The course title -uu and -aau is shorthand for two different Hausa plural formations. The first adds final long -uu to a usually longer singular, as in kujera → kujeru “chair(s).” The second places long aa before a stem consonant and ends in long uu, as in ƙafa → ƙafafu “foot/feet” and kurmi → kuramu “copse/copses.” It is more accurately displayed as -aa…uu: the two vowels are not adjacent, and ordinary boko does not write either one doubled.
These are patterns within a lexical plural system, not competing endings that can be freely tried on any noun. Learn kujera (feminine) → kujeru, ƙafa (feminine) → ƙafafu, and dutse (masculine) → duwatsu as complete pairings; see why Hausa plurals must be learned lexically for the system-wide logic. All ordinary examples below are neutral Nigerian Standard Hausa; tone and length appear only in displays labeled (academic).
Final -uu: a suffix with a plural melody
The final -uu class often contains singulars of three or more syllables. Morphologically, the singular’s final vowel is dropped before the long -uu suffix, which imposes a low–high melody: low tone occupies the earlier portion and high tone appears at the end. This is why the plural’s tone cannot be obtained by simply preserving the singular tones.
| Ordinary singular | Gender | Ordinary plural | Fully marked pronunciation (academic) | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| kujera | feminine | kujeru | kújèeráa → kùjèerúu | chair(s) |
| makaranta | feminine | makarantu | mákárántáa → màkàràntúu | school(s) |
| katanga | feminine | katangu | kátángáa → kàtàngúu | wall(s) |
In ordinary writing, use kujera, kujeru, not the marked forms and not kujeruu. The long final vowel is phonological information, while boko spelling normally leaves vowel length unmarked.
Na kawo kujera ɗaya daga ɗakin, sai aka ce ana buƙatar kujeru huɗu.
I brought one chair from the room, and then they said four chairs were needed.
A da, makaranta ɗaya ce kawai a nan, amma yanzu an gina makarantu uku.
There used to be only one school here, but now three schools have been built.
Katangar gaba ta faɗi, amma sauran katangu suna nan daram.
The front wall fell down, but the other walls are still firm.
The final -u spelling does not identify this class by itself. Other Hausa plural processes can also yield words ending in u, and some nouns use -i as an alternative within the wider suffixal class. The verified singular–plural pairing remains essential.
Internal -aa…uu: not a literal “-aau” suffix
The second pattern has a high–low–high melody and a discontinuous vowel frame. With a three-consonant base, aa appears before the final consonant: the consonants are visible in kurmi → kuramu, but the w of dutse → duwatsu is recoverable only from historical analysis. With a stem containing only one relevant final consonant, that consonant can be copied to provide the onset after aa: ƙafa → ƙafafu. A learner should not try to reconstruct these forms from ordinary spelling alone.
| Ordinary singular | Gender | Ordinary plural | Fully marked pronunciation (academic) | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ƙafa | feminine | ƙafafu | ƙáfàa → ƙáfàafúu | foot/feet; leg(s) |
| kurmi | masculine | kuramu | kúrmìi → kúràamúu | copse(s), grove(s) |
| dutse | masculine | duwatsu | dúutsèe → dúwàatsúu | stone(s), rock(s) |
The label -aau compresses a pattern for navigation; it is never an instruction to write those three letters together at the edge of a noun. The attested outputs are ƙafafu, kuramu, duwatsu. Even within this small class, the consonantal outcome is not mechanically transparent from the citation spelling.
Ƙafata ɗaya tana ciwo, amma likita ya duba ƙafafuna duka.
One of my feet hurts, but the doctor examined both of my feet.
An ajiye dutse a bakin hanya, sannan ma’aikatan suka kawo ƙarin duwatsu.
A stone was placed by the roadside, and then the workers brought more stones.
Kurmi ɗaya ya rage kusa da ƙauyen; sauran kuramu sun ragu sosai.
One grove remains near the village; the other groves have become much smaller.
This pattern is established but not freely productive. Dutse → duwatsu is not a formula from which one can infer the plural of every masculine noun. Nor does feminine ƙafa show that the pattern is feminine. Gender and plural class intersect, but neither predicts the other without lexical evidence.
Singular gender and plural agreement
Kujera, makaranta, katanga, and ƙafa are feminine in the singular, while dutse and kurmi are masculine. Singular identifications therefore use ce or ne according to the noun. All their plurals take common plural agreement.
Wannan kujera ce, amma waɗannan kujeru ne.
This is a chair, but these are chairs.
Wannan dutse ne, amma waɗancan duwatsu ne.
This is a stone, but those are stones.
English has no corresponding grammatical gender contrast in “chair” versus “stone.” Guessing from meaning will not work. The useful entry is therefore not just kujera but kujera (f.), kujerar, kujeru, kujerun; likewise dutse (m.), dutsen, duwatsu, duwatsun.
Definite, linked, and possessive forms
Both patterns use the plural -n series. The final long vowel shortens before the suffix in pronunciation, and ordinary boko writes the form as one word.
| Bare plural | Definite/linked form | Linked phrase |
|---|---|---|
| kujeru | kujerun | kujerun ofis “the office chairs” |
| makarantu | makarantun | makarantun gwamnati “government schools” |
| katangu | katangun | katangun gidan “the house’s walls” |
| ƙafafu | ƙafafun | ƙafafun tebur “the table legs” |
| duwatsu | duwatsun | duwatsun gini “building stones” |
Kujerun ofis sun tsufa, don haka za a sauya su.
The office chairs are old, so they will be replaced.
Ya gyara ƙafafun tebur kafin baƙi su iso.
He repaired the table legs before the guests arrived.
Possessive pronouns join through the same linker: kujerunta “her chairs,” duwatsunsa “his stones,” ƙafafuna “my feet.” The possessor does not choose the linker. The plural head noun selects -n, regardless of whether its singular is masculine or feminine.
Wasu kujeru sun iso da safe. Kujerun sun fi tsofaffin sauƙin ɗauka.
Some chairs arrived in the morning. The chairs are easier to carry than the old ones.
The first wasu kujeru introduces an indefinite set. The second kujerun identifies that same set as discourse-given. Do not add -n to every plural automatically: a bare, newly introduced plural remains kujeru.
Common Mistakes
1. Writing the course label as a contiguous suffix.
❌ ƙafaaau suna ciwo
Incorrect — -aau is only a compact class label, not an ordinary written suffix.
✅ Ƙafafu suna ciwo.
The feet hurt.
2. Treating every noun in -a as a final -u plural.
❌ riga ta bushe, rigu kuma suna jike
Incorrect — riga has the lexical plural riguna.
✅ Riga ta bushe, riguna kuma suna jike.
The gown has dried, but the gowns are still wet.
3. Keeping feminine singular agreement after pluralization.
❌ Waɗannan ƙafafu ce.
Incorrect — plural ƙafafu takes the common plural copula ne.
✅ Waɗannan ƙafafu ne.
These are feet.
4. Using singular feminine -r on a plural head.
❌ kujerar ofis sun tsufa
Incorrect for ‘the office chairs’ — kujerar is singular.
✅ Kujerun ofis sun tsufa.
The office chairs are old.
5. Inserting a hyphen at an analytical boundary.
❌ duwatsu-n gini suna nan
Incorrect ordinary boko — the linker is written joined.
✅ Duwatsun gini suna nan.
The building stones are here.
Key Takeaways
- Final -uu and internal -aa…uu are distinct plural formations; ordinary boko shows them as final -u in words such as kujeru and ƙafafu.
- The title’s -aau is a course label, not a contiguous written ending.
- Membership is lexical: learn kujera → kujeru, ƙafa → ƙafafu, kurmi → kuramu, and dutse → duwatsu.
- Singular gender remains important, but all plurals take common plural agreement and the joined -n linker series.
Related Topics
- Why Hausa Plurals Must Be Learned LexicallyA2 — Understand why Hausa plural patterns offer useful clues but cannot replace learning each noun's attested singular–plural pairing.
- Plural in -unaA2 — Learn which Hausa nouns have plurals in -una, how the H–L plural melody is pronounced, and how these plurals link and agree.
- Plural in -e and -ayeA2 — Learn the related Hausa -aaCee and -aayee plural shapes, their lexical limits, and their definite, linked, and agreement forms.
- Internal Vowel Change in PluralsA2 — Learn the restricted Hausa plurals formed by final-vowel replacement, including their consonant alternations, agreement, and linked forms.
- Tone and Vowel Length in Plural FormationA2 — Understand how Hausa plural patterns can replace a noun’s tone melody and alter vowel length even though ordinary boko spelling hides both.
- Plural Definite FormsA2 — How every Hausa plural uses the common -n definite/linking series while retaining its own lexical plural shape and boundary adjustments.