The relationship of theoretical and applied linguistics has lately
prompted numer- ous debates. This volume originated at one of them. The
essence of most of the chapters, of all of them except Fraser's and
Davies's, was actually presented at the Round Table on "The
Relationships of Theoretical and Applied Linguistics," organized during
the 7th World Congress of Applied Linguistics, held in Brus- sels, in
August 1984. Individually and collectively the chapters assembled here
offer support to the idea that applied linguistics should not be
juxtaposed to theoretical linguistics; it is a field of research with
theoretical as well as applied aspects. Written by different authors
from a wide variety of different countries, the chapters may at times
express views that are not totally consistent. Nevertheless, we believe
that the variability of viewpoints counts among the merits (rather than
the defaults) of this internationally written and edited volume. It is
our hope that it will prove stimulating to linguists and practitioners
in related fields and instructive to students. We wish to express our
thanks to Albert Valdman for the interest he has shown in the volume and
to record our appreciation to our editors, in particular Eliot Werner
and Declan Scully, for their tolerance and patience.