Can signed language be planned? Implications for interpretation in Spain

Signed language in Spain as a language planning target has recently become a subject for debate. The increasing number of second language (hearing) learners, as well as functional expansion (in education and media) has led to a conscious awareness of the language. Also, the recent approval of the law on the recognition of Spanish Signed Language seems to predict the institutionalization of the language planning process. In this chapter, we discuss the role of signed language interpreters in this process as a whole. We show the direction that language planning activities have taken so far, and provide an insight into a suitable future direction.