RAJEND MESTHRIE is Professor of Linguistics at the University of Cape Town, where he holds a National Research Foundation (SARCHI) research chair. He is also the current President of the Linguistics Society of Southern Africa. He has published in the field of Sociolinguistics, with special reference to language contact and variation in South Africa. His most recent publication is World Englishes (with Rakesh Bhatt, CUP 2008). He is a regular participant on SAFM's Word of Mouth radio program, where he appears to have a fairly large following. He is an A-rated researcher, the only linguist in South Africa currently so designated by the NRF.