Learn Hardcore Hausa: Sannu Musa, yaya kake?

It’s a general friendly greeting when you meet someone.
It can also show sympathy or concern, like “sorry” / “oh dear” when someone is sick, tired, or has a problem.
It can be used to encourage someone working, like “well done / take it easy”.

So in Sannu Musa, it is a warm, friendly “hello / hi” addressed to Musa, but in other contexts sannu can feel more like “sorry” or “take it easy” rather than just “hello”.

Why is the name Musa placed after Sannu? Could I say it the other way round?

Here Musa is being directly addressed (a vocative):

Sannu Musa ≈ “Hello, Musa.”

You can also say:

Musa, sannu. – This is also natural: “Musa, hello.”

Both orders are used. Putting Sannu first is very common in casual greetings. The comma in English shows a slight pause, which you’ll also hear in speech: Sannu, Musa or Sannu Musa with a tiny break before the name.

Can I use Sannu at any time of day, like “hello,” or are there special morning/afternoon greetings?

You can use Sannu at any time of day; it’s not tied to morning/afternoon/evening.

There are also more specific greetings, often borrowed from Arabic:

Ina kwana? – literally “How is your morning?” (standard “good morning” type greeting)
Ina wuni? – “How is your day/afternoon?”
Ina yini? – similar, in some dialects
Barka da yamma – “good afternoon/evening” (less common in some areas)

But Sannu works all day long and is extremely common, especially in informal contexts or as you pass someone, arrive somewhere, or see someone busy.

How do you pronounce Sannu, yaya kake?

Approximate pronunciation (in simple English terms):

Sannu: SAN-nu
- san as in sun (but with an “a” sound, like sahn)
- double nn makes the n sound a bit longer.
yaya: YA-ya
- both a sounds like the a in father; roughly YA-ya (not yay-ya).
kake: KA-ke
- ka as in kah, ke as in keh, not like English key.

So the whole thing is roughly:

SAN-nu Musa, YA-ya KA-ke?

What does yaya mean in this sentence? Is it the same word as “older sibling”?

In yaya kake?, yaya means “how”.

There is another, separate word yaya meaning “older sibling” (older brother/older sister). These are different words that just happen to look the same in writing.

Yaya kake? – “How are you?”
Yayana – “my older brother/sister” (the kinship word)

Context tells you which one is meant. In a question like this, starting the sentence, yaya will almost always mean “how”.

What exactly is kake? Is it like “you are”?

kake is a combination of:

ka – “you” (singular, talking to a man)
ke – a particle often used with pronouns in questions and focused statements; in this kind of sentence it functions somewhat like “are (in a state)”.

So, very loosely, yaya kake? can be thought of as:

“How (are) you?” or
“How are you (doing)?”

But grammatically, Hausa doesn’t use a separate verb “to be” the way English does. Instead, it uses a structure like pronoun + ke in these questions and descriptive statements.

How would this sentence change if I’m talking to a woman or to more than one person?

The greeting word Sannu stays the same, but kake changes:

Talking to a man (singular):

Sannu Musa, yaya kake? – “Hello Musa, how are you?”

Talking to a woman (singular):

Sannu Zainabu, yaya kike?
- kike = ki (you, feminine singular) + ke

Talking to several people (or polite plural to one person):

Sannu ku, yaya kuke? – “Hello (you all), how are you?”
- kuke = ku (you plural) + ke

So the pattern is:

kake – you (male, singular)
kike – you (female, singular)
kuke – you (plural / polite)

Is “yaya kake?” informal? How do I say it politely to an older person or a stranger?

Yaya kake? to a man and Yaya kike? to a woman are friendly and normal with peers, friends, and people younger than you.

To be more polite or respectful, especially to:

an older person,
someone you don’t know well,
or someone of higher status,

you normally use the plural form as a polite “you”:

To an older man: Sannu Malam, yaya kuke?
To an older woman: Sannu Hajiya, yaya kuke?

Using kuke here is like using “vous” in French or “usted” in Spanish – a polite or respectful “you”.

What are some natural ways to answer “Yaya kake?”?

Common, very natural replies include:

Lafiya lau. – “I’m completely fine / very well.”
Lafiya kalau. – very well (informal, similar idea to lafiya lau).
Ina lafiya. – “I am well / I’m fine.”
Alhamdu lillahi. – “Praise be to God.” (common Muslim response, often after lafiya)

You can make it a bit fuller:

Lafiya lau, kai fa? – “Very well, and you?” (to a man)
Lafiya lau, ke fa? – “…and you?” (to a woman)
Lafiya lau, ku fa? – “…and you all?” (or polite “and you, sir/ma’am?”)

Can I say only “Sannu” or only “Yaya kake?”, or do they need to go together?

They don’t have to go together; each can stand alone:

Sannu – on its own is a complete, friendly greeting (“hi/hello”, or “sorry / take it easy” depending on context).
Musa, yaya kake? – also works fine alone: “Musa, how are you?”

Putting them together, as in Sannu Musa, yaya kake?, just makes the greeting warmer and more complete, like saying:

“Hi Musa, how are you?”

What is the word‑for‑word breakdown of Sannu Musa, yaya kake?

A simple gloss:

Sannu – a greeting: “hello”, “sorry”, “well done / take it easy” (here: “hello”)
Musa – the person’s name
yaya – “how”
ka‑ke – “you (masc. sg.) + ke” (a particle used in these “be”‑like questions)

So a very literal sense is:

Sannu Musa, yaya kake?
“Hello Musa, how (are) you?”

Are there other common expressions built on Sannu that I might hear instead of just “Sannu Musa”?

Yes, very often sannu appears in longer fixed phrases:

Sannu da zuwa. – “Welcome (thanks for coming).”
Sannu da aiki. – said to someone working: “Well done / keep it up / take it easy with your work.”
Sannu da gida. – said when visiting someone’s home: roughly “greetings to the household.”
Sannunka / sannunki – literally “your sannu (m./f.)”, a friendly singular greeting; often just sounds like sannunka → “hello (to you, man)” and sannunki to a woman.

But in your sentence, Sannu Musa is a straightforward, friendly “Hello Musa.”

Is there any difference between “Yaya kake?” and something like “Kana lafiya?”?

Both can be used to ask about someone’s condition, but there is a nuance:

Yaya kake? – “How are you?” (very general; could mean mood, health, how life is going).
Kana lafiya? – literally “Are you (in) health?” / “Are you okay / in good health?”
- kana = “you (masc. sg.) are (in a state of)…”
- lafiya = “health, peace, well‑being”.

Yaya kake? is broader and more common as a general greeting.
Kana lafiya? focuses a bit more specifically on health or safety, though in many everyday situations they might feel quite similar in practice.