The Kpelle Keyboard Prototype is Ready for Testing

Our truly talented team at LIBELP understands that for language learning to be effective, the speakers should be able to communicate in written words. And for the heavens to be in equilibrium, the relationship between language and technology must be symbiotic.  

At LIBELP, we have discerned that learning a language is most effective when people can speak and write it. Writing is a powerful way to preserve and share our native languages.  

That’s why we’re excited to announce the prototype of the Kpelle Keyboard, built on LIBTRALO’s existing Keyboard and designed to make it easy to type Kpelle Latin characters on laptops and computers. 

We’re rolling this out to a small group of users—at least 50 people (must have a computer or laptop)—for free to gather feedback (user’s experience) and improve the design before sharing it with the broader Liberian community.

If you’d like to be part of this group, fill out the form, and a team member will guide you through the installation process to ensure everything works smoothly.

Your feedback will be important for fine-tuning the keyboard and preparing it for publication. This is just the start—we’re also planning to create a mobile version and expand our efforts to develop keyboards for other Liberian languages.

We want to thank our collaborator and developer, Craig from Google and the Endangered Languages Program (ELP), and our language experts, Aaron D. Pope and Dr. Joshua Giddings, for their guidance on the layout and special characters. Your expertise has been crucial.

Thank you to our supporters, students, and the Liberian community at home and abroad! Your eagerness to learn and preserve our native languages inspires us daily, and we’re committed to keeping our languages and culture alive.

Importantly, knowing how our work makes a difference makes us feel energized to contribute more —this is only the beginning. We are dedicated to preserving, revitalizing, and promoting Liberian languages while empowering lifelong learners.

Fill out the form to join the testing team—we can’t wait to hear your thoughts. Here is the link