Historical linguistics is increasingly recognizing the importance of textual genres as the locus of linguistic innovation. While that locus has traditionally been identified with the spoken language, the present volume emphasizes the importance of writing both in its literary and non-literary forms. The historical scope of the volume ranges from Old English to the eighteenth century; methodologically it covers problems of theoretical and historical text typology as well as exemplary studies of the role of single genres in the development of English. Contributors: Douglas Biber (Flagstaff, Arizona), Norman Blake (Sheffield), Hans-Jürgen Diller (Bochum), Manfred Görlach (Köln), Thomas Honegger (Zürich), Thomas Kohnen (Duisburg), Terttu Nevalainen (Hesinki), Rodrigo Pérez Lorido (Oviedo), Irma Taavitsainen (Helsinki).