HAU Books is the book-publishing wing of the Society for Ethnographic Theory (SET), a learned society that also publishes the triannual HAU: Journal of Ethnographic Theory. Giovanni da Col founded the journal in 2011 and the press in 2015. We publish the most distinguished texts in classic and contemporary ethnographic theory, with the aim of returning ethnography to the forefront of conceptual developments in anthropology.
Our print and e-book editions are produced, distributed, and marketed by the University of Chicago Press. Open-access editions are made available through Knowledge Unlatched and can be downloaded from our catalogue.
Convinced that traditional publishers have neglected anthropologists writing outside the Anglophone world, we have published a larger proportion of our titles in translation than any other publisher in anthropology. In 2026 we extended this commitment with A Framework for Hybrid Translation.
Authors will find submission guidelines and our open-access and translation policies under Authors & Contact.
Director of Hau Books
Frédéric Keck, CNRS-Collège de France, Paris
Editorial Collective of Hau Books
Matthew Carey, University of Copenhagen
Deborah Durham, College of the Holy Cross
Casey High, University of Edinburgh
Gonçalo D. Santos, University of Coimbra
Nora Scott, Editor and Translator
Hylton White, University of the Witwatersrand
Commissioning Editors
Steph Grohmann
Jens Kreinath, Wichita State University
Anton Nikolotov, Laboratoire d’anthropologie sociale
Editorial Staff
Hannah Roberson, Managing Editor
Editorial Advisory Board
Nancy Levine, University of California, Los Angeles
Adam Kuper, London School of Economics
Former Editors
Catherine V. Howard
Vita Peacock
Erik Bähre
Giovanni da Col
Executive Publishing Board
The Executive Publishing Board decides on editors’ recommendations, allocates funding, and works on fundraising. It includes directors and two SET members acting as editorial advisors. The Scientific Editorial Board is separate: the editors and the Executive Publishing Board consult it for scientific opinion only.
Library support for open access
Open-access publication is supported primarily through library pledges coordinated by Knowledge Unlatched. Current pledging libraries include Iowa State University, Smith College, University of Chicago, Case Western Reserve University Library, University of Oregon, Universität Bern, University of Colorado Boulder, The University of Manchester, MIT, Central Library of Zürich, Humboldt University, Princeton University, and University of Cambridge.
Libraries that pledge support for 2027–2028 will receive a complimentary paperback copy of each title published during that period; to arrange delivery, please contact our editorial office. For details on pledging, see the Knowledge Unlatched brochure or write to info@knowledgeunlatched.org.