Learn Hardcore Hausa: Ya yi ƙuduri ya ajiye rabin albashinsa a banki. - He made a resolution to keep half of his salary in the bank.

Ya is the 3rd person singular masculine subject pronoun in the perfective (completed) aspect. Roughly, it corresponds to “he” + past tense (as in “he did”).

In Ya yi ƙuduri ya ajiye…:

The first ya = “he (did)” for yi ƙuduri – he made a decision
The second ya = “he (did)” for ajiye – he put/saved

In Hausa, each finite verb normally needs its own subject pronoun, even if it’s the same subject. So you don’t say:

✗ Ya yi ƙuduri ajiye rabin albashinsa…

You say:

✓ Ya yi ƙuduri ya ajiye rabin albashinsa…

This is like saying in English: “He made a decision, he (would) put half his salary in the bank”, which is understood as “He decided to put…”.

Is yi an auxiliary verb here, or does it mean “do / make”?

Here yi is the main verb meaning “do / make”.

yi ƙuduri is a fixed expression meaning “to make a decision / to decide”
- yi = do / make
- ƙuduri = a decision, a resolution

So ya yi ƙuduri literally means “he made a decision”, and by extension “he decided”. Yi in this sentence is not just a helping (auxiliary) verb; it carries its own meaning.

What exactly does ƙuduri mean, and how is it different from just “decision” in English?

ƙuduri means a firm decision, resolution, or resolve—often with a sense of determination.

Nuances:

It’s a noun: ƙuduri = a decision / resolution
With yi: yi ƙuduri = to decide / to resolve to do something

There are other common Hausa ways to say “decide,” such as:

yanke shawara – “to cut a plan/opinion” → to make a decision
yi niyya – to intend

In your sentence, ya yi ƙuduri suggests a deliberate, firm decision.

How does ya yi ƙuduri ya ajiye… end up meaning “he decided to put…”?

Formally, the structure is:

ya yi ƙuduri – he made a decision
ya ajiye rabin albashinsa a banki – he put half his salary in the bank

Hausa often links two perfective clauses with the same subject like this to express:

result: He did X and (then) did Y, or
purpose/intention: He decided he would do Y → He decided to do Y

Because the second action (ya ajiye…) is clearly the content of his decision, English translates this naturally as:

“He decided to put half his salary in the bank.”

So the second ya ajiye functions like English “to put” in this context.

What is the verb ajiye, and how is it different from ajiya or ajiyewa?

ajiye is a verb: to put away, to deposit, to store, to keep safe.
- ya ajiye = he deposited / he put away

Related forms:

ajiya – a noun, often meaning deposit, savings, storage
- e.g. ajiyar kuɗi – money kept/savings
ajiyewa – a verbal noun / gerund-like form: the act of keeping/saving/depositing
- e.g. ajiyewar kuɗi a banki – the act of saving money at the bank

In your sentence we need a finite verb, so ya ajiye (“he put/saved”) is correct, not ya ajiya or ya ajiyewa.

What does rabin mean exactly, and how is it formed?

rabin means “half (of)” when it comes before another noun.

rabi = a half (basic form)
rabin = half of… (with the genitive/“of” ending -n)

So:

rabi – a half (on its own)
rabin albashi – half of a salary
rabin albashinsa – half of his salary

The typical pattern is:

rabin + [noun] = half of [noun]

How is albashinsa built, and what does each part mean?

albashinsa means “his salary”.

Breakdown:

albashi – salary, wages
-n- – a linker that often appears before possessive pronouns
-sa – enclitic pronoun meaning his

So conceptually you have: albashi + n + sa → albashinsa = his salary.

Other examples:

albashina – my salary
albashinka – your (masc. sg.) salary
albashinki – your (fem. sg.) salary
albashinmu – our salary
albashinsu – their salary

Why isn’t there a separate word for “of” in rabin albashinsa (“half of his salary”)?

Hausa usually expresses “of” by:

Putting the quantifier/owner word first, and
Using a linking sound (often -n or -r) on that first word.

In rabin albashinsa:

rabi + -n → rabin = half of
albashinsa = his salary

So rabin albashinsa literally is “half-of his-salary”, and the -n at the end of rabin is doing the job of “of”. You don’t add an extra separate word for “of.”

Why is it a banki and not something like “in the bank” with a separate word for “the”?

a is a preposition that commonly means “in / at / on” (location).

a banki = in/at the bank

Hausa does not have articles like English “a, an, the.” Definiteness (whether it’s “a bank” or “the bank”) is usually understood from context. So:

a banki can mean:
- in a bank
- in the bank

Depending on the situation.

Can a here also mean “to a bank,” or only “in/at a bank”?

In this sentence, a banki is best understood as “in/at the bank” (location of where the money is kept).

For movement to a place, Hausa more often uses:

zuwa – to, towards
- ya kai kuɗi zuwa banki – he took money to a bank
Or just a bare noun after a verb of movement:
- ya je banki – he went to the bank

So:

ya ajiye rabin albashinsa a banki → he put/saved half his salary in/at the bank, not “to the bank.”

If the subject were feminine or plural, how would the sentence change?

You mainly change the subject pronoun(s):

Feminine singular (“she”)

Ta yi ƙuduri ta ajiye rabin albashinta a banki.
- ta = she (perfective)
- albashinta = her salary

Plural (“they”)

Sun yi ƙuduri su ajiye rabin albashinsu a banki.
- sun = they (perfective)
- su ajiye = they (should) put/save
- albashinsu = their salary

Notice for plural, the second verb often takes su instead of another sun, because it’s moving into a subordinate / intention-like clause:
sun yi ƙuduri su ajiye… → they decided (that) they will save…

Is there a more explicit way in Hausa to say “He decided to put half his salary in the bank”?

Yes, you can make the “decide” and the “to” relationship more explicit, for example:

Ya yi ƙudurin ajiye rabin albashinsa a banki.
- Here ƙuduri takes the linker -n → ƙudurin, followed directly by the verbal noun ajiyE / ajiyewa (variant forms: many speakers would say ajiyewa):
  - ƙudurin ajiyewar rabin albashinsa a banki – the decision to save half his salary in the bank.

Or use a common idiom:

Ya yanke shawara zai ajiye rabin albashinsa a banki.
- ya yanke shawara – he made a decision
- zai ajiye – he will save/put

Your original sentence Ya yi ƙuduri ya ajiye rabin albashinsa a banki is already natural; these are just slightly more explicit stylistic options.