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Community Engagements

Staff members of the CCWAL and the Department of Languages and Communication are involved in several community engagement projects and activities such as the following:

Over the past years staff members, in collaboration with authors and staff members from other universities, have been involved in an innovative project called the Repatriation of Letters Project where works originally written in English have been rewritten in Setswana.

This project is steered by Prof. Shole Shole, professor emeritus in Setswana from the North West University. Translated works which have been completed thus far include, inter alia:

  • Tuelo Gabonewe’s novel Tshika fa e ya Baneng (English title: Sarcophagus),
  • Lesego Malepe’s novel Mmamogashwa (English title: Matters of Life and Death)
  • Kagiso Molope’s Masaikategang a morwarre (English title: This book betrays my brother)
  • Martin Koboekae Dipetshe tsa Taung (English title: Taung wells)
  • Other works that still need to be completed include Ellen Khuzwayo’s Call Me Woman, Bessie Head’s Maru, and Sol Plaatje’s Mhudi.

Amongst the books that were launched at SPU in the recent past include Brian Willan and Sabata-mpho Mokae’s Revisiting Sol Plaatje’s Mafeking Diary and Tuelo Gabonewe’s Tshika fa e ya baneng.

Dr Cobus Rademeyer and Prof Victor Teise are involved in a book project that is undertaken by the William Pescod High School Alumni Trust. Other members of the editorial team of the book project include Mr. Farrel Moses (chairperson of the William Pescod Alumni Trust), Mr. Gordon Africa (secretary of the William Pescod Alumni Trust), Mr. Lloyd Louw, Mr. Alistair Andrews, and Mr. Gregory Bestenbier.

The Centre for Creative Writing and African Languages in collaboration with the Department of Languages and Communication attended the Afrikaans Karoo Interschools Drama Festival which was held in Victoria-West on the weekend of 12 – 13 April 2024. Prof Teise and two Afrikaans Master’s students (Ms Bridgette Brandt and Mr Jacqued Horne) from the Department of Languages and Communication delivered presentations at the event.

The Pan South African Language Board and the newly established Centre for Creative Writing and African Languages at the Sol Plaatje University (SPU) held their first collaborative workshop from 12 – 16 February 2024 at the SPU. About 65 delegates from across the country attended this five-day workshop. In attendance were representatives from PanSALB, the national Department of Sport, Arts and Culture, the Eastern Cape Department of Sport, Arts, and Culture, Community School Facilitators, Chief Language Practitioners, Provincial Language Committee members, and representatives of Technical Committees. The purpose of this joint venture was to highlight the significance of the Nama Spelling and Orthography Rules, to facilitate the capacity development of Khoe & San Languages (i.e. Nama, Khwedam, !Xunthali & NIuu) Community Schools Facilitators as well as forging partnerships between the different stakeholders. Other valuable information that was shared with delegates included the history and culture of the Nama-speaking people, a reflection on the SPU and PanSALB relationship, the Unit for Khoe and San Languages within the Centre for Creative Writing and Africa, a reflection on Khoe and San Studies, and the development of Khoe and San learner support material and reports from 4 Commissions on the Khoe & San Languages.

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