Editorial: L2 Phonology Meets L2 Pronunciation

The theme of this collection is “L2 Phonology Meets L2 Pronunciation.” Such an interdisciplinary approach, of course, runs the risk of any gathering of friends at which you discover that your chess-club friends having nothing to say to your ultimate-frisbee teammates. We are sure, however, that these papers reveal this not to be the case here. In various guises as researchers and teachers, the three editors have tackled the question of what is easy and what is difficult in both learning and teaching (the sub-theme of the collection). We hope you find our introductory mini-reviews helpful in setting the stage. One is on pronunciation teaching (O’Brien), one on functional load (Sewell), and one on L2 phonology (Archibald). There are clear similarities in what L2 phonologists are interested in, and what L2 pronunciation teachers are interested in. All three of these themes are intertwined in the collection.