Edwin Semzaba

{{Short description|Tanzanian novelist, playwright, actor & director (died 2016)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}

{{infobox person

| name = Edwin Semzaba

| nationality = Tanzanian

| occupation = Actor, director, novelist, playwright

| death_date = {{death-date|17 January 2016}}

}}

Edwin Semzaba was a Tanzanian novelist, playwright, actor and director.{{Cite journal |last=Sanga |first=Imani |date=2020-07-02 |title=Musical figures of enslavement and resistance in Semzaba's Kiswahili play Tendehogo |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/00020184.2020.1825927 |journal=African Studies |volume=79 |issue=3 |pages=323–338 |doi=10.1080/00020184.2020.1825927 |issn=0002-0184|url-access=subscription }} He wrote his works mainly in Swahili. He taught in the Department of Fine and Performing Arts at the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, where he taught, among other courses, creative writing and acting.

He won the first award of East African Writers awarded by the Institute of Swahili Research (Taasisi ya Unchunguzi wa Kiswahili, TUKI) for his novel Funke Bugebuge and the "grandchildren's adventure book writing competition" awarded by the Swedish Embassy in Tanzania (2007).{{Citation

| title = Inspiration från Selma Lagerlöf

| newspaper = nt.se

| date = 28 June 2008

| url = http://www.nt.se/personligt/artikel.aspx?articleid=3867969

| language = Swedish

| access-date = 9 April 2010

}}

{{Cite web |title=Ngoswe Penzi Kitovu Cha Uzembe Semzaba |url=https://masterpdf.pro/download/4330427-ngoswe-penzi-kitovu-cha-uzembe-semzaba |access-date=2023-01-08 |website=masterpdf.pro |language=EN |archive-date=8 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108081427/https://masterpdf.pro/download/4330427-ngoswe-penzi-kitovu-cha-uzembe-semzaba |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web |last=Silavwe |first=Martha Isaack |date=2016 |title=Mtindo katika Riwaya ya Marimba ya Majaliwa ya Edwin Semzaba |s2cid=164548355 |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=J. |first=Ngwala |title=Edwin Semzaba Vs Lawrence Fredrick Semzaba (Probate And Administration Cause 64 Of 2016) [2020] Tzhc 2004 (21 February 2020) – Tanzania – SheriaHub Court Cases Database Repository |url=https://www.cases.sheriahub.com/the_case/TkIzSWFSbWo5dFlMSXdhaHZWNGpFb3I3YzZYbXo2dmZtUW0rODBFRjhDRzVuWjFweVdWWjFYU1FmS3ZZNmRDY3ErV1VwL3UrdjZxWDUydlA4VWx0czZnPQ/ |access-date=2023-01-08 |website=cases.sheriahub.com |language=en}}

Semzaba died on 17 January 2016.{{Cite web |date=2021-04-25 |title=Tribute: The Edwin Semzaba 'Ngoswe' I knew |url=https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/tanzania/oped/tribute-the-edwin-semzaba-ngoswe-i-knew-2545070 |access-date=2023-01-08 |website=The Citizen |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=RIP: Watanzania wamlilia Edwin Semzaba, mwandishi wa kitabu cha Ngoswe – Bongo5.com |url=https://bongo5.com/rip-watanzania-wamlilia-edwin-semzaba-mwandishi-wa-kitabu-cha-ngoswe-01-2016/ |access-date=2023-01-08 |website=bongo5.com}}