Learn Hardcore Hausa: Ina son in kalli jirgin ƙasa a talabijin saboda ba mu da shi a ƙauyenmu. - I like to watch the train on television because we do not have it in our village.

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

I like to watch the train on television because we do not have it in our village.

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

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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.

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)

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

in is a particle that introduces a subjunctive or dependent verb. It doesn’t mean “I” or “to” literally, but in English it’s often translated as “to” or “(that I) …”.

Patterns:

Ina so in tafi.
→ “I want to go.”
Ina son in kalli jirgin ƙasa.
→ “I like to watch the train.” / “I love watching the train.”

With 1st person singular (I), Hausa often uses in alone:

Ina so in je. = “I want to go.”

For other persons, you may see pronoun + in:

Yana so ya tafi. = “He wants to go.”

So here in kalli = “(that I) watch” or simply “to watch.”

What is the difference between kalli and kallo? Why is it kalli here?

Both come from the same root, but they have different functions:

kalli = verb, “to look at / to watch”
kallo = noun, “a look, watching, viewing”

Examples:

Zan kalli talabijin. = “I will watch TV.”
Ina son kallo. = “I like watching / I like to watch (in general).”

In your sentence, in kalli jirgin ƙasa uses the verb form kalli because it is a full verb phrase: “(to) watch the train.”

You could also rephrase the idea using the noun:

Ina son kallon jirgin ƙasa a talabijin.
(“I like the watching of the train on TV.” / “I like watching trains on TV.”)

But with in, you naturally use the verb kalli.

How is jirgin ƙasa formed? Why two words for “train”?

jirgin ƙasa is a compound:

jirgi = vehicle, ship, plane
-n = linker (genitive/possessive link)
ƙasa = ground, land

So literally jirgin ƙasa is “vehicle of the ground,” i.e. a train.

This pattern is common in Hausa:

jirgin sama = “vehicle of the sky” → airplane
(sama = sky, heaven)
jirgin ruwa = “vehicle of the water” → boat/ship
(ruwa = water)

The -n in jirgin links jirgi to the following noun.

What does the preposition a mean in a talabijin and a ƙauyenmu?

a is a very common preposition that usually covers:

in / at / on (location)
sometimes into / onto, depending on context.

In your sentence:

a talabijin = “on TV”
a ƙauyenmu = “in our village”

More examples:

A gida nake. = “I am at home.”
Ya zauna a kujera. = “He sat on a chair.”

So a is the default “place” preposition. Context decides whether you translate it as in, at, or on.

Does saboda always mean “because”? Where does it go in the sentence?

saboda means “because” or “because of”.

In your sentence:

… a talabijin saboda ba mu da shi a ƙauyenmu.
→ “… on TV because we do not have it in our village.”

Position:

It can join two clauses as “because”:
- Ina jin daɗi saboda na huta. = “I feel good because I rested.”
Or be used with a noun phrase as “because of / due to”:
- Na tsaya saboda ruwan sama. = “I stopped because of the rain.”

You can also start the sentence with it:

Saboda ba mu da shi a ƙauyenmu, ina son in kalli jirgin ƙasa a talabijin.
→ “Because we don’t have it in our village, I like to watch the train on TV.”

How does ba mu da shi mean “we don’t have it”? What is each word doing?

ba mu da shi uses a common Hausa pattern for negative possession:
ba + pronoun + da + thing = “[subject] does not have [thing].”

Breakdown:

ba = negative particle
mu = we (subject pronoun)
da = “with / having”
shi = him/it (3rd person singular masculine object pronoun)

Literal sense is like “there is not we with it,” but practically it means “we don’t have it.”

Other persons:

Ba ni da shi. = “I don’t have it.”
Ba ka da shi. (to a man) = “You don’t have it.”
Ba ta da shi. = “She doesn’t have it.”
Ba su da shi. = “They don’t have it.”

You can optionally add a final ba for emphasis or clarity:

Ba mu da shi ba. = “We do not have it (at all).”

Why is shi used for “it”? Isn’t shi “he”?

Yes, shi is the 3rd person singular masculine pronoun, and it covers both “he” and “it (masculine)”.

Hausa nouns have grammatical gender. Many inanimate nouns are grammatically masculine or feminine. jirgin ƙasa (“train”) is treated as masculine, so the pronoun referring back to it is shi.

Examples:

Jirgin ƙasa ya tafi. = “The train left.”
(ya = he/it (masc))
Ba mu da shi. (referring to the train) = “We don’t have it.”

For feminine nouns you’d use ita:

mota (car) is feminine.
Motar ta tafi. = “The car left.”
Ba mu da ita. = “We don’t have it (the car).”

What does ƙauyenmu mean exactly, and how is it built?

ƙauyenmu means “our village.”

It is built from:

ƙauye = village
-n = linking/definite marker (often written attached → ƙauyen)
mu = we / our (as a possessive suffix here: “our”)

So:

ƙauye = village
ƙauyen = “the village / village of …”
ƙauyenmu = “our village”

Other examples with -mu as “our”:

gidanmu = our house
(gida = house)
motarmu = our car
(mota = car)

Why does mu appear alone in ba mu da shi, but attached in ƙauyenmu? Is it the same word?

Yes, it’s the same pronoun mu (“we / our”), but it appears in two different roles:

Independent subject pronoun (stands as its own word):
- mu in ba mu da shi = “we”
- Mu za mu tafi. = “We will go.”
Possessive suffix (attached to a noun):
- -mu in ƙauyenmu = “our”
- gidanmu = “our house”
- littafinmu = “our book”

So mu can be written separate (subject) or attached (possessor), depending on its function in the sentence.

How is ƙ pronounced in words like ƙasa and ƙauyenmu? Is it just a regular “k”?

ƙ is not the same as plain k in Hausa. It represents an “implosive k” (a voiced, glottalized velar stop).

Rough guide:

k = like English k in “cat” (a normal voiceless k).
ƙ = produced with a slight inward (implosive) movement of air and some voicing; it may sound like a “harder” or “popped” g/k to English ears.

Minimal pairs:

kasa = to fail
ƙasa = ground, earth, country

For learners, it’s fine at first to approximate ƙ with a strong k/g sound, but strictly speaking they are different consonants and can change meaning.

Can I change the word order and start with the “because” part, like in English?

Yes. Both orders are grammatical in Hausa, with a normal meaning:

Original:
- Ina son in kalli jirgin ƙasa a talabijin saboda ba mu da shi a ƙauyenmu.
  → “I like to watch the train on TV because we don’t have it in our village.”
With the reason first:
- Saboda ba mu da shi a ƙauyenmu, ina son in kalli jirgin ƙasa a talabijin.
  → “Because we don’t have it in our village, I like to watch the train on TV.”

Both are natural; putting saboda first highlights the reason more strongly.