ABSTRACT
This introductory chapter begins by discussing how linguistic mediation has been construed as a curricular element by the Common European Framework of Reference Companion Volume (CEFRCV) of the Council of Europe (CoE), and the effect it has had in language teaching, learning and testing. It also takes a step further and considers linguistic and cultural mediation as valuable social practice, which occurs naturally across languages, language varieties and semiotic modes of communication in different social situations, when there is a need to negotiate meanings and so work out communication gaps caused by linguistic and cultural barriers. It also discusses the concept of plurilingualism at length comparing/contrasting it to other relevant concepts which have been constructed in specific sociopolitical contexts with the purpose of fulfilling particular politically motivated goals. The discussion is more extensive when associating the concept of plurilingualism to the concept of translanguaging which is particularly trendy in the fast-growing literature of language education, bi-/multilingualism, cross-/translinguistic and intercultural studies. Finally, this chapter darts attention to the seriously under-researched cross-linguistic and intercultural mediation necessary in educational and social settings that must cater to multilingual populations.
