May Balisidya
Tanzanian author (1947-1987)
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May Lenna Balisidya Matteru (May 10, 1947 – December 27, 1987) was a Tanzanian author writing in the Swahili language.
She was born in Dodoma and attended primary and secondary school there. Balisidya received a BA from the University of East Africa at Dar es Salaam in 1970 and a MA in oral literature from the University of Dar es Salaam in 1978. She obtained her PhD in African literature from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in November 1987.[1][2]
From 1977 to 1987, she was a lecturer in the Kiswahili department of the University of Dar es Salaam.[1]
In 1971, she was elected to the Swahili National Council of Tanzania;[2] she served two terms as vice-chairman of the council.[1]
Balisidya died at the age of 40 from cancer.[1]
Selected works
Source:[3]
- Shida ("Hardships"), novel
- Ayubu ("Job"), play
- Tujifunze Kusoma ("Let's learn to read"), children's book