Shekara da ta gabata ban tafi gari ba.

Last year I did not go to town.

Breakdown of Shekara da ta gabata ban tafi gari ba.

• ba … ba: not
• tafi: to go
• gari: the town
• shekara: the year

Questions & Answers about Shekara da ta gabata ban tafi gari ba.

What is the basic word‑for‑word breakdown of Shekara da ta gabata ban tafi gari ba?

One common way to gloss it is:

• Shekara – year
• da – that / which (relative linker)
• ta – she / it (3rd person feminine subject pronoun)
• gabata – passed / went by
• ban – ba
  • ni (“not I”) = I (negated)
• tafi – went / go (perfective)
• gari – town
• ba – negative particle (sentence‑final)

So the structure is roughly:
“Year that it passed, I‑not went town not.” → “Last year I didn’t go to town.”

What exactly does Shekara da ta gabata mean, and why is it used for “last year”?

Shekara da ta gabata literally means “the year that passed” or “the year which has gone by.”

• Shekara – year
• da ta gabata – that (it) passed

This whole chunk functions as a time expression:

• Shekara da ta gabata = last year
  You can treat it like English “Last year” at the start of a sentence.

In Shekara da ta gabata, what is the role of da? Does it mean “and”?