English, today's most important international language, is probably the best-described and most widely studied language in linguistic research. This is because there is an immense body of descriptive and theoretical publications and especially because of the existence of large computer corpora for Present-Day English, as well as for older periods of the language and for regional and social varieties. The strength of current English linguistics therefore is its orientation to solid descriptive empirical research. The future of English linguistics as envisaged by the editors of Topics TOPICS IN ENGLISH LINGUISTICS lies not in ever more detailed studies on ever more phenomena, but in empirical studies which integrate work in English linguistics into general and theoretical linguistics on the one hand, and comparative linguistics on the other. Relevant studies may, for example, make English the test case of major claims and hypotheses in these branches of linguistics or raise questions of more general concern to be tested in cross-linguistic work. There is also a need for survey studies bringing together our knowledge of synchronic, especially regional and social, and historical variation within the English language and putting their results in perspective against claims and findings in theoretical and cross-linguistic research. The editors welcome any high-quality manuscript in which the English language takes center stage, regardless of the topic area, the theoretical background and the methodological approach chosen. The prime condition all submitted manuscripts should meet is that they offer interesting new data and analyses, and above all fresh approaches that contribute to the overall aim of the TiEL series, which is to further outstanding research in English linguistics.