With the aim of delivering the information about global Deobandi scholarship on Yoruba language and the Yoruba related articles into Urdu Wikipedia, a Wikimedia project with the name “Deoband Yoruba Collaborative Project” is being initiated by Deoband Community Wikimedia founder Aaqib Anjum Aafi and Yoruba Wikimedia co-founder Olatunde Isaac.
The Deoband Yoruba Collaborative Project is a joint initiative of the Yoruba Wikimedians User Group and the Deoband Community Wikimedia. The project intends to integrate “Yoruba-related” content on the Urdu Wikipedia as well as content pertaining to worldwide Deobandi scholarship on the Yoruba language Wikipedia. On May 26, 2022, the proposal received official approval during an interactive session in which Aafi and Olatunde Isaac took part.
What is Wikimedia User Group?
The purpose of Wikimedia user groups is to serve as a straightforward and adaptable alternative to chapters and thematic organisations, which have stricter standards. The Wikimedia movement highly values user groups as equal participants. They are designed to enable and motivate individuals all over the world to gather and create educational content that is freely available or in the public domain and to effectively and widely share it.
Deoband Yoruba Collaborative Project
In an interaction on this initiative, Olatunde Isaac said, “Free access to quality and credible information is a fundamental human right. People should have access to knowledge in their preferred languages without any barriers. Thanks to the Wikimedia Foundation for working relentlessly to ensure that the necessary infrastructures, and resources are deployed to grow small languages Wikipedia. The collaboration between Yoruba Wikimedians User Group and Deoband Wikimedia Community would help to strengthen, and promote international collaboration towards improving the encyclopedia in multiple languages.”
Meanwhile, DCW founder tweeted about this project and said, “I’m happy to announce the successful beginning of our collaboration with @Wikimediayo. I pray that this project goes long.”
“Volunteer editors taking part in this would be given an e-certificate co-signed by the @dcwwiki and @Wikimediayo,” he added.
It is pertinent to mention that the Deoband Wikimedia User Group, also known as the Deoband Community Wikimedia User Group or simply DCW UG, is an recognised affiliate of Wikimedia Foundation, primarily consisting of Indian Wikimedia editors. The DCW seeks to add information about global Deobandi scholarship, to Wikipedia and its sibling projects on a global scale, in any language.
Anzer Ayoob is the Founder and Chief Editor to The Chenab Times