The chair of the language, literature and linguistics department at Syracuse University died Tuesday in a local hospital from an undisclosed illness, said George Langford, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Gerlinde Sanford, also an associate professor of German, was admitted to a Syracuse hospital last weekend, Langford said. She suffered from a long-term illness she did not wish to discuss openly, he said.

Sanford taught undergraduate and graduate classes at SU since 1968. She also authored many essays on modern Austrian writers.

“It was very, very sad news,” Langford said. “Professor Sanford was a distinguished member of the language department.”

Sanford was planning to step down from her three-year position of chair of the language department at the end of the academic year.

“It was rather sudden. It was quite a surprise to all of us,” Langford said. “She served as an excellent chair. It was very sad for us.”