This book is a tribute to Malcolm Coulthard, who has been remarkably active and influential across a wide range of English Language Studies. He is particularly well-known for his pioneering work in spoken and written discourse analysis and most recently, for his work in forensic linguistics. This collection of specially commissioned, state-of-the-art pieces by leading international linguists is dedicated to the man and his achievements and provides a showcase for the most exciting developments in applied discourse studies. All the papers share common assumptions about language study: that descriptions should be data-based, data-tested and replicable. The collection as a whole contains original and important new research on descriptions, with intriuging applications to forensic, gender and literary studies.

Gwyneth Fox, Michael Hoey, John M. Sinclair

Professor Henry Widdowson, Unversity of London; Carmen Rosa Caldas-Coulthard, University of Florianopolis, Brazil; Gwyneth Fox; Peter French; Professor Michael Halliday, Univesity of Sydney; Michael Hoey; Professor Sinclair; Dave Willis; David Brazil - all at the University of Birmingham; Professor Tom Shippey, University of Leeds; Martin Montgomery, University of Strathclyde; Dr M McCarthy, University of Nottingham; Zoe James;