معرفی
Sarah Hillewaert is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM). Her research focuses on linguistic anthropology, particularly examining how youth in Kenya, Eastern Africa, and the Indian Ocean World navigate globalization, urbanization, and religious identity through language and semiotic practices.
- Ph.D. from University of Michigan (2013)
- Teaching interests: Linguistic anthropology, Semiotic anthropology, Anthropology of Islam, Studies of youth culture
- Affiliations: Society for Linguistic Anthropology, American Anthropological Association, African Studies Association
Hillewaert's work explores language ideologies, bodily comportment, and digital communication. Her studies in Lamu, Kenya, reveal how youth negotiate moral personhood through linguistic strategies, while her newer research investigates shifts in religious identity and translocal discourse along the Swahili Coast.
Key themes from her publications include:
- semiotic responses to globalization
- language mixing and cultural hybridity
- orthographic innovation in digital spaces
- historical interconnectivity and geopolitical shifts
- sensory semiotics in social rituals
- language policy and colonial legacies
Scientific awards include:
- 2013 Engaged Anthropology Grant (Wenner-Gren Foundation)
- 2011 Raphael Fellowship (University of Michigan)
- NSF Dissertation Improvement Grant (2007)
She has advised graduate student Elisabeth Feltaous and received grants for fieldwork in Eastern Africa. Her teaching spans linguistic anthropology, semiotic anthropology, and anthropology of Islam.
