Learn Hardcore Hausa: A gaban shagon takalma, na tsaya na kalli farashi a hankali. - In front of the shoe shop, I stopped and looked at the prices carefully.

Gaban comes from gaba (front, presence, ahead) plus the linker -n, used before another noun.
So gaban shagon takalma = the front of the shoe shop / in front of the shoe shop.

Putting them together:

a gaba = at the front / ahead
a gaban X = in front of X, before X, in X’s presence

So A gaban shagon takalma literally is “At the front of the shoe shop”, i.e. in front of the shoe shop.

How does shagon takalma work? Why is it not shago takalma?

Shago means shop.
When a noun like shago is directly followed by another noun that specifies it (a kind of genitive or compound), Hausa usually adds a linker -n or -r:

shago → shagon before another noun
shagon takalma = shoe shop (literally: shop of shoes)

Takalma is plural: shoe(s). So:

shago = a shop (general)
shagon takalma = a shop that sells shoes

The first noun (shagon) is the main one; the second (takamla) tells us what kind of shop.

Why do we have na tsaya na kalli with na twice? Could we say just na tsaya kalli?

In Hausa, each finite verb normally needs its own subject pronoun.
Here both tsaya (stop/stand) and kalli (look at) are full verbs:

na tsaya = I stopped / I stood
na kalli = I looked (at)

When you put two actions in sequence, Hausa often just repeats the subject pronoun instead of using a separate word for and:

na tsaya na kalli ≈ I stopped and (I) looked

Saying na tsaya kalli farashi without the second na is not standard; it sounds like you’re missing the subject marker on kalli. In fast speech some people may blur it, but grammatically you should repeat na.

What exactly does na mean here? I’ve seen na mean “my” or “of” as well.

Hausa na has several functions, which can confuse learners. The most common are:

Subject pronoun (1st person singular, completive aspect):
- na tsaya = I stopped / I have stopped
- Here, in the sentence, this is the meaning.
Possessive / genitive marker (of / belonging to):
- motar na = my car
- na Musa = of Musa
In some constructions it contributes to meanings like have already done / have done, but that overlaps with (1).

In na tsaya na kalli, both na are the subject pronoun “I” in the completive (perfective) aspect, not the possessive na.

What tense/aspect is na tsaya and na kalli? Are they just simple past?

Formally, this na with the verb is the 1st person singular completive (perfective) aspect. It presents the action as finished.

In English translations, it is usually:

Simple past: I stopped, I looked
Or sometimes: I have stopped, I have looked

So in this sentence:

na tsaya = I stopped (at that time)
na kalli = I looked (at that time)

If you wanted something more ongoing, you’d use an imperfective form, e.g.:

ina tsayawa = I am standing / I usually stand
ina kallon farashi = I am looking at the price / I usually look at the price

Where is the word for “and”? How is “I stopped and looked” expressed without an obvious “and”?

Hausa can use separate conjunctions like da, kuma, amma, etc., but very often it simply:

Repeats the subject pronoun + verb for sequential actions.

In na tsaya na kalli:

The first na tsaya gives the first action.
The second na kalli gives the next action.
The repetition itself functions like “and then” / “and” in English.

You could add something like sai na kalli (then I looked), but you do not need a separate word that directly corresponds to English “and” here.

Does kalli mean “look” or “look at”? Why isn’t there a preposition (like “at”) before farashi?

Kalli is a transitive verb; it directly takes an object:

kalli ni = look at me
kalli wannan = look at this
kalli farashi = look at the price

So Hausa doesn’t need a preposition like “at” here. The structure is:

na kalli [object] = I looked at [object]

This is common with perception verbs:

na ga shi = I saw him
na ji shi = I heard him
na kalli farashi = I looked at the price

What does a hankali really mean? Is it “slowly” or “carefully”? Why a, not da?

A hankali is a very common idiomatic adverbial phrase. Depending on context, it can mean:

slowly, gently (literally “in slowness/quietness”)
carefully, attentively

In this sentence, na kalli farashi a hankali is best understood as:

I looked carefully at the price (maybe also slowly, taking my time).

Why a?

a
- noun often forms adverbial expressions:
  - a hankali = slowly / carefully
  - a hankali! = take it easy! / gently!

There is also da hankali, which more literally means with sense, intelligently / attentively, but a hankali is the set phrase here.

Can we move a gaban shagon takalma or a hankali to other positions in the sentence?

Yes, Hausa word order is fairly flexible with these adverbial phrases, though some orders sound more natural than others.

Your sentence:

A gaban shagon takalma, na tsaya na kalli farashi a hankali.
→ Fronted location, time-like: In front of the shoe shop, I stopped and looked carefully at the price.

Other acceptable orders include:

Na tsaya na kalli farashi a hankali a gaban shagon takalma.
→ I stopped and looked carefully at the price in front of the shoe shop.
Na tsaya a gaban shagon takalma na kalli farashi a hankali.

Usually:

Location (a gaban shagon takalma) can go at the beginning or after the verb.
Manner adverbs (a hankali) often come after the object or at the very end.

You would generally avoid splitting a gaban from shagon takalma, or putting a hankali in the middle of a verb phrase in a way that breaks it up unnaturally.

Are there any details about the nouns here I should know, like plural/singular or gender?

Key nouns in the sentence:

shago (shop) – usually treated as masculine;
in construct form before another noun it becomes shagon:
- shagon takalma = shoe shop
takalmi (shoe, singular) / takalma (shoes, plural)
In the sentence we have takamla (plural): shagon takalma = shop of shoes.
farashi (price) – a common noun meaning price, cost; can be specified further:
- farashin takalma = the price of the shoes
- Here it is just farashi, understood from context.

Gender doesn’t visibly affect agreement in this sentence; what matters more here is knowing the plural takamla and the construct form shagon.