Tunda yara suna cikin shiru a ɗakin karatu, malami yana farin ciki sosai.

Since the children are quiet in the library, the teacher is very happy.

Breakdown of Tunda yara suna cikin shiru a ɗakin karatu, malami yana farin ciki sosai.

• ne: to be
• sosai: very
• yaro: the child
• malami: the teacher
• a: in
• cikin: in
• shiru: the silence
• ɗakin karatu: the library
• tunda: since
• farin ciki: happy

Questions & Answers about Tunda yara suna cikin shiru a ɗakin karatu, malami yana farin ciki sosai.

What does Tunda mean here? Is it more like since or because in English?

In this sentence, Tunda means something between English since and because:

• Causal meaning:
  It introduces the reason for the second clause:
  Tunda yara suna cikin shiru… = Since/Because the children are quiet…

• Pragmatic nuance:
  Tunda often implies that the speaker assumes the first clause is already known, obvious, or accepted.
  So it can feel like:

  • Since (as we can see that) the children are quiet in the reading room, the teacher is very happy.

You could also use domin or saboda for because, but tunda often has this “given that / now that” flavor, slightly closer to since in English.

Why is it yara suna and not yaran suna? What’s the difference?

• yara = children (indefinite / general)
• yaran = the children (definite: specific children already identified in the context)

Using yara suna cikin shiru suggests children in general or some children in that situation, without extra emphasis on “these specific children”.

If the context were about a particular, already known group of children, you could say:

• Tunda yaran suna cikin shiru a ɗakin karatu…
  = Since the children are quiet in the reading room… (those particular children).

Both are grammatically correct; the choice is about definiteness and what the speaker assumes the listener already has in mind.

What exactly does suna cikin shiru mean, and why is cikin used here?

suna cikin shiru literally breaks down as:

• su-na = they-PROG (they are [in the middle of doing/being])
• cikin = in/inside (from ciki, “inside”, plus a linker -n)
• shiru = silence, quietness

So the literal sense is “they are in (a state of) silence”, which idiomatically is just “they are quiet”.

Why cikin?

• Hausa often uses ciki(n) to talk about being in a state or condition:
  • suna cikin farin ciki – they are happy (in happiness)
  • suna cikin damuwa – they are worried (in worry)
  • suna cikin hatsari – they are in danger

Likewise, suna cikin shiru = they are in silence / they are quiet.

You could also hear sun yi shiru or yara shiru suke, but suna cikin shiru is a very natural, idiomatic way to express a current quiet state.

How does ɗakin karatu work grammatically? Is it just “classroom”?

ɗakin karatu is a compound noun phrase:

• ɗaki = room
• -n = linker (genitive/possessive link)
• karatu = reading, study, learning

So ɗakin karatu literally means “room of reading/study”.

Depending on context, it can be translated as:

• reading room
• study room
• library (especially in a school or small institution)
• sometimes functionally close to classroom, if the room is specifically for study.

The key grammar point: Noun 1 + -n/-r + Noun 2 often gives “Noun 1 of Noun 2”:

• gidan karatu – house of reading = library/bookstore (depending on context)
• ɗakin kwana – sleeping room = bedroom

So ɗakin karatu is “the reading/study room.”

What does farin ciki literally mean, and why does it mean “happy”?

farin ciki is an idiomatic phrase:

• fari = white (or light-colored)
• -n = linker
• ciki = inside, belly, interior

Literally something like “whiteness of the inside” or “bright inside”, but idiomatically it just means joy / happiness.

Common patterns:

• yana farin ciki – he is happy
• ina cikin farin ciki – I am in happiness / I am very happy
• farin ciki – happiness, joy

So in the sentence:

• malami yana farin ciki sosai = the teacher is very happy.
  You don’t try to translate it piece by piece in English; you just learn farin ciki as the standard way to say happy / happiness in Hausa.

Why do we use suna and yana here? Is that like the English continuous “are / is …ing”?

Yes, suna and yana are the progressive forms of the subject pronouns:

• su + na → suna = they are (doing something / being in some state)
• ya + na → yana = he is (doing something / being in some state)

In this sentence:

• yara suna cikin shiru – the children are (currently) in a state of quiet.
• malami yana farin ciki sosai – the teacher is (currently) happy.

This is very similar to the English present continuous, especially for current, temporary or foregrounded situations.

If you used suke or yake, for example:

• yara suke cikin shiru can be more neutral/habitual or focused (depending on position and intonation).
• malami yake farin ciki would usually sound like a focus construction (It’s the teacher who is happy), not just a plain “is happy.”

So suna / yana is the straightforward, neutral way to mark a current ongoing state here.

What does sosai add, and where does it normally go in the sentence?

sosai is an intensifier, roughly very / very much / a lot.

In malami yana farin ciki sosai:

• farin ciki = happy
• sosai = very

So the whole phrase means “the teacher is very happy” or “really happy.”

Position:

• sosai usually comes after the adjective/verb phrase it modifies:
  • na gaji sosai – I am very tired
  • sun yi kuka sosai – they cried a lot
  • yana farin ciki sosai – he is very happy

You can combine it with other intensifiers like ƙwarai:

• yana farin ciki sosai ƙwarai – he is extremely happy, very, very happy.

Could we change the word order, putting the teacher first? Would the meaning change?

Yes, you can reverse the clause order:

• Malami yana farin ciki sosai tunda yara suna cikin shiru a ɗakin karatu.
  = The teacher is very happy since the children are quiet in the reading room.

The basic meaning stays the same: the teacher’s happiness is caused by the children being quiet.

Differences:

• Original:
  Tunda yara suna cikin shiru…, malami yana farin ciki sosai.
  → Puts the reason (children quiet) first, then the result.
• Reordered:
  Malami yana farin ciki sosai tunda…
  → Starts with the result (teacher happy), then gives the reason.

This is similar to English:
“Since the children are quiet…, the teacher is very happy” vs.
“The teacher is very happy since the children are quiet…”

Why is it a ɗakin karatu and not cikin ɗakin karatu? What does a do?

a is the basic locative preposition in Hausa, usually meaning in/at/on depending on context.

In a ɗakin karatu:

• a = in / at
• ɗakin karatu = the reading/study room

So: “in the reading room” or “at the reading room.”

You could also say:

• cikin ɗakin karatu – literally in(side) the reading room, a bit more internally-focused.

Difference:

• a ɗakin karatu – neutral in/at the reading room
• cikin ɗakin karatu – inside the reading room (slightly stronger sense of interior)

In many contexts they overlap, and a ɗakin karatu is perfectly natural and common.

Why do we say yara suna but malami yana? How does agreement work here?

Hausa uses subject pronouns with aspect markers to agree with the subject:

• su + na → suna for they (3rd person plural) progressive
• ya + na → yana for he / it (masculine) (3rd person singular) progressive

So:

• yara suna cikin shiru
  
  • yara = children (3rd person plural)
  • suna = they-PROG → agrees with yara
• malami yana farin ciki sosai
  
  • malami = teacher (3rd person singular, usually masculine when generic)
  • yana = he-PROG → agrees with malami

If the subject changed, the form would change too:

• yarinya tana farin ciki – the girl is happy (3sg feminine)
• malamai suna farin ciki – the teachers are happy (3pl)

Do we need something like “the” for malami to mean “the teacher”? Why not malamin?

Hausa handles definiteness differently from English. Often, context alone makes it clear whether a noun is a teacher or the teacher.

• malami can mean:
  • a teacher (indefinite), or
  • the teacher (if there is only one relevant teacher or it’s obvious from context).

If you want to very clearly mark “the specific teacher”, you can use a linker like -n / -r / -ɗin or a demonstrative:

• malamin nan – that/this specific teacher
• malamin aji – the teacher of the class

But in sentences like this, with a clear situation (one teacher, one reading room), malami yana farin ciki sosai is naturally understood as “the teacher is very happy” without adding anything.