Learn Hardcore Swahili: Watoto wanapiga tarumbeta viwanjani tangu asubuhi. - The children have been playing trumpets in the fields since morning.

• wa- is the subject‐agreement marker for noun class 2 (plural humans); it agrees with watoto (children).
• -na- is the present‐tense (habitual/progressive) marker. So wanapiga literally breaks down as wa- (they) + -na- (now/usually) + piga (strike/blow), yielding “they are blowing/they blow.”

Why is tarumbeta not pluralized like matarumbeta (adding a plural prefix)?

tarumbeta is a loanword assigned to noun class 9, which typically uses the same form for singular and plural. Many borrowed instrument names (e.g. filamu, popota) follow this pattern, so you don’t add ma- here.

How is viwanjani formed, and why does it mean “in the fields”?

• viwanja = “fields” (plural of uwanja, noun class 8).
• -ni is the locative suffix meaning “in/at.”
Combine them: viwanja + -ni → viwanjani = “in the fields.”

What role does tangu play in tangu asubuhi?

tangu means “since” and marks the starting point of an action that continues up to the present. Thus tangu asubuhi = “since morning.”

Could I use kuanzia instead of tangu? What’s the difference?

• kuanzia also means “starting from,” but it’s often used in more formal or narrative contexts (e.g. Kuanzia asubuhi, watoto walicheza).
• tangu is the go-to for “since” in everyday speech when linking a time point to an ongoing action: tangu asubuhi.

Why is the verb piga used with an instrument like tarumbeta? It usually means “to hit.”

In Swahili kupiga literally means “to strike/hit,” and by extension it’s the common verb for “playing” many instruments:
• kupiga ngoma = to play drums
• kupiga tarumbeta = to blow/play the trumpet

Is the word order flexible? Could I say Tangu asubuhi watoto wanapiga tarumbeta viwanjani?

Yes. Swahili allows you to front adverbial phrases for emphasis or style. The neutral order is Subject-Verb-Object-Locative, but moving tangu asubuhi to the front is perfectly natural.

What nuance changes if I switch wanapiga (present) to walipiga (past)?

• wanapiga (with -na-) conveys a present/habitual or ongoing action: “they are/they have been blowing.”
• walipiga (with li-) is simple past: “they blew” (completed action).