"Varieties of variation and variation in varieties: an introductory essay"

Intended as a methodological preamble and contribution to the volume, the essay addresses the range of approaches to, perspectives on and theoretical issues attached to variation in language use found in the various interested disciplines, overviews some of the range of types of variation identified by scholars in different periods and places, while also issuing a caveat by highlighting of the potentially confusing taxonomic and terminological variation also to be found in the field, i.e. the varieties, and crossing, of names given to the various types of variation.