Natural Language & Linguistic Theory (often abbreviated NLLT), is a leading international peer-reviewed quarterly journal in theoretical linguistics

Theoretical linguistics

Theoretical linguistics is the branch of linguistics that is most concerned with developing models of linguistic knowledge. The fields that are generally considered the core of theoretical linguistics are syntax, phonology, morphology, and semantics...

, founded in 1983 and currently published by Springer Netherlands (by Kluwer Academic Publishers before 2004). It is mainly devoted to work in generative linguistics

Generative linguistics

Generative linguistics is a school of thought within linguistics that makes use of the concept of a generative grammar. The term "generative grammar" is used in different ways by different people, and the term "generative linguistics" therefore has a range of different, though overlapping,...

, and features replies and book reviews in addition to the main research articles. Its current editor-in-chief is Marcel Den Dikken (CUNY Graduate Center

CUNY Graduate Center

The Graduate Center of the City University of New York brings together graduate education, advanced research, and public programming to midtown Manhattan hosting 4,600 students, 33 doctoral programs, 7 master's programs, and 30 research centers and institutes...

).

A well-known feature of the journal is its occasional 'Topic-Comment' column (initiated by Geoffrey K. Pullum), in which a contributor presents a personal, sometimes controversial, opinion on some aspect of the field. The best-known recent example is the dispute over whether Noam Chomsky

Noam Chomsky

Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and...

's Minimalist Program

Minimalist program

In linguistics, the Minimalist Program is a major line of inquiry that has been developing inside generative grammar since the early nineties. It started with a 1993 paper by Noam Chomsky....

 satisfies basic criteria of scientific method, raised by Shalom Lappin, Robert D. Levine and David E. Johnson

David E. Johnson

David E. Johnson is an American linguist. He is the co-inventor of arc pair grammar.- Work :...

 and joined by Anders Holmberg

Anders Holmberg

Anders Holmberg is a Swedish orienteering competitor. He won a silver medal in the sprint at the 2011 World Orienteering Championships Chambéry....

, Eric Reuland, Ian Roberts

Ian Roberts (linguist)

Ian G. Roberts is Professor of Linguistics at the University of Cambridge and a fellow of Downing College, Cambridge....

, Massimo Piattelli-Palmarini and Juan Uriagereka in the issues 18.3 (August 2000), 18.4 (November 2000) and 19.4 (November 2001).

The journal can be accessed online with subscription via SpringerLink.