Learn Hardcore Hausa: Saurayi da budurwa suna zaune a falo suna yin hira da uwa. - A young man and a young woman are sitting in the living room chatting with mother.

saurayi literally means a young unmarried man. In many contexts it also means boyfriend.
budurwa literally means a young unmarried woman / maiden. In many contexts it also means girlfriend.

So the sentence can be understood as either:

The young man and the young woman…
or
The boyfriend and the girlfriend…

Without extra context, both are valid.

What is the function of da in saurayi da budurwa and in hira da uwa? Is it the same word?

Yes, it’s the same word da, but it plays two slightly different roles:

Conjunction “and”
- saurayi da budurwa = the young man and the young woman
  Here da links two nouns, like English and.
Preposition “with”
- hira da uwa = conversation with (the) mother
  Here da means with, showing who the conversation is with.

This dual use is very common in Hausa: da often means both and and with, depending on context.

Why is suna used twice in the sentence? Could you say it only once?

The sentence is:

Saurayi da budurwa suna zaune a falo suna yin hira da uwa.

There are two actions:

suna zaune – they are sitting
suna yin hira – they are chatting / having a conversation

Hausa typically repeats the aspect pronoun (suna) when you have two separate verb phrases in one sentence. It’s like saying:

They are sitting in the living room and (they) are chatting with mother.

You can sometimes drop the second suna in casual speech:

Saurayi da budurwa suna zaune a falo, suna yin hira da uwa. (standard)
Saurayi da budurwa suna zaune a falo, yin hira da uwa. (more elliptical, less common in beginner materials)

For learners, it’s safest and clearest to keep suna before each main action.

What exactly is suna? Is it a verb like are?

suna is an aspect-marked subject pronoun meaning roughly “they are …”.

You can think of it as:

su = they
na = marker for progressive / continuous aspect

Historically, su + na → suna, and it’s written as one word.

In practice, you just memorize:

ina – I am …
kana / kina – you (m./f.) are …
yana / tana – he / she is …
muna – we are …
kuna – you (pl.) are …
suna – they are …

So suna zaune = they are sitting, suna yin hira = they are chatting / are having a conversation.

What kind of word is zaune? Is it a verb meaning “to sit”?

zaune is not the basic verb form; it’s a stative/positional form meaning sitting, seated.

The basic verb is zama or zaunāwa – to sit, to reside.
zaune is used with ina / kana / suna etc. to describe a state:
- ina zaune – I am sitting / I am seated
- suna zaune – they are sitting

You see the same pattern with other position words:

tsaye – standing
- suna tsaye – they are standing
kwance – lying down
- tana kwance – she is lying down

So suna zaune literally = they are in a seated state → they are sitting.

What does a falo mean, and what is the role of a?

a falo means “in the living room / in the sitting room”.

falo = living room, sitting room, parlor.
a is a common preposition meaning in / at / on, depending on context.

So:

a falo – in the living room
a gida – at home / in the house
a kasuwa – at the market

Sometimes you may also see a cikin falo (literally in the inside of the living room) for extra emphasis on being inside, but a falo on its own is perfectly natural.

What does yin hira mean? Why is yin used before hira?

yin hira literally means “doing conversation”, and together it functions as “to chat / to have a conversation / to talk (informally)”.

yi = to do, to make
yin = the verbal noun form of yi (roughly “doing”)
hira = chat, conversation

In Hausa, a very common pattern is:

[aspect pronoun] + [verbal noun] + [object]

So:

suna yin hira – they are doing conversation → they are chatting
suna yin wasa – they are playing (doing play)
muna yin aiki – we are working (doing work)

Here, yin links the general verb yi with the noun hira to form an action: to chat.

What does hira itself mean? Is it formal “conversation” or more like “chatting/gossip”?

hira means conversation, chat, talk, and often has a fairly informal feel:

yin hira – to chat, to talk (in a relaxed, social way)
Depending on context, it can range from simple “talking together” to something closer to “gossiping”, but by itself it doesn’t automatically mean gossip.

In this sentence, suna yin hira da uwa is best understood as:

they are chatting with the mother
or
they are having a conversation with the mother.

Is uwa definite or indefinite here? Does it mean “a mother” or “the mother”? Whose mother is it?

uwa simply means mother. Hausa does not use an explicit article like English a/the, so definiteness often comes from context.

In this sentence:

uwa can be understood as “the mother” (someone already known in the context),
or as “his/their mother”,
or simply “a mother” (if the context is new).

If the speaker wanted to be very explicit about possession, they could say, for example:

uwar saurayi – the young man’s mother
uwar budurwa – the young woman’s mother
uwarsu – their mother

But with uwa alone, it’s left to context, and a natural English translation is usually “the mother”.

What tense or aspect is expressed by suna zaune … suna yin hira? Is it like the English present continuous?

Yes, suna … here expresses a present progressive / continuous aspect, very close to English “are … -ing”.

suna zaune – they are sitting (right now)
suna yin hira – they are chatting / they are having a conversation (right now)

Compare with other aspects:

sun zauna – they sat / they have sat (completed action)
za su zauna – they will sit (future)

So the full sentence describes an ongoing situation at the present moment, just like:

The young man and the young woman are sitting in the living room, chatting with the mother.

Can you say suna hira instead of suna yin hira? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can hear and see suna hira, and it is understandable and used, especially in casual speech.

The more “textbook-clear” form is:

suna yin hira – they are chatting / they are having a conversation

suna hira is a bit more compressed; many speakers will still say it naturally, but:

suna yin hira makes the verbal structure clearer for learners (the “do + noun” pattern).
In writing and in teaching materials, yin hira is very common and safe.

So:

suna yin hira da uwa – standard, very clear
suna hira da uwa – also used, slightly more colloquial/elliptical

How would the sentence change if only the boy (the saurayi) was sitting and talking with his mother?

You would switch from plural suna to singular masculine yana, and make the subject just saurayi. You might also make “mother” explicitly his mother. For example:

Saurayi yana zaune a falo yana yin hira da uwarsa.
= The young man is sitting in the living room, chatting with his mother.

Breakdown:

saurayi – young man / boyfriend
yana – he is (3rd person singular masculine progressive)
zaune – sitting / seated
a falo – in the living room
yana yin hira – he is chatting / having a conversation
da uwarsa – with his mother (uwa + r + sa: his mother)

This contrasts with the original plural suna … suna … for two people.