Learn Hardcore Swahili: Chapisho jipya lina habari za sayansi. - The new publication has news about science.

It literally means new publication, new post, new issue or new edition, depending on context (for example a magazine issue, blog post, newsletter, etc.).

Why isn’t mpya used instead of jipya?

Swahili adjectives must agree with the noun class of the word they modify. The root for “new” is pya. For a class 5 noun like chapisho, you attach the class 5 adjective prefix ji-, giving jipya. (By contrast, class 1 uses m- → mpya, class 2 wa- → wapya, class 6 ma- → mapya, and so on.)

What does lina mean, and why is it lina rather than ina or una?

lina comes from the verb ku-na (“to have/contain”). The li- part is the subject-marker for a class 5 noun (here chapisho), and -na is the present-tense marker. So lina = “it has” or “it contains.”

Why habari za sayansi and not habari ya sayansi?

habari (“news”) is treated as a plural noun in noun class 9/10, so the correct genitive/linking particle is za for that class. Hence habari za sayansi = “news of science.” If habari were in a singular class (it isn’t), you’d use ya instead.

Could I say habari za kisayansi instead of habari za sayansi?

You could, but the nuance shifts. sayansi is the noun “science,” so habari za sayansi = “news about science.” kisayansi is the adjective “scientific” (class 7), so habari za kisayansi = “news that is scientific.”

What is the plural of chapisho, and how would the sentence change?

The plural of chapisho is machapisho. The sentence becomes: Machapisho mapya yana habari za sayansi. Here ma- is the class 6 prefix, -mapya is “new,” and yana is the class 6 present-tense “they have.”

Is the word order in Swahili the same as in English?

Not quite. Swahili usually follows Noun + Adjective rather than Adjective + Noun, so you say chapisho jipya (“publication new”). Also the verb (with its subject marker) comes after the noun phrase.