Na ɗauki ƙuduri in taimaka wa talakawa.

I have made a resolution to help poor people.

Breakdown of Na ɗauki ƙuduri in taimaka wa talakawa.

• wa: to
• taimaka: to help
• ɗauki: to take
• talaka: the poor person
• ƙuduri: the resolution

Questions & Answers about Na ɗauki ƙuduri in taimaka wa talakawa.

What exactly does Na mean here? Is it just “I”?

In this sentence Na means “I (have) [done something]” in the completed (perfective) tense.

• It is both:
  • a subject pronoun (I)
  • and a past / completed aspect marker.

So Na ɗauki ƙuduri literally = “I took a resolution / decision”, usually understood as “I have decided” or “I made a decision.”

If you just want the independent pronoun “I” (not tied to a verb), you use ni:

• Ni ne malami. – I am the teacher.

What does ɗauki ƙuduri literally mean, and is it a fixed expression?

• ɗauki = to take, pick up, adopt
• ƙuduri = resolution, determination, firm decision

So literally ɗauki ƙuduri = “take a resolution / decision”, which corresponds to English “make a decision / resolve”.

It functions much like a collocation:

• Na ɗauki ƙuduri – I made a (firm) decision / resolution.

There is a similar expression:

• Na yanke shawara. – also I made a decision.

ɗauki ƙuduri often suggests a rather serious, firm determination.

How should I understand in in Na ɗauki ƙuduri in taimaka wa talakawa?

Here in is a subjunctive / purposive particle meaning roughly “that I should / to”.

So:

• Na ɗauki ƙuduri – I made a decision
• in taimaka wa talakawa – that I should help the poor / to help the poor

Putting it together: “I made a decision to help the poor.”

Compare:

• Na ɗauki ƙuduri in tafi. – I decided (that I should) go / I decided to go.
• Na ɗauki ƙuduri in yi karatu. – I decided to study.

Why do we need wa in taimaka wa talakawa? What does it do?

wa is a preposition that usually marks an indirect object, often translated as “to / for”.

• taimaka on its own = “to help” (in general).
• taimaka wa talakawa = “help the poor (people)” (help to/for the poor).

So wa points to who receives the help.

You will see both patterns:

• taimaka wa mutum – help a person
• taimaki mutum – also help a person, but here the verb changes form and directly takes an object (taimaka → taimaki).

Both are correct; many learners find taimaka wa X simpler at first.

What is talakawa exactly? Is it singular or plural?

talakawa is plural.

• Singular: talaka – a commoner, an ordinary / poor person
• Plural: talakawa – common people, the masses, the poor

In the sentence:

• taimaka wa talakawa = “help the poor / help the common people.”

Nuance: talakawa often carries a social-class idea: the ordinary, non-elite, usually poor majority, not just “people who have no money.”

Is the sentence talking about a past decision, or something like “I have decided” (present relevance)?

Na ɗauki ƙuduri uses the perfective (completed) form, which usually corresponds to English “I did X / I have done X.”

So it can mean:

• “I made a decision (already).”
  or, very commonly in context:
• “I have decided…” (with present relevance – the decision now stands).

The exact English tense (simple past vs. present perfect) depends on context, but in Hausa it’s the same form na + verb.

Could I replace in with don and say Na ɗauki ƙuduri don taimaka wa talakawa? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say:

• Na ɗauki ƙuduri don taimaka wa talakawa.

don here means “for / in order to”, so it also gives a purpose meaning.

Subtle difference:

• in taimaka wa talakawa
  – more like “that I should help the poor / to help the poor”, tied to the subject’s own action (I decide that I will help).

• don taimaka wa talakawa
  – more like “for the purpose of helping the poor”, more general purpose marker.

In everyday speech, both can be understood as “I decided to help the poor”, but in is more tightly linked to the subject’s intended action.

Can I change the word order, like Na ɗauki ƙuduri zan taimaka wa talakawa?

You can say:

• Na ɗauki ƙuduri zan taimaka wa talakawa.

Here zan taimaka = “I will help” (future), so the sentence becomes:

• “I made a decision: I will help the poor.”

This is grammatically fine, but note:

• in taimaka (subjunctive) sounds more like “to help” / “that I should help.”
• zan taimaka introduces explicit future tense (“I will help”).

So:

• Na ɗauki ƙuduri in taimaka wa talakawa.
  – I decided to help the poor.
• Na ɗauki ƙuduri zan taimaka wa talakawa.
  – I decided (that) I will help the poor. (a bit more explicit future).

How do I pronounce the special consonants ɗ and ƙ in ɗauki ƙuduri?

Both are implosive / ejective consonants that do not exist in standard English, but you can approximate them:

• ɗ: a kind of implosive “d”

  • Put your tongue as for an English d, but gently suck air inward as you voice it.
  • Approximation if you cannot do that: a clear /d/ sound (but learners are encouraged to practice the real ɗ).

• ƙ: an ejective / glottalized “k”

  • Tongue position like k, but produced with a small glottal “pop” and no aspiration.
  • Approximation: a sharp unaspirated k (no puff of air).

So:

• ɗauki ≈ dauki but with a special ɗ
• ƙuduri ≈ kuduri but with a tighter k sound (ƙ).

If I wanted to say “I made a decision to help him / them”, how would I change the sentence?

You keep the first part and change the object in the taimaka phrase:

• Na ɗauki ƙuduri in taimaka masa.
  – I decided to help him (or sometimes her, depending on context).

  • masa = ma + shi (to him).

• Na ɗauki ƙuduri in taimaka musu.
  – I decided to help them.

  • musu = ma + su (to them).

Using a noun instead of a pronoun:

• Na ɗauki ƙuduri in taimaka wa malamai. – I decided to help the teachers.
• Na ɗauki ƙuduri in taimaka wa iyalina. – I decided to help my family.

Could I leave out ƙuduri and just say Na ɗauki in taimaka wa talakawa?

No, that would be ungrammatical or at least very odd.

• ɗauki needs a direct object (what you “take”).
• In Na ɗauki ƙuduri, that object is ƙuduri (a resolution).

If you want a simpler structure without ƙuduri, you would normally change the verb:

• Na yanke shawara in taimaka wa talakawa. – I made a decision to help the poor.
• Or even: Na yanke shawara zan taimaka wa talakawa. – I decided I will help the poor.

But Na ɗauki in taimaka… by itself is not correct.