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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 8, 2025.

 

More information

background

Activities

  • Fri
    17
    Apr
    2026

    BantUGent/DiaLing research seminar with Tom Bossuyt on Conditional coding in ‘even (if)’ concessive conditionals: Bantu and beyond

    2:00 pmLokaal 3.30 - Camelot, Blandijn, Campus Boekentoren

    Abstract BantUGent talk Tom Bossuyt consessive conditionalsWhat? BantUGent research seminar co-organized with DiaLing
    When? Friday 17 April 2026
    Where? Lokaal 3.30 - Camelot, Blandijn, Campus Boekentoren
    TIme: 14.00

    Tom Bossuyt (University of Freiburg) on Conditional coding in ‘even (if)’ concessive conditionals: Bantu and beyond

     

    Abstract

     

     

     

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  • Tue
    28
    Apr
    2026

    Prof. Dr. Karen Lupo (Southern Methodist University, USA) — Unsettling the Frontier: Rethinking Forager-Farmer Interactions in Prehistoric Central Africa

    2:30 pmPanopticon, room 2.23, Blandijnberg 2, 9000 Gent

    Upon invitation of Peter Coutros and Sara Pacchiarotti, Prof. Dr. Karen Lupo, SMU Distinguished Professor at the Department of Anthropology at Southern Methodist University (Dallas, Texas, USA) will give a talk titled Unsettling the Frontier: Rethinking Forager-Farmer Interactions in Prehistoric Central Africa. This is the second talk of the CongUbangi Lecture Series in Archaeology. The event is open to anyone interested. No registration needed. The talk can also be followed online via Zoom. Click here. For more information, please contact Peter Coutros at peter.coutros@ugent.be.

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  • Tue
    16
    Jun
    2026

    BantuGent research seminar with Jeroen Dewulf: From the Kingdom of Kongo to Congo Square: Kongo Dances and the Origins of the Mardi Gras Indians

    2:00 pmFaculteitsraadzaal, Blandijn, Campus Boekentoren

    What? BantUGent research seminar in  collaboration with the Global and Regional Histories research group

    When? Tuesday 16 June, 2026
    Time: 14.00-16.00

    Where? Faculteitsraadzaal, Blandijn, Campus Boekentoren

     

    'From the Kingdom of Kongo to Congo Square: Kongo Dances and the Origins of the Mardi Gras Indians'

    This presentation focuses on one of New Orleans’ most enigmatic performance traditions, the Mardi Gras Indians. By interpreting the tradition in an Atlantic context, Dewulf traces the “Black Indians” back to the ancient Kingdom of Kongo and its war dance known as sanga(mento). By comparing Kongo dances in Latin America, the Caribbean and Louisiana, Dewulf demonstrates that the dances on New Orleans’ Congo Square were part of a much broader Kongolese performance tradition. Dewulf’s groundbreaking research suggests a strong impact of Kongolese traditions on the development of African-American music, dance, and parading culture.

     

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