Been a long while, it seems, since 0.47 turned to 0.48. Any clues on when we might expect 0.49?

We're expecting 0.48.3 sometime this year. Then 0.49 I would guess next year or the year after. In 0.49 we're expecting a new renderer which is apparently much faster, and will solve some of the performance issues that have plagued Inkscape for a long time.

On the Inkscape website you can find a Roadmap, and learn the general expectations for the next couple of versions.