The introduction to the handbook outlines the aims and scope of the book, while also providing a short overview of the state and status of English Language Studies as a subject area. It lays out the ways in which the book argues for the essential importance of a dedicated understanding of how the English language works, the roles it plays in society, and the ways it influences all aspects of our lives. In addition it gives an overview of the approach taken to the topic in the book: examining what constitutes the phenomenon of the English language; why and in what contexts it is an important subject to study; and what the chief methodologies are that are used to study it.