Hausa temporal clauses commonly use the relative completive to present a completed event as a time boundary: Da muka isa, aka fara taro “When we arrived, the meeting began.” The form establishes the event whose time anchors another situation. It does not merely translate English when + past, and not every clause containing da is temporal.
All unlabelled examples are (neutral Nigerian Standard Hausa). This page distinguishes simple temporal da “when,” explicit time expressions such as lokacin da “at the time when,” and ongoing clauses that require a continuative viewpoint.
The full person paradigm after a temporal frame
The table uses lokacin da … gama “when … finished.”
| Subject | Relative marker | Temporal frame |
|---|---|---|
| 1st singular | na | lokacin da na gama |
| 2nd masculine singular | ka | lokacin da ka gama |
| 2nd feminine singular | kika | lokacin da kika gama |
| 3rd masculine singular | ya | lokacin da ya gama |
| 3rd feminine singular | ta | lokacin da ta gama |
| 1st plural | muka | lokacin da muka gama |
| 2nd plural | kuka | lokacin da kuka gama |
| 3rd plural | suka | lokacin da suka gama |
| impersonal | aka | lokacin da aka gama |
Plural muka, kuka, suka, feminine singular kika, and impersonal aka visibly contrast with plain mun, kun, sun, kin, an. Relative and plain na, ka, ya, ta have the same ordinary boko spelling, although speech distinguishes them tonally. The temporal construction tells you which function is present.
Lokacin da kika gama aikin, kin kira shugabar?
When you finished the work, did you call the director? (addressing one female)
Bayan da aka rufe kasuwar, titin ya yi shiru.
After the market was closed, the street became quiet.
In the first example, temporal relative kika contrasts within one sentence with plain-completive kin in the polar question. In the second, aka leaves the closer unspecified.
Simple da introduces a past temporal boundary
Simple clause-initial da can introduce a completed event whose occurrence fixes the time of the main clause. For a specific, one-off past boundary of the kind illustrated here, the relative completive is standard. Simple da can also occur with the plain completive in other readings—notably anterior, recurring, or contextually future ones—so da alone does not mechanically force the relative series.
Da muka isa tashar, motar ta riga ta tafi.
When we reached the station, the vehicle had already left.
Da suka ji labarin, suka kira iyayensu nan take.
When they heard the news, they called their parents immediately.
Da aka buɗe ƙofar, mutane suka shiga a hankali.
When the door was opened, people went in calmly.
The da clause is not simply “past because of muka/suka/aka.” With the relative series, this simple temporal construction conventionally anchors a specific past time. A plain completive after da has a broader range and may instead foreground anteriority, recurrence, or a future boundary in context. The following clause can use narrative relative forms to advance a story or another TAM suited to its own meaning.
An overt noun subject still needs an agreeing marker:
Da yara suka dawo daga makaranta, mahaifiyarsu ta ba su abinci.
When the children returned from school, their mother gave them food.
Yara does not replace suka. Also note ta ba su abinci: the verb ba “give” exceptionally takes direct recipient su, not musu.
Explicit time heads allow a broader temporal range
With lokacin da “at the time when,” ranar da “on the day when,” or bayan da “after,” the clause can identify a past boundary. An explicit time head can also locate a future or recurring completion when the larger clause makes that reading clear.
Na tuna ranar da muka fara wannan aiki.
I remember the day when we began this work.
Gobe, lokacin da suka kammala aikin, ku biya su kuɗinsu.
Tomorrow, when they finish the work, pay them what they are owed.
Duk lokacin da aka kammala girbi, mutanen ƙauyen sukan yi biki.
Whenever the harvest is completed, the villagers usually hold a celebration.
The second example is future-oriented because of gobe and the main-clause instruction ku biya. The relative completive views the finishing as the boundary that must be reached; it does not assert that the work is already finished. The third combines duk lokacin da with habitual sukan in the main clause, so the completed boundary recurs. The wider principles of temporal anchoring are explained under relative time and time adverbs.
Simple temporal da and explicit lokacin da are therefore not interchangeable in every context. For a future “when they finish,” the explicit head lokacin da makes the intended temporal relation clear; a bare da suka gama normally points to a specific past occasion.
Completion contrasts with ongoing background
Choose the relative completive when a specific subordinate event is viewed as a completed boundary. Choose a continuative form when the clause supplies an ongoing background. Other TAM choices after simple da create additional contrasts, but they do not replace this boundary-versus-overlap distinction.
Lokacin da suka gama taron, suka kashe fitilu.
When they finished the meeting, they switched off the lights.
Yayin da suke taro, wutar lantarki ta ɗauke.
While they were holding the meeting, the electricity went off.
Lokacin da muke jiran likita, aka kira sunan Amina.
While we were waiting for the doctor, Amina’s name was called.
Relative-completive suka gama provides an endpoint. Relative-continuative suke taro, muke jiran opens an internal stretch during which something else happens. English when can cover both boundary and overlap, so translating the conjunction alone will not choose the Hausa aspect.
The nearest plain-completive contrast is a main assertion rather than a temporal anchor:
Sun gama taron da ƙarfe huɗu.
They finished the meeting at four o’clock. (plain assertion)
Lokacin da suka gama taron da ƙarfe huɗu, kowa ya koma gida.
When they finished the meeting at four o’clock, everyone went home. (temporal anchor)
The lexical verb gama remains unchanged; sun/suka signals the clause’s role and viewpoint.
Stative predicates require contextual interpretation
A stative relative-completive predicate can identify the period during which a state held, or context can encourage an entry-into-state reading.
A lokacin da muka san adireshinsa, yana zaune a Kano.
At the time when we knew his address, he was living in Kano.
Da na gane gaskiyar lamarin, na daina gardama.
When I understood the truth of the matter, I stopped arguing.
In the first example, muka san describes knowledge established at that reference time. In the second, na gane naturally highlights coming to understand, a bounded change whose result triggers the main event. The same relative paradigm does not force the same English tense or aktionsart.
Negation marks a failed or absent boundary
Negative temporal clauses use the negative-completive series, not affirmative relative forms.
Lokacin da ba su sami amsa ba, suka tafi ofishin da kansu.
When they did not get an answer, they went to the office themselves.
Da ba a buɗe shagon ba, muka jira a waje.
When the shop was not opened, we waited outside.
The negative situation can itself delimit the next decision in the discourse. Positive suka/aka is replaced by ba su … ba / ba a … ba. Hausa does not preserve it as ba suka or ba aka.
Da is not always temporal
Hausa da also coordinates nouns (“and”), expresses accompaniment after a copular frame (“with/have”), and links ordinary relative clauses. Even clause-initial da can receive a background or reason-like interpretation in suitable discourse. Form alone does not guarantee “when.”
Na sayi shayi da sukari.
I bought tea and sugar. (coordination, not a temporal clause)
Wannan shi ne littafin da muka karanta.
This is the book that we read. (relative linker, not ‘when’)
Always identify the relation between clauses before choosing an English conjunction. The relative-completive form appears in several da constructions for historically and grammatically related reasons, but their present meanings are distinct.
Practice
- Past boundary: Da mu _ isa, aka fara taro. Answer: muka; omit independent mu in the final sentence: Da muka isa.
- Ongoing overlap: Yayin da _ jiran bas, ruwa ya fara. Answer: muke, not muka.
- Overt subject: Da baƙi _ zo, yara suka yi murna. Answer: suka.
- Future boundary: Lokacin da ku _ gama gobe, ku kira ni. Answer: kuka; omit independent ku: lokacin da kuka gama gobe.
- Negative: change lokacin da suka sami amsa to lokacin da ba su sami amsa ba.
Common Mistakes
1. Using the plain plural after an explicit time head that requires the relative form.
❌ Lokacin da mun isa tashar, motar ta tafi.
Incorrect for this specific completed boundary after lokacin da.
✅ Lokacin da muka isa tashar, motar ta tafi.
When we reached the station, the vehicle left.
2. Dropping agreement after an overt noun subject.
❌ Da yara dawo gida, muka ci abinci.
Incorrect — yara still requires plural subject–TAM suka.
✅ Da yara suka dawo gida, muka ci abinci.
When the children came home, we ate.
3. Using a completive for an ongoing background.
❌ Yayin da muka jiran likita, aka kira sunanmu.
Incorrect — jiran is ongoing here, so the relative continuative is required.
✅ Yayin da muke jiran likita, aka kira sunanmu.
While we were waiting for the doctor, our name was called.
4. Treating every relative-completive temporal clause as past.
❌ Gobe, lokacin da sun gama, ku biya su kuɗinsu.
Incorrect — the explicit temporal clause requires relative suka, even though the boundary is future.
✅ Gobe, lokacin da suka gama, ku biya su kuɗinsu.
Tomorrow, when they finish, pay them what they are owed.
5. Retaining affirmative suka inside negation.
❌ Lokacin da ba suka sami mota ba, suka kira mu.
Incorrect standard negative-completive agreement.
✅ Lokacin da ba su sami mota ba, suka kira mu.
When they did not find a vehicle, they called us.
Key Takeaways
- A specific completed boundary in the relative series uses na, ka, kika, ya, ta, muka, kuka, suka, aka.
- Bare temporal da with the relative series typically anchors a specific past occasion; explicit heads such as lokacin da support a wider range in context.
- The completive marks a boundary, while the continuative presents an ongoing background.
- Time adverbs and the main clause determine past, recurring, or future reference; the relative form alone does not.
- Overt noun subjects retain agreement, and negative clauses switch to the negative-completive series.
- Not every occurrence of da means “when.”
Related Topics
- Relative Time and Time AdverbsA1 — Use Hausa TAM viewpoints with time adverbs that anchor an event in the past, present, or future.
- Plain and Relative TAM FormsA1 — Choose plain Hausa completive and continuative forms for neutral clauses, and relative forms for focus, constituent questions, and relative clauses.
- Aspect Rather Than English TenseA1 — Interpret Hausa completive and continuative forms as viewpoints on events, using time words and predicate meaning instead of one-to-one English tense labels.
- Active and Stative Verb InterpretationsA1 — See how a verb's action or state meaning changes the time interpretation of Hausa completive and continuative constructions.
- Completive in Narrative SequencesA2 — Build Hausa event chains with narrative completive forms while separating foreground storyline, neutral reporting, background description, and negation.