"Code-switching," or the alternation of languages by bilinguals, has attracted an enormous amount of attention from researchers. However, most research has focused on spoken language, and the resultant theoretical frameworks have been based on spoken code-switching. This volume presents a collection of new work on the alternation of languages in written form.

One of the most common phenomena of language use among bilingual speakers is language alternation. Yet, from a theoretical perspective, it is impossible in principle both grammatically and socio-functionally. Therefore, a crucial question is how to account for its actual possibility despite this theoretical impossibility. Drawing on Ethnomethodology, this problem is described as that of order in talk in two languages. The book offers a critical reading of current approaches to language alternation as accounts of this essential problem of order.