Learn Hardcore Hausa: Bayan na yi hutu kaɗan, na ji sauƙi daga gajiya. - After I rested a little, I felt relief from tiredness.

bayan means "after" in this sentence.
Structure:
- bayan + noun:
  - bayan hutu = "after (the) rest"
- bayan (da) + clause:
  - bayan na yi hutu kaɗan
  - bayan da na yi hutu kaɗan

Both of these last two mean "after I rested a bit".
In everyday speech da is often dropped, so:

bayan na yi hutu kaɗan is completely normal and correct.
bayan da na yi hutu kaɗan sounds a bit more explicit/formal, but not by much.

What exactly is na in na yi and na ji? Is it a pronoun or a tense marker?

In na yi and na ji, na is the 1st person singular subject pronoun in the perfective (completed) aspect.

na yi = "I did / I have done / I did (already)"
na ji = "I felt / I heard / I have felt"

So na here means "I", but it also tells you the action is viewed as completed (perfective).

Note: na can also appear with a different function as a possessive/“of” marker (e.g. sunan mahaifina = "my father's name"), but in this sentence it is simply the subject pronoun "I".

Why do we say yi hutu to mean “rest” instead of having a single verb?

Hausa very often uses light verb + noun combinations instead of a single verb. yi means "do/make", and it combines with many nouns:

yi hutu = "do rest" → to rest / take a break
yi magana = "do speech" → to speak
yi wasa = "do play" → to play
yi aiki = "do work" → to work

So na yi hutu kaɗan is literally "I did a little rest", but idiomatically "I rested a bit / I took a short rest."

Is hutu kaɗan “a little rest” or “rest a little”? How does kaɗan work here?

It can be understood both ways, and Hausa doesn’t sharply separate those two ideas here.

hutu = "rest"
kaɗan = "a little, a bit, small amount"

In na yi hutu kaɗan:

Literally: "I did little rest."
Functionally: it can be taken as:
- "I took a little rest" (a small amount of rest – like a short nap or break), and also as
- "I rested a bit" (rested, but not a lot / not for long).

Grammatically, kaɗan follows the noun hutu and describes the amount of that noun.

Can kaɗan be used in other positions, like before the noun or at the very end of the sentence?

In Hausa, adjectives and quantity words like kaɗan normally come after the noun, not before it. So:
- ✅ hutu kaɗan = "a little rest"
- ❌ kaɗan hutu (unnatural)
It can also function adverbially after a verb or object:
- Na ci abinci kaɗan. = "I ate a little (food)." / "I didn’t eat much."
- Na yi aiki kaɗan. = "I worked a little."
It can stand almost at the end of the sentence if that’s where the amount naturally belongs:
- Na yi hutu kaɗan ne kawai. = "I only rested a little."

So, yes, kaɗan typically appears after what it is limiting (the noun or the whole action), not before.

I thought ji means “to hear”. In na ji sauƙi, what does ji mean?

ji is a very flexible verb in Hausa. Depending on context, it can mean:

to hear
- Na ji sauti. = "I heard a sound."
to feel (physically or emotionally)
- Na ji zafi. = "I felt pain / heat."
- Ina jin sanyi. = "I feel cold."
to sense / experience / perceive
- Na ji yunwa. = "I feel hunger / I'm hungry."
to understand
- Ka ji? = "Do you understand?" / "Got it?"

In na ji sauƙi:

ji = "to feel/experience"
sauƙi = "relief, ease, improvement (esp. in health)"

So na ji sauƙi literally means "I felt relief", and idiomatically "I felt better."

How should I understand the expression na ji sauƙi? Is it like saying “I feel better”?

Yes, na ji sauƙi is the normal way to say "I feel better / I’m better now," especially about:

recovery from illness
recovery from pain
feeling better after exhaustion, hard work, stress, etc.

Examples:

Yanzu na ji sauƙi. = "Now I feel better."
Yana jin sauƙi a yanzu. = "He is feeling better now."

In your sentence, na ji sauƙi daga gajiya is more specific:
"I felt better from (my) tiredness" → "I felt less tired."

What does daga gajiya add to the sentence? Could I just say na ji sauƙi?

daga = "from"
gajiya = "tiredness, fatigue"

So sauƙi daga gajiya = "relief from tiredness".

na ji sauƙi on its own = "I felt better / I felt relief" (general).
na ji sauƙi daga gajiya = "I felt better from the tiredness" → "I felt less tired."

You can say just na ji sauƙi if the context already makes it clear that you're talking about tiredness, but adding daga gajiya makes it explicit what you’re recovering from.

What is the difference between gajiya and gaji? When would I use each?

gajiya is a noun meaning "tiredness, fatigue".
- Ina jin gajiya. = "I feel tiredness." / "I'm feeling tired."
- sauƙi daga gajiya = "relief from tiredness"
gaji is a verb meaning roughly "to get tired / to be tired" (in the perfective it often equals a current state):
- Na gaji. = "I'm tired." (literally "I got tired," but used like a state)
- Sun gaji da aiki. = "They are tired of work."

In your sentence, you want the thing you are getting relief from, so the noun is needed:

✅ sauƙi daga gajiya = "relief from tiredness"
❌ sauƙi daga gaji (ungrammatical, because gaji here is a verb).

Is the word order fixed, or can I move the bayan-clause to a different place?

You can move the bayan-clause. Both of these are fine:

Bayan na yi hutu kaɗan, na ji sauƙi daga gajiya.
- "After I rested a bit, I felt less tired."
Na ji sauƙi daga gajiya bayan na yi hutu kaɗan.
- "I felt less tired after I rested a bit."

Both are grammatical. Putting bayan… at the beginning is very common for setting the time frame first, just like in English.

What tense/aspect is expressed by na yi and na ji in this sentence?

Both na yi and na ji are in the perfective aspect, which in Hausa typically refers to:

completed actions, often corresponding to English simple past or present perfect, depending on context.

Here:

na yi hutu kaɗan = "I (have) rested a bit" / "I rested a bit" (completed rest)
na ji sauƙi daga gajiya = "I felt relief from tiredness" / "I felt less tired" (a resulting state after that rest)

The sequence bayan na yi …, na ji … clearly shows:

The rest was completed.
Afterwards, the feeling of relief came.

How do you pronounce the special letters ƙ and ɗ in words like kaɗan and sauƙi?

Hausa uses some consonants that English doesn’t have exactly:

ƙ (as in sauƙi):
- This is an ejective / glottalized "k".
- It’s produced with a tighter, more forceful release than English k.
- A rough beginner’s approximation: say "k" but with a sharper, more "popped" sound.
ɗ (as in kaɗan):
- This is a voiced implosive "d".
- The tongue position is like d, but the airflow is slightly inward when you start the sound.
- For beginners, pronouncing it like a clear "d" is usually understood, but native ɗ has a distinctive "sucked-in" quality at the start.

So:

kaɗan ≈ "kadan" but with a special ɗ instead of a plain d.
sauƙi ≈ "sauki" but with a sharper, ejective k in the middle.