The goal of this book is to explore the multiple relations between language and cognition in the course of first language acquisition. Children learn an enormous amount during the few years between birth and the time they reach school age. Among their accomplishments are the organization of their experiences into categories and the acquisition of a native language. How do they accomplish these critical tasks? How do their conceptual systems influence the structure of the languages they speak? How do linguistic patterns influence how they (and we) view reality? These questions – and the explorations of their answers in this volume – should be of interest to professionals and advanced students in the fields of language development, cognitive development, and cognition more generally.

We are grateful to many people for making this volume possible. The authors of the chapters deserve special thanks and congratulations for their outstanding contributions. Donna Pineau at the University of Michigan spent many hours typing portions of the book and ferrying manuscripts to the post office. Helen Wheeler, Julia Hough, Katharita Lamoza, Mary Racine, and the staff at Cambridge University Press were unfailingly helpful and patient in creating a book out of what had begun as just a thought. We thank Gail Gottfried and Erin Hartman for their careful help with proofreading and preparing the indexes. We also acknowledge the generous assistance of NICHD Grant HD-23378, a Spencer Fellowship from the National Academy of Education, and an award from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation through the Presidential Intiatives Fund of the University of Michigan for supporting S. Gelman during the preparation of the book.