Teaching the Middle Ages, Collection Development/Cultural Heritage/Digital Humanities, and others). Individual titles are published across subjects including history, literary criticism, art, religion, social sciences, political science, architecture, and digital humanities. The press publishes edgy research with global perspectives spanning late antiquity through the early modern period.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Medieval Globe: Peer-reviewed journal launched in November 2014, exploring modes of communication, materials of exchange, and interconnections among regions, communities, and individuals in the medieval era.
• Early Middle English
• Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Sources

Products and services

• The Medieval Globe Peer-reviewed journal exploring modes of communication, materials of exchange, and interconnections among regions, communities, and individuals in the medieval period; published biannually with thematic and miscellaneous issues, now online-only and hosted on Project MUSE.
• Early Middle English Peer-reviewed journal devoted to English literature, its production, and contexts ca. 1100-1350, covering the period of linguistic change and multilingual interaction in England.
• Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Sources Peer-reviewed journal publishing edited source materials and scholarly research on medieval and Renaissance historical documents, including translations and source editions.
• Scholarly Books and Monographs Catalog of academic books and monographs spanning late antique, medieval, and early modern periods from a global perspective, including area studies within and beyond Europe, digital humanities, public engagement with the past, manuscript studies, Byzantine studies, and teaching the Middle Ages; available in paperback, hardcover, and digital (PDF/ePub) formats.
• Open Access Publication Gold open access publication pathway for eligible articles, journal issues, and monographs via OAPEN and the press, including the New Voices Open Access Awards and Open Book Collective Initiative, with green open access watermarked post-prints also supported.

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Project MUSEcoreTechnology or IntegrationProject MUSE hosts Arc Humanities Press journals including The Medieval Globe and Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Sources. They provide the online platform for institutional subscriptions and maintain long-term archiving through Portico.
• BTPubservicescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBTPubservices serves as the North American distribution partner for Arc Humanities books, handling retail sales through their online bookstore.
• Wiley (Liverpool University Press)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWiley/Liverpool University Press handles Rest of World fulfillment and distribution for Arc Humanities books, processing international orders and payments.
• CARMENminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCARMEN is a network organized by Arc Humanities for medievalists to connect, share research, and organize meetings. It includes upcoming and past meetings, and offers a project prize.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Brill Publishers: Dutch academic publisher with significant medieval studies, humanities, and religious studies programs. A broader incumbent with adjacent journals and book series (e.g., Brill's Medieval and Early Modern Studies), competing for the same institutional library budgets.
• De Gruyter: German academic publisher with significant humanities and medieval studies programs across journals and monographs. A broader incumbent competing in the same institutional library and scholarly author markets.
• Oxford University Press: Global academic publisher with major medieval studies, classics, and humanities programs. Competes for library acquisitions and scholarly authors across overlapping subject areas; operates at incomparably larger scale.
• Cambridge University Press: One of the largest university presses globally, publishing extensive medieval and early modern studies journals and book series. Competes for the same institutional customers and authors but at vastly greater scale and breadth.

Direct peers

• Boydell & Brewer: UK- and US-based independent academic publisher specializing in medieval and early modern studies, including monograph series, journals, and digital projects. Most direct comparable to Arc Humanities in subject focus, scale, and business model.
• Manchester University Press: UK university press publishing humanities monographs and journals, including medieval and early modern studies. Comparable scale, business model, and institutional customer base, with overlapping subject areas.
• Brepols: Belgian academic publisher with deep medieval and Renaissance studies portfolio across journals (including Speculum-adjacent titles) and book series. Comparable in subject specialization and global institutional distribution, though larger and longer-established.
• Liverpool University Press: UK academic press with journals and books in medieval, early modern, and modern humanities. Direct comparable as a UK university press; notably also serves as Arc's RoW distribution partner via Wiley, creating a dual competitor-distributor dynamic.
• Central European University Press: Academic press publishing humanities and social science monographs, with growing digital humanities and medieval/early modern coverage. Comparable in academic, mission-driven model and humanities specialization.
• Penn State University Press: US university press with established medieval studies and humanities monograph programs. Comparable academic press model and customer base, with overlapping digital humanities and medieval/early modern subject coverage.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ArcHumanities
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCQ0nv_3FF1Nmzi9hQeRthQA
• Facebookfacebook.com/ArcHumanities
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/humanities

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Humanities