Synchronic Documentation and Ancient Languages: Historical-comparative Linguistics of Northern East Sudanic

The SyDAn project aims to apply the historical-comparative (HC) linguistic method to the African context, integrating it with language documentation and corpus linguistics to create a robust framework for studying the Northern East Sudanic (NES) languages. Within the Nilo-Saharan phylum, the NES family is particularly suited to this approach, comprising both modern varieties spoken in Sudan (Nubian and Nyima), Chad (Taman) and Eritrea (Nara) and—a rarity in Africa—ancient languages which possess written attestations (Meroitic and Old Nubian). The study of ancient languages complements the documentation and analysis of modern varieties, creating a global framework to engage with the unparalleled prospects posed by this linguistic family. The principal goal is to provide scientific evidence, through the HC method, for the existence of a NES family and to demonstrate the affiliation of these groups of languages to that family. Achieving this goal requires identifying morphological and phonological correspondences, particularly within the verbal and pronominal systems. To this end, it is essential to expand our knowledge of both ancient and modern NES languages, through philological study and through field documentation (and eventually collaboration with diaspora communities in case of conflict-affected regions) to recover and preserve linguistic data. The outcomes of this project include a publicly accessible database with morpho-syntactically annotated treebanks (SyDAnCor). These outputs will ensure a sustainable platform for future research and promote interdisciplinary collaboration among linguists, historians, and archaeologists. The impact of the project is multi-dimensional. Scientifically, it redefines the scope of HC linguistics, proving that under-documented African languages can be rigorously studied within this framework and challenging assumptions that this method is ill-suited to Africa. Socially and economically, it contributes to the preservation of endangered languages, engages diaspora communities, and builds digital infrastructure that could inspire similar initiatives. Through this comprehensive approach, SyDAn not only advances the understanding of linguistic and cultural history in northeastern Africa but also sets a new benchmark for research in the field.