Hukumar ta hukunta wakili.

The authority punished the representative.

Breakdown of Hukumar ta hukunta wakili.

• ta: she/it
• hukuma: the authority; official body
• wakili: the representative; agent
• hukunta: to punish; judge

Questions & Answers about Hukumar ta hukunta wakili.

Why is it hukumar and not just hukuma?

Hukuma is the basic noun. The ending -r is a Hausa determiner ending used with many feminine singular nouns, so hukumar often means something like the authority or that authority.

It is not exactly the same as English the, but that is often the closest way to think about it.

What exactly is ta doing in this sentence?

Here ta is a subject marker before the verb. In this sentence it marks 3rd person feminine singular in the completive aspect.

So ta hukunta means roughly she/it punished or she/it has punished, depending on context.

Why do we need ta if hukumar already tells us who the subject is?

Because Hausa normally uses this preverbal subject marker even when the subject noun is already stated.

So Hausa commonly says:

Hukumar ta hukunta wakili.

not simply:

Hukumar hukunta wakili.

To an English speaker this can feel repetitive, but it is normal Hausa grammar.

Why is the marker ta and not ya?

Because hukuma is a noun in Hausa, and the agreement marker has to match that gender.