Ruwa yana canzawa a damina.

Water changes in the rainy season.

Breakdown of Ruwa yana canzawa a damina.

• ne: to be
• ruwa: the water
• a: in
• damina: the rainy season
• canzawa: to change

Questions & Answers about Ruwa yana canzawa a damina.

What does each word in Ruwa yana canzawa a damina literally mean?

Word by word:

• Ruwa – water
• yana – he/it is (doing); 3rd person singular masculine progressive marker
• canzawa – changing / to change (verbal noun from canza, “to change”)
• a – in/at (preposition)
• damina – rainy season

So the structure is: Water – it-is-changing – in – rainy-season.

Why do we use yana here and not just ya?

In Hausa:

• ya usually marks completed or simple actions (perfective aspect), e.g.

  • Ruwa ya canza. – The water (has) changed / The water changed.

• yana marks ongoing, repeated, or characteristic actions (imperfective/progressive), e.g.

  • Ruwa yana canzawa. – Water is changing / Water changes.

In Ruwa yana canzawa a damina, the idea is something that typically happens during the rainy season, not just a one-time event. That’s why yana is used, not ya.

What exactly is the difference between canza and canzawa?

• canza is the basic verb: to change

  • Ina son in canza kaya. – I want to change clothes.

• canzawa is the verbal noun / -ing form: changing, change (process)

  • Ruwa yana canzawa. – The water is changing / Water changes.

With yana, Hausa usually takes the verbal noun:

• yana + canzawa → is changing / changes
• similar pattern:
  • yana tafiya – he is going / he goes
  • yana magana – he is speaking / he speaks

So yana canzawa is the natural progressive/ongoing form. Using yana canza is much less standard here.

Who or what does yana refer to? There is no obvious “he” in English.

yana agrees with ruwa (water), the subject.

• In Hausa, even non-human nouns often use masculine agreement by default.
• So yana here effectively means “it is” (referring to water), not he in a personal sense.

Grammar-wise:

• Ruwa (subject, grammatically masculine)
• yana (he/it is – doing)
• canzawa (changing)

So you can think: “Water – it-is-changing – in the rainy season.”

Why is it a damina and not something like a lokacin damina?

Both are possible:

• a damina – in (the) rainy season
• a lokacin damina – in the time/period of the rainy season → a bit fuller/more explicit

Hausa often drops lokaci (time, period) when the meaning is clear:

• a safiya – in the morning
• da dare – at night
• a damina – in the rainy season

So a damina is shorter and perfectly natural. a lokacin damina just sounds a bit more formal or explicit.

What does the preposition a really mean here? Is it “in” or “at”?

a is a very common preposition that usually corresponds to “in / at / on”, depending on context.

Here:

• a damina → best translated as “in the rainy season”

Other examples:

• a gida – at home / in the house
• a kasuwa – at the market
• a watan Yuli – in the month of July

So a is a general locative/temporal preposition; English chooses between in or at, but Hausa just uses a in all those cases.

Can I change the word order to A damina ruwa yana canzawa?

Yes, that is possible and still correct:

• Ruwa yana canzawa a damina.
• A damina ruwa yana canzawa.

The difference:

• Ruwa yana canzawa a damina. → neutral: talking about water first.
• A damina ruwa yana canzawa. → puts more focus on the time, like: “During the rainy season, water changes.”

Both are grammatical; the second one just foregrounds “in the rainy season”.

Can I drop ruwa and only say Yana canzawa a damina?

You can, but only if context already makes it clear what “it” refers to.

• Yana canzawa a damina. – It changes in the rainy season.

On its own, this sentence is vague (what is changing?). In normal conversation, speakers often drop the noun if they have already mentioned it:

• Ruwa yana tsabta yanzu. – The water is clean now.
• Yana canzawa a damina. – It changes in the rainy season (the water does).

For a stand‑alone sentence teaching grammar, it’s better to keep ruwa.

Does Ruwa yana canzawa a damina mean “is changing right now” or “changes (generally) in that season”?

yana + verbal noun can express:

1. A current ongoing action, or
2. A habitual/typical action (something that regularly happens).

In this sentence, combined with a damina (in the rainy season), it is most naturally understood as habitual / typical:

• Water changes in the rainy season (as a general fact).

If you wanted to emphasize something happening right now, you’d usually add time expressions like yanzu (now), or more context:

• Yanzu damina ce, ruwa yana canzawa. – It’s rainy season now, the water is changing.

Is damina just “rain” or specifically the “rainy season”?

damina refers specifically to the rainy season, not just individual rain events.

• ruwan sama / ruwa – rain (the water from the sky)
• damina – the season of rain, the time of the year
• opposite season:
  • rani – dry season

So:

• a damina – in the rainy season
• a rani – in the dry season

How would I say “Water changes in the dry season” to compare with this sentence?

You can just replace damina with rani:

• Ruwa yana canzawa a rani. – Water changes in the dry season.

Or more explicitly:

• Ruwa yana canzawa a lokacin rani. – Water changes in the period of the dry season.

Same structure, different season word.

How should I pronounce canzawa and damina?

Approximate pronunciations:

• canzawa – /chan-ZA-wa/

  • c in Hausa is like English “ch” in church.
  • Stress typically on the second syllable: can-ZA-wa.

• damina – /da-MI-na/

  • d as in English day.
  • Stress on the second syllable: da-MI-na.

Roughly: “chan-ZAH-wah” and “da-MEE-nah”.