Learn Hardcore Hausa: Yawanci darasin Hausa yana ƙare ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin. - Usually the Hausa lesson ends at eight thirty.

Darasin Hausa yawanci yana ƙare ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin.
(Still “Usually the Hausa class ends at 8:30,” but the focus is more on the class first.)

Putting yawanci at the start makes it sound more like an overall statement about what normally happens. Putting it after darasin Hausa is also correct and natural.

Why is there no word for “the” in darasin Hausa, even though the translation is “the Hausa class”?

Hausa does not use separate words for “the” or “a/an” like English does.
Definiteness is usually understood from context, word order, or suffixes.

Darasin Hausa literally means “lesson-of Hausa” or “Hausa lesson.”
Depending on context, it can mean:
- a Hausa class
- the Hausa class

In this sentence, because we are talking about a specific, known class that happens regularly, it is naturally understood as “the Hausa class”, even though Hausa doesn’t mark that with an article.

What does the -n in darasi-n Hausa (darasin Hausa) do?

The -n in darasin Hausa is a linking suffix (a genitive linker). It connects one noun to another, roughly like “of” in English.

darasi = lesson, class
darasin Hausa = lesson of Hausa → Hausa lesson / Hausa class

The form of the linker can be -n or -r or -ar, depending on the word it attaches to, but the idea is the same: it links two nouns:

littafin Hausa – Hausa book / book of Hausa
malamin makaranta – school teacher / teacher of the school

Why is it darasin Hausa and not darasi Hausa without the linker?

In Hausa, when one noun directly modifies another (like “Hausa lesson”), you normally:

Put the head noun first (darasi = lesson),
Then attach a linking suffix (-n here),
Then the second noun (Hausa).

So the natural form is:

darasin Hausa – Hausa lesson / Hausa class

If you say darasi Hausa without the linker, it sounds ungrammatical or at least incomplete to a native speaker.

What does yana mean here, and why not just say darasin Hausa ya ƙare…?

Yana is the 3rd person singular progressive/continuous form of the verb “to be” (from ya → yana).
In yana ƙare, it creates a kind of ongoing / regular / typical action:

darasin Hausa yana ƙare…
Literally: the Hausa class is finishing (at) 8:30
Idiomatically: the Hausa class (usually) ends at 8:30.

You could say:

Darasin Hausa ya ƙare ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin.

That would usually be understood as a one-time, completed past event:
The Hausa class ended at 8:30.

With yawanci (usually), we are talking about a habitual pattern, so the continuous/habitual-style yana ƙare fits better.

Is there a more explicitly “habitual” form than yana ƙare, like “it usually ends”?

Yes. Hausa has a dedicated habitual marker kan / ke kan / yake kan etc.

For example:

Yawanci darasin Hausa yakan ƙare ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin.

Here, yakan ƙare = “it usually / habitually ends.”

Both are fine:

yana ƙare – often used for typical or scheduled actions, especially with yawanci.
yakan ƙare – explicitly marks the action as something that happens habitually.

In everyday speech you will hear both. Yakan is a bit more “textbook-habitual,” while yana + adverbs like yawanci is very common in spoken Hausa.

What exactly does ƙare mean here, and why doesn’t it change form?

ƙare is a verb meaning:

to finish, to end, to be used up.

In this sentence:

yana ƙare = is ending / ends

The main tense/aspect information is carried by yana. The verb ƙare stays in a kind of basic form after it:

yana cin abinci – he is eating food
yana tafiya – he is going / walking
yana ƙare – it is ending

So ƙare itself doesn’t change because the auxiliary-like element (yana) already shows the person and aspect.

What is the difference between ƙare and kare (without the dot)?

The dot under the ƙ is important:

ƙ is an implosive / ejective k-sound, written ƙ in Hausa.
k is the ordinary k.

They make different words:

ƙare (with ƙ) = to end, finish
kare (with k) = a dog

So:

darasin Hausa yana ƙare = the Hausa class is ending
kare = dog (an animal)

What does ƙarfe mean in ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin?

Ƙarfe is used when telling the time on the clock. It roughly corresponds to “o’clock / at … o’clock”.

ƙarfe ɗaya – one o’clock
ƙarfe huɗu – four o’clock
ƙarfe takwas – eight o’clock

In the sentence:

ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin
= eight o’clock and thirty minutes → 8:30

So ƙarfe introduces the clock time expression.

Why is there no separate word for “at” in ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin?

In Hausa, ƙarfe X by itself usually means “at X o’clock” in context. The idea of “at” (a time) is built into the expression.

So:

Yana zuwa ƙarfe huɗu.
= He comes at four o’clock.

You can sometimes see or hear a ƙarfe:

Yana zuwa a ƙarfe huɗu.

But everyday speech often just uses ƙarfe without a, and it is understood as “at (time).”

In your sentence:

…yana ƙare ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin.
= “…ends at eight thirty.”

How does da work in ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin?

Here, da is functioning as “and”.

The structure is:

ƙarfe takwas – eight o’clock
da – and
minti talatin – thirty minutes

So together:

ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin
= eight o’clock and thirty minutes → 8:30

Da is a very common word in Hausa. Among other things, it can mean:

and (joining words/phrases)
with
part of some complex conjunctions (e.g. tun da “since/ because”)

Is minti talatin literally “thirty minutes”? Why is minti singular?

Yes, minti talatin literally corresponds to “thirty minute(s)”, but Hausa doesn’t mark the plural the same way English does here.

minti – minute (loanword from English or another European language)
talatin – thirty

In number expressions, Hausa often doesn’t change the noun form for plural when it’s counted:

minti talatin – thirty minutes
minti biyar – five minutes
saiti uku – three hours (lit. “hour three”)

So minti doesn’t take an extra plural ending; the number talatin already shows that it’s plural in meaning.

Could you say ƙarfe takwas da rabi instead of ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin?

Yes, that is common and often more natural in speech:

ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin – eight thirty
ƙarfe takwas da rabi – literally eight o’clock and a half → 8:30

Both are correct.
Rabi (half) is very commonly used for :30 times, just like “half past” in English.

Why is the sentence order Yawanci darasin Hausa yana ƙare [time], instead of putting the time at the beginning?

This order is very natural in Hausa:

Frequency/adverb: Yawanci (usually)
Subject: darasin Hausa (the Hausa class)
Verb phrase: yana ƙare (ends)
Time expression: ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin (at 8:30)

You can front the time for emphasis or style:

Yawanci, ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin darasin Hausa yake ƙare.

This is also grammatical, but it sounds more marked/emphatic. The neutral, everyday pattern is:
[Adverb] + [Subject] + [Verb] + [Time] — exactly what you see in the original sentence.

Why does the verb agree with darasin Hausa as yana, and not some other form?

Yana is the 3rd person singular masculine continuous form:

yana – he/it (masc.) is …-ing
yana ƙare – he/it is ending

The subject darasin Hausa is grammatically masculine singular in Hausa, so the correct agreement is:

darasin Hausa yana ƙare…

If the subject were a feminine noun, you’d use tana:

jarabawar Hausa tana ƙare ƙarfe uku.
The Hausa exam ends at three o’clock. (jarabawa = fem.)

Is Yawanci the only way to say “usually” in Hausa?

No, there are other options, for example:

Galibi darasin Hausa yana ƙare ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin.
Akai-akai darasin Hausa yakan ƙare ƙarfe takwas da minti talatin. (more like “often”)

But Yawanci is very common and a good default for “usually / most of the time.”