Luke Fleming

Dr. Luke Fleming is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Montreal's Faculty of Arts and Sciences. His research focuses on comparative linguistic anthropology, particularly the typology of honorific systems, kinship-related linguistic avoidance practices, and sociolinguistic dynamics in indigenous and small-scale societies. He has authored over 20 peer-reviewed publications and led numerous research projects funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and international institutions.

Teaching responsibilities include courses on sociolinguistics, linguistic anthropology, and language and culture. He supervises graduate students engaged in interdisciplinary research spanning from Sri Lanka to the Amazon basin. Current projects investigate honorific pronoun systems across Theravada Buddhist communities and Tamil language usage in South Asia.

• Lead researcher for SSHRC-funded projects studying honorific systems and small-scale sociolinguistics
• Published in Journal of Linguistic Anthropology, Language in Society, and Anthropological Linguistics
• Advisor to 9 graduate students since 2018

Research networks include collaborative projects with Patagonian language speakers and ongoing comparative studies linking Southeast Asian honorifics to African avoidance practices. His forthcoming book On Speaking Terms examines kinship-related linguistic avoidance worldwide.

Active in program development for interdisciplinary anthropology degrees, contributing to 15 academic programs at undergraduate and graduate levels.