Digital Humanities Researcher

Mmasibidi Setaka-Bapela is a Digital Humanities Researcher, focusing on Sesotho. She has a background in lexicography, translation, and editing. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Media and African Languages from the University of the Witwatersrand, a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Applied Language Studies, and a master’s degree in African Languages from the University of Pretoria respectively. She is a member of the Executive Committee of the Digital Humanities Association of Southern Africa (DHASA), a member of the Pan South African Language Board (Sesotho National Language Body), and a member of the University of Free State Academic Advisory Board (Department of African Languages).

She is a published author and has organized local and international conferences and workshops, such as Technologies for Documentation of African Languages (TEDAL) 2021, Resources for African Indigenous Language (RAIL), Digital Humanities Association of Southern Africa Conference (DHASA), CarpentryConnect South Africa and Hundzula Retreat amongst others.

Qualifications:

• BA Media and African Languages, University of the Witwatersrand, 2010
• BA (Hons) Applied Language Studies, University of Pretoria, 2011
• MA African Languages, University of Pretoria, (Dissertation: Corpus-based Lexicography for Sesotho) 2019

Work experience:

• Sesotho Translator: Bona Magazine
• Digital Humanities Researcher: South African Centre for Digital Language Resources
• Data Carpentry Instructor and Trainer