Learn Hardcore Hausa: Talaka ya ji cewa ƙimarsa tana daidai da ta attajiri a idon Allah. - A poor person felt that his value is equal to that of a rich person in God’s eyes.

In Talaka ya ji cewa…, the context is internal understanding, not physical hearing.
So “ya ji cewa …” is best translated as “he realized / came to understand that …” rather than “he heard that …” in natural English.

What does “cewa” do in the sentence?

Cewa is a complementizer, like English “that” introducing a clause.

Talaka ya ji – “The poor person realized…”
Talaka ya ji cewa ƙimarsa tana daidai… – “The poor person realized that his worth is equal…”

So cewa introduces the content of what was realized, said, thought, etc.
Common patterns:

Na sani cewa… – “I know that…”
Sun faɗa cewa… – “They said that…”

How is “ƙimarsa” formed, and what exactly does it mean?

Ƙimarsa breaks down as:

ƙima – “value, worth, esteem” (a feminine noun)
-r- – linker consonant used with feminine nouns before a suffix
-sa – “his / its (masculine possessor)” pronoun suffix

So:

ƙima + r + sa → ƙimarsa
literally: “the value of him” = “his worth / his value.”

You can change the suffix:

ƙimata – my value
ƙimarki – your (sg. fem.) value
ƙimarsu – their value

Why is it “tana” and not “yana” in “ƙimarsa tana daidai…”?

Tana is the 3rd person feminine singular subject pronoun in the continuous/present aspect.

Hausa treats many abstract nouns, including ƙima, as feminine grammatically.
Since ƙima (value) is feminine, the pronoun referring back to it must also be feminine:

ƙima → tana (she/it is)
ƙimarsa tana… – “his worth is…”

If the noun were masculine, you would see yana instead:

littafi (book, masc.) → littafinsa *yana nan* – “his book is here.”

Could the sentence use “ce” instead of “tana”, like “ƙimarsa daidai ce da ta attajiri”?

Yes, you can say:

Ƙimarsa daidai ce da ta attajiri.

This is also correct and means essentially the same thing: “His worth is equal to that of the rich person.”

Difference in feel:

ƙimarsa tana daidai da…
– uses tana (continuous “is being / is in a state of”), very natural for ongoing states.
ƙimarsa daidai ce da…
– uses the copula ce, more “equative,” like simply saying “A is B.”

Both are grammatical; the original sentence chooses the tana construction for “is (in a state of being) equal to.”

What does “daidai da” mean, and why is “da” repeated?

Daidai means something like:

“equal”
“exact / precise”
“just right / appropriate”
“the same”

The full expression daidai da means “equal to / the same as”.

Structure:

tana daidai da X – “it is equal to X”
- ƙimarsa tana daidai da ta attajiri
  → “his worth is equal to that of the rich person”

The second da is a preposition meaning “with / to” here.
You’ll see daidai da very commonly in comparisons of equality.

In “da ta attajiri”, what does “ta” mean?

Here ta is not a pronoun; it’s the feminine genitive linker meaning roughly “of”.

The pattern is: [noun] + ta + [another noun]
→ “the [noun] of [another noun]” when the first noun is feminine.

In this phrase:

ta attajiri ~ “of the rich person”
In context: ƙimarsa tana daidai da ta attajiri
literally: “his worth is equal to the (worth) of the rich person.”

The first (worth) is understood and omitted, so ta attajiri stands for “that (worth) of the rich person.”

What does “attajiri” mean, and why does it start with “a”?

Attajiri means “the rich person / a wealthy man”.

It comes from Arabic “tājir” (merchant), with the Arabic definite article al-, which becomes a- in Hausa:

al-tājir → attajiri

In modern Hausa, attajiri simply means a rich / wealthy person, not just a merchant.

Related words:

attajirai – rich people (plural)
talaka / matalauta – poor person / poor people (contrast with attajiri).

How does “Talaka” work here? Is it “a poor person” or “the poor person” or “poor people in general”?

Talaka literally is a singular noun: “a poor person, commoner.”

But Hausa often uses a singular noun generically, much like English “the poor man” / “the citizen” to talk about a type or class.

So Talaka ya ji cewa… can be understood as:

“The poor man realized that…”
or more conceptually:
“The poor person (i.e., the poor in general) realized that…”

Context tells you if it is one specific poor person or a representative/typical “poor person.” In moral or religious statements, it is often generic.

What does “a idon Allah” literally mean?

A idon Allah breaks down as:

a – preposition “in / at / on”
ido – “eye”
-n – genitive linker (“of”/“’s”)
Allah – God

So literally:

a idon Allah = “in the eye of God”
idiomatically: “in God’s sight / in the eyes of God.”

This is a very common idiom for God’s judgment or viewpoint, just like in English.

Why is it “a idon Allah” and not something like “a idanun Allah” (eyes, plural)?

Both singular and plural are possible idiomatically, but Hausa commonly uses the singular in this expression:

a idon Allah – in the eye of God
a idanun Allah – in the eyes of God (also possible, but less common)

The singular is enough to carry the idiomatic meaning “from God’s point of view.”
Similarly:

a idon mutane – in people’s eyes / in the eyes of people.

What tense/aspect is “ya ji”, and what is “ya” doing exactly?

Ya ji is in the perfective aspect, roughly past in English.

ya – 3rd person masculine singular subject pronoun in perfective
ji – verb root “hear / feel / realize”

So:

ya ji – “he heard / he felt / he realized”
sun ji – “they realized”
na ji – “I heard / realized”

In your sentence, Talaka is the subject, and ya is the grammatical marker that sets tense/aspect and agrees with that subject.

How does “ƙ” in “ƙima” differ from normal “k”, and does that affect meaning?

Yes, ƙ and k are different consonants in Hausa, and they can change meaning.

k – a plain /k/ sound
ƙ – an ejective /k’/ (made with a little “pop” of air; tenser and glottalized)

Examples of minimal pairs (differences in meaning):

kasa – ground, soil
ƙasa – country, nation

So ƙima must be spelled with ƙ; kima would be a different (or invalid) word. Pronouncing ƙ roughly like a very tense “k” is usually good enough for learners, but distinguishing them is important for vocabulary.