Ni ban taɓa ɗaukar mota ta haya ba kafin wannan rana.

I

Breakdown of Ni ban taɓa ɗaukar mota ta haya ba kafin wannan rana.

• rana: the day
• ba … ba: not
• wannan: this

Questions & Answers about Ni ban taɓa ɗaukar mota ta haya ba kafin wannan rana.

Why do we have both Ni and ban? Aren’t they both saying “I”?

Yes, both relate to “I,” but they have different roles:

• Ni is the independent pronoun: “I / me.” It’s used for emphasis or clarity.
• ban is actually ba + ni fused together:
  • ba = negation particle
  • ni = 1st person singular pronoun
    → ba + ni → ban = “I (neg.)” in the verb slot, roughly “I did not / I have not.”

So you could say:

• Ni ban taɓa ɗaukar mota ta haya ba… – I (for emphasis) have never taken a taxi…
• Ban taɓa ɗaukar mota ta haya ba… – I have never taken a taxi…

The Ni at the beginning is optional and mainly adds emphasis, like “I, personally, have never…”

What does the ban … ba structure mean, and why is it split around the verb?