Guest editor: Marta Rodríguez García
Perspectivas sobre el español como lengua de herencia: transmisión, identidades y educación is the title of the special issue of Estudios de Lingüística del Español (ELiES, Vol. 51, No. 1, 2026), edited by Marta Rodríguez García (University of Bern). The issue brings together seven contributions on Spanish as a Heritage Language (SHL), approaching heritage language not merely as an object of learning but as a lived practice experienced by speakers, families, communities, and educators.
Although the seven studies differ in their methodologies, research objects, and contexts, they share the view that the experiences of heritage speakers are shaped by the contexts in which the language is transmitted, by individual and collective trajectories and identities, and by the conditions under which the language is taught and learned. These three themes - transmission, identities, and education - give the volume its title and run throughout the seven contributions. The studies address topics ranging from the assessment of linguistic competence and oral production in school-aged learners to teachers' perceptions of pedagogical differentiation, as well as issues of identity, family language policy, linguistic insecurity, and heritage speakers' emotional attachment to their language. Situated in European and U.S. contexts, the contributions employ quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods approaches and consider the diversity of stakeholders involved, including students, families, and teachers.
The volume aims to broaden and diversify research on Spanish as a heritage language while also serving as a useful resource for those working with this linguistic reality in educational settings, families, and communities.