Professor Sandagomi Coperahewa is a prolific academic and researcher in the fields of language and sociolinguistics. As an expert on Sinhala Language, he provides consultancies to many government institutions on various issues related to Sinhala usage, grammar and language policy and planning.

Prof. Coperahewa obtained a Special Degree in Sinhala from the University of Colombo. Upon graduation he was awarded the Niel Bandaranaike Prize and M. B. Ariyapala award for the best academic performance. He obtained his MA in Language Studies from Lancaster University, UK under the auspices of a Commonwealth Scholarship and completed his MPhil in Sinhala at the University of Peradeniya. He obtained his PhD in South Asian Studies from Cambridge in 2009 under the patronage of an ORS Award and Cambridge Commonwealth Trust Scholarship.

Prof. Coperahewa initially joined University of Colombo as a temporary Assistant Lecturer and currently serves as a professor in the same department. He also heads the Department of Sinhala, University of Colombo since 2019.