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BantUGent stands for a transdisciplinary approach to the past and present of Bantu languages, speech communities and their (im)material worlds, both in Africa and the diaspora.

Our research starts from the data-driven study of language and cultural heritage and relies on methods and theoretical insights from disciplines as diverse as linguistics, archaeology, anthropology, (art) history, botany, zoology, genetics, etc.

Within Bantu linguistics, our centre of gravity, we focus on historical and comparative linguistics, language contact, language documentation and description, and corpus linguistics and lexicography.

BANTU11 – International Conference

The BantUGent team is happy to welcome you to the city of Ghent (Belgium) for the 11th International Conference on Bantu Languages (Bantu11). It will take place from August 18 to August 21, 2026.

 

The call for papers is open now until December 1, 2025.

 

More information

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Activities

  • Thu
    13
    Nov
    2025

    BantUGent research seminar with Hilde Gunnink (UGent/ULeiden) & Nina van der Vlugt (UGent): Lateral Obstruents in Southern Bantu

    1:00 pmFaculty room, Blandijnberg, Campus Boekentoren, 9000 Gent
    What? BantUGent research seminar
    When? 13 November 2025
    Where? Faculty room, Blandijnberg, Campus Boekentoren, 9000 Gent
    Time: 13.00
    Hilde Gunnink (UGent/ULeiden) & Nina van der Vlugt (UGent)
    "The Diachrony of Lateral Obstruents in Southern Bantu"
    To join the meeting online via MS teams, please contact Nina van der Vlugt.
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  • Fri
    28
    Nov
    2025

    BantUGent research seminar with Alena Witzlack Makarevich (UBremen): Linguistic Repertoires of the Kusua of Semuliki Forest, Uganda

    10:00 amRoom 3.30 (Camelot), Blandijn
    What? BantUGent research seminar
    When? 28 November 2025
    Where? Room 3.30 (Camelot), Blandijn
    Time: 10.00
    Alena Witzlack Makarevich (Bremen University)
    "Documentation and description of the linguistic repertoires of the Kusua of Semuliki Forest"
    In this talk Alena presents a recently launched language documentation and description project on the endangered Kusua language (D.22) spoken by a group of some 150 forest foragers. The group has been resettled multiple times in the last 30 years and currently resides in two settlements in the Bundibugyo district of western Uganda. In addition to providing the overview of the sociolinguistic situation the talk will present some tools and techniques the team adopted to manage this large-scale documentation initiative.

     

    Alena WITZLACK-MAKAREVICH | Associate Professor | PhD | Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem | HUJI | Department of Linguistics | Research profile
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  • Fri
    12
    Dec
    2025

    BantUGent/DiaLing research seminar with Bernat Bardagil: Argument marking patterns as a proxy for social contact in the Guaporé-Mamoré region of Amazonia

    10:00 amRoom 3.30 (Camelot), Blandijn
    What? BantUGent/DiaLing research seminar
    When? 12 December 2025
    Where? Camelot, Blandijn, Campus Boekentoren
    Time:
    10.00: Bernat Bardagil - Argument marking patterns as a proxy for social contact in the Guaporé-Mamoré region of Amazonia
    To what extent can we use a high-resolution comparative linguistics approach to open a window into human history when we lack tangible historical information? The Guaporé-Mamoré region, overlapping significant territory in the Bolivian and Brazilian lowlands, is one of the most linguistically and culturally diverse regions in the continent. In spite of that, we know extremely little about the history of a vast majority of the languages, and the indigenous nations who speak them, before the 20th century. In this talk I will discuss my ongoing research examining grammatical properties in order to triangulate historical information about the nations inhabiting of this area.
    To join the meeting online via MS teams, please contact Nina van der Vlugt.
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