Majira ya mchana yalikuwa na joto, kwa hiyo tulikaa kivulini.

The midday period was hot, so we stayed in the shade.

Breakdown of Majira ya mchana yalikuwa na joto, kwa hiyo tulikaa kivulini.

• sisi: we
• kuwa na: to have
• katika: in
• kwa hiyo: so
• kukaa: to stay
• kivuli: the shade
• joto: the heat
• majira ya mchana: the midday period

Questions & Answers about Majira ya mchana yalikuwa na joto, kwa hiyo tulikaa kivulini.

What does majira ya mchana mean?

Majira means “period” or “season,” and mchana means “midday” or “afternoon.” So majira ya mchana is “the midday period” or simply “the afternoon.”

Why is it majira ya mchana and not majira za mchana?

Swahili places a linking particle between two nouns that must match the class of the first noun.

• majira belongs to noun class 6 (prefix ma-).
• Class 6 takes the linker ya.
  Hence majira ya mchana, not majira za mchana.

Why is the verb yalikuwa used instead of ilikuwa?

Verbs in Swahili agree with the noun class of their subject.

• majira (class 6) triggers the subject prefix ya-.
• The past‐tense marker -li- plus the stem -kuwa- (“to be”) yields ya-li-kuwa → yalikuwa.

What is the function of na in yalikuwa na joto?

Swahili uses kuwa na (“to have” or “to be with”) to express states or possession.

• ilikuwa na joto = “it had heat” = “it was hot.”
  Here yalikuwa na joto means “the midday period was hot.”

Is joto a noun or an adjective?

Joto is a noun meaning “heat” or “hotness.” English treats hot as an adjective, but Swahili says kuwa na joto (“to have heat”) instead of using an adjective.

What does kwa hiyo mean?

Kwa hiyo is a conjunction meaning “therefore,” “so,” or “for that reason.” It links the cause (“it was hot”) to the effect (“we sat in the shade”).

How is tulikaa formed? Why does it have two a’s?

Tulikaa breaks down as:

• tu- = 1st person plural (“we”)
• -li- = past‐tense marker
• -kaa- = verb stem “to sit” or “to stay”
• -a = final vowel
  Because the stem -kaa- ends in aa, the result is tulikaa with two a’s.

What does kivulini mean and why the -ni ending?

Kivuli is a class 7 noun meaning “shade.” Adding the locative suffix -ni gives “in the shade.” So kivulini = “in the shade.”

Could I say tukakaa kwenye kivuli instead of tulikaa kivulini?

Yes.

• tulikaa kivulini uses the simple past marker -li- and the locative -ni.
• tukakaa kwenye kivuli uses the narrative/temporal marker -ka- (“then we sat”) and kwenye
  • noun.
    Both mean “we sat in the shade,” though tukakaa often reads like “and then we sat” in a story.