Ndiko tulikokaa jana jioni.

That is where we sat yesterday evening.

Breakdown of Ndiko tulikokaa jana jioni.

• ndiko: that is where
• tulikokaa: where we sat
• jana jioni: yesterday evening

Questions & Answers about Ndiko tulikokaa jana jioni.

What does Ndiko add to the sentence?

It’s an emphatic locative copula meaning “it’s exactly there/that place.” So Ndiko tulikokaa jana jioni is “That’s exactly where we sat/stayed yesterday evening,” with focus on the place.

How is tulikokaa built morphologically?

It’s: tu- (we) + -li- (past) + -ko- (locative relative “where”) + kaa (sit/stay). So tulikokaa means “where we sat/stayed.”

Why is there a -ko- in the verb? Why not just tulikaa?

Because Ndiko introduces a focused location that must be picked up by a locative relative in the verb: “That is where we sat.” Without the relative, tulikaa just says “we sat,” not “where we sat.” If you drop the focus construction, you can say: Tulikaa huko/hapo jana jioni (“We sat there yesterday evening”).

Is Ndiko a verb?

No. It’s a copular focus form (think of “it is (precisely) there”). It agrees with the locative class -ko and doesn’t carry tense. The tense is inside the verb (-li- in tulikokaa).

What’s the difference between ndiko, ndipo, and ndimo?

• ndiko: emphatic “there” in a general/distant/unspecified area sense (locative class -ko).
• ndipo: emphatic “at that specific spot/point” or “then” (locative -po; often more definite/specific).
• ndimo: emphatic “inside (that place)” (locative -mo). Each requires the verb’s relative marker to match: ndiko… tulikokaa, ndipo… tulipokaa, ndimo… tulimokaa.

What’s the difference among the locative relatives -po, -ko, and -mo?

• -po: specific/definite spot or time (“at the (known) place/when”).
• -ko: general or more distant/unspecified area (“there (in general)”).
• -mo: inside an enclosed space (“in/inside”). Choose the one that matches the sense/location you want to emphasize.

Can I say the same idea without the cleft/focus?

Yes:

• Tulikaa huko jana jioni. (We sat/stayed there yesterday evening.)
• Tulikaa hapo jana jioni. (We sat/stayed right there yesterday evening.) With focus on a demonstrative: Huko ndiko tulikokaa jana jioni. / Hapo ndipo tulipokaa jana jioni.

Does kaa mean “sit” or “stay”?

Both, depending on context:

• Short-term posture: “sit” (e.g., kaa chini = sit down).
• Remain/reside: “stay, live” (e.g., anakaa Dar = he lives in Dar es Salaam). With a time phrase like jana jioni, it could be “sat” or “stayed,” depending on context.

Why jana jioni and not jana usiku?

• jioni = evening (roughly late afternoon to early night).
• usiku = night (after dark/late). So jana jioni is “yesterday evening,” not “last night.”

Where can the time phrase go?

It most commonly comes at the end: Ndiko tulikokaa jana jioni. You can front it for topicalization: Jana jioni ndiko tulikokaa, but the neutral, smooth option is to leave it at the end.

How do I negate this: “That’s not where we sat yesterday evening”?

Use si/sio with a locative, keeping relative agreement:

• Sio huko tulikokaa jana jioni. (general/distant)
• Si hapo tulipokaa jana jioni. (specific spot)
• Sio humo tulimokaa jana jioni. (inside)

Can tulikokaa stand alone?

Not as a full main clause. It’s a relative clause meaning “where we sat/stayed.” It must attach to something, e.g., Ndiko tulikokaa… or modify a noun: Mahali tulipokaa jana jioni (“the place where we sat yesterday evening”).