Distance learning has grown in popularity since the beginning of the century, and the affordances of the rapid development of online audiovisual and mobile technologies have made it easier to learn languages at a distance. This chapter defines the concept of distance language learning as learning that is designed to take place when teachers and learners are not together in the same physical space and learning is mostly mediated through technology. It focuses on distance learning that both students and teachers have chosen as their method of delivery, as opposed to an imposition in response to an emergency situation such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The chapter presents a brief history of the evolution of distance language learning, exploring current and past tools, methods, and beliefs in the teaching and assessment of languages in a distance learning context. It also outlines the characteristics of successful distance learners and teachers, as well as some of the challenges they face. It concludes by arguing that the rapid improvement in speech recognition and translation software is likely to transform distance language learning in the near future.