Ina son in kalli jirgin ƙasa a talabijin saboda ba mu da shi a ƙauyenmu.

to be

Breakdown of Ina son in kalli jirgin ƙasa a talabijin saboda ba mu da shi a ƙauyenmu.

• ba … ba: not
• da: with
• saboda: because

Questions & Answers about Ina son in kalli jirgin ƙasa a talabijin saboda ba mu da shi a ƙauyenmu.

What does Ina mean here? Is it the same as ni (“I”)?

Ina is a combination of ni (I) plus an aspect marker that usually expresses a present, ongoing, or habitual action.

• ni = I (independent pronoun)
• Ina (or ina) = “I am … / I (habitually) …”

In sentences like:

• Ina son … = “I like / I love …”
• Ina karatu. = “I am studying / I study (habitually).”

So in Ina son in kalli…, Ina is best understood as “I (do)” or “I am” in the sense of a general, present tendency.

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Why is it Ina son in kalli instead of Ina so in kalli?

The base verb is so (“to like, to love, to want”), but when it takes a following noun or clause, you often see the genitive form son.

Roughly:

• Ina so in kalli jirgin ƙasa.
  → “I want to watch the train.”

• Ina son in kalli jirgin ƙasa.
  → “I like / love to watch the train.”

son here works like a verbal noun “liking/love of …”, and it links to the following clause in kalli jirgin ƙasa (“(that I) watch the train”). The -n on son is a linker that ties so to what comes after.

So:

• so = verb “to like / love / want”
• son = “liking/love of …” (used before what you like)

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What does in before kalli mean? Is it “I” or “to”?