Language/Hausa/Grammar/Questions

Hausa Grammar - Questions

Hi Hausa learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn about questions in Hausa. Questions are a fundamental part of any language, and Hausa is no exception. With the knowledge of questions, you will be able to communicate better with Hausa speakers, and your interactions with them will become more productive and meaningful. So, let's dive into the lesson!

Asking Questions

In Hausa, you can ask questions by changing the intonation of a statement. In English, we typically add a helping verb or auxiliary verb to a sentence to create a question. For example: "You are going to the store" becomes "Are you going to the store?" in the form of a question. However, in Hausa, this is not necessary. Let's look at a few examples:

Hausa	English
Ko da yaushe shi ne?	Is he really like that?
Shi ne amarya?	Is she a student?
Me ya kare ka?	What do you want?
Kana da shekaru bakwai?	Are you around twenty years old?

As you can see, in Hausa, questions can have different word orders than their corresponding statements, and the only thing that changes is the intonation. That being said, it's not always that simple. There are some question words that have special grammar rules that must be followed.

Question Words

Question words are essential for conversation and finding out information. In Hausa, the question words are similar to those in English. Let's look at a few examples:

Hausa	English
Me	What
Ai	Who
Ina	How
Ina so?	Why?
In lokaci?	When?
Ina kai?	Where?

Here is an example dialogue using question words:

• Person 1: Me ya tsaya da kai?
• Person 2: Su ne sink?
• Person 1: Ai, sun sinke.
• Person 2: Ina so?
• Person 1: Ba zan so ku ziyara ne da hankali.
• Person 2: Ina kai?
• Person 1: Ni nawa ne da niyarta.

Translation:

• Person 1: What did you hit with your hand?
• Person 2: The sink?
• Person 1: No, they hit it.
• Person 2: Why?
• Person 1: I just wanted to visit with an excuse.
• Person 2: Where?
• Person 1: It's near my house.

Notice how the word order changes in the questions, but the basic structure remains the same. Also, the question words Me and Ai are placed at the beginning of the question.

Question Particles

There are also some question particles that you can use to indicate that a statement is a question. Let's look at a few examples:

Hausa	English
Wannan?	This?
Shin?	Is it?
Wane?	Who?
Me?	What?
Mana?	Am I?
Kada?	Not?
Abin?	Really?

Here is an example dialogue using question particles:

• Person 1: Wannan shi ne rumfa?
• Person 2: Eh, wannan rumfa ne.
• Person 1: Shin mutum ne ya yi magana?
• Person 2: Suna Sani.
• Person 1: Wane ya kira ka?
• Person 2: Suna Ahmed.
• Person 1: Me ya shiga ga gidanmu?
• Person 2: Shi da kyau ya shiga.
• Person 1: Mana littafinmu, kada?
• Person 2: Eh, mallam shi ne ya kawo.

Translation:

• Person 1: Is this a tree?
• Person 2: Yes, this is a tree.
• Person 1: Is it a person who spoke?
• Person 2: His name is Sani.
• Person 1: Who called you?
• Person 2: His name is Ahmed.
• Person 1: What entered our house?
• Person 2: A cat entered.
• Person 1: Am I without my book, not so?
• Person 2: Yes, the teacher brought it.

Notice how the question particles are added to the end of the statement. They are similar to adding a question mark to the end of an English sentence.

Conclusion

In conclusion, asking questions is a vital part of conversation in any language. In Hausa, the intonation of a statement and the use of question words and particles can create questions. Remember to practice these different types of questions and utilize them in your conversations with native speakers.

To improve your Hausa Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

Sources

• Hausa language
• Hausa people
• West African Vowel System