Journal of Bhutan Studies Centre for Bhutan Studies & GNH Research (CBS)

Overview

The Journal of Bhutan Studies is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the Centre for Bhutan Studies and GNH Research (CBS), an autonomous government research institute based in Thimphu, Bhutan. Founded in 1999, the journal is freely available online and serves as the primary English-language scholarly publication dedicated to research on Bhutan and Gross National Happiness (GNH).

History and Founding

The Centre for Bhutan Studies was established in 1999 at the highest levels of the Bhutanese government and is governed by a council chaired by the Bhutan Foreign Minister. Its inaugural journal issue appeared the same year, making the Journal of Bhutan Studies one of the earliest dedicated academic publications on Bhutanese scholarship. In later years the institution was renamed the Centre for Bhutan Studies and GNH Research to reflect its broadened focus on GNH policy research.

Collections and Holdings

The journal's online archive hosts all back issues as freely downloadable PDFs. It publishes twice yearly and covers social, cultural, economic, political, historical, and religious aspects of Bhutan. A co-hosting arrangement with the Digital Himalaya Project at Cambridge provides mirror access to improve download speeds for scholars in Europe and North America. The journal carries ISSN 1608-411X.

Notable Topics and Scope

Articles address a wide range of subjects including GNH policy and measurement, Bhutanese history and archaeology, religion, language (including Dzongkha and minority languages such as Kurtöp), governance, media, and social indicators. The archive includes bibliometric analyses of its own publication history, confirming coverage from 1999 through the present.

Access and Usage

All content is freely accessible without registration at the CBS website. Users may browse by issue or search individual articles. Submissions from international scholars are welcomed; articles must be submitted in English to the editor at cbs@bhutanstudies.org.bt.