Learn Hardcore Swahili: Mwalimu wetu ni mtu wa haki.

It is most commonly used for school teachers, lecturers, etc.
It can also be used respectfully for someone who teaches you something important (like a mentor), depending on context.
Grammatically, mwalimu belongs to the M-WA noun class (class 1/2 for people).

How does wetu work, and why does it come after mwalimu?

Wetu means our and is a possessive adjective.

In Swahili, possessives usually follow the noun, unlike English.
- mwalimu wetu = our teacher
-etu is the root meaning our, and it takes different prefixes depending on the noun class:
- mwalimu wetu (our teacher – person class)
- kitabu chetu (our book – ki/vi class)
Here, we- agrees with the noun class of mwalimu (M-WA class).

What is the function of ni in this sentence?

Ni is the copula in Swahili; it links the subject with what is being said about it, similar to the English verb to be in sentences like X is Y.

Mwalimu wetu ni mtu wa haki.
Literally: Our teacher is a person of justice / righteousness.
In present tense equational sentences (X = Y), Swahili often uses ni and does not add a tense marker.
There is no separate word here meaning is; ni itself does that job.

What does mtu mean, and why is it mtu instead of muntu or something else?

Mtu means person or human being.

It belongs to the M-WA noun class (class 1 for singular people):
- singular: mtu (person)
- plural: watu (people)
Historically some Bantu languages have mu-, but in standard Swahili it’s m-, so you get mtu, not muntu.

Why do we have wa in mtu wa haki? What does wa mean here?

Wa is a genitive preposition meaning something like of or indicating a descriptive/possessive relationship.

mtu wa haki literally: a person of justice / righteousness
This structure is very common in Swahili for “X of Y” or “Y-type X”:
- mji wa Dar es Salaam – the city of Dar es Salaam
- mtu wa huruma – a compassionate person
Wa is specifically used with nouns in certain noun classes (including the M-WA and N classes). Other classes use ya, la, cha, vya, etc. depending on agreement.

What does haki mean, and does it only mean “justice”?

Haki most commonly means justice or rights. In this sentence, it is often understood as righteousness or uprightness, depending on context.

Some common meanings and uses:

haki – justice, fairness
haki za binadamu – human rights
haki ya kupiga kura – the right to vote

In mtu wa haki, it describes someone who is just, fair, upright in character.

Why is there no word for “the” or “a” in Mwalimu wetu ni mtu wa haki?

Swahili usually does not use separate words for “a” or “the”. Articles are understood from context, not from a specific word.

mwalimu wetu can mean our teacher, the teacher of ours, or sometimes even one of our teachers, depending on context.
mtu wa haki can mean a just person or the just person, again depending on context.

So when translating, you choose a/the based on what makes sense in English, not because of a specific Swahili word.

Could I say Mwalimu wetu ni haki instead of mtu wa haki?

No, that would not mean the same thing and would sound wrong in this context.

Mwalimu wetu ni mtu wa haki = Our teacher is a just / righteous person.
Mwalimu wetu ni haki would be closer to Our teacher is justice/rights, as if the teacher is the abstract concept itself, which is not the intended meaning.

In Swahili, you typically use mtu wa + [quality] to describe someone’s character:

mtu wa kazi – a hard-working person
mtu wa amani – a peaceful person
mtu wa haki – a just/righteous person

Why is mwalimu singular while wetu seems plural (our)? Is that okay?

Yes, that is correct and normal.

Mwalimu – one teacher (singular)
wetu – our (belonging to us, which is plural)

So the sentence is referring to one teacher who belongs to a group of people (us). This is the same as in English: our teacher (one teacher, many owners).

How would this sentence change if I wanted to say “Our teachers are people of justice”?

You would need to pluralize mwalimu and mtu, and keep the agreement:

Walimu wetu ni watu wa haki.
- walimu – teachers (plural of mwalimu)
- wetu – our (same form, but now it agrees with class 2 in a way that is neutral in form here)
- watu – people (plural of mtu)
- wa haki – of justice/righteousness (no change)

So the structure stays the same, but mwalimu → walimu and mtu → watu.

Why is it mtu wa haki and not mtu ya haki or mtu la haki?

Because mtu is in the M-WA noun class, and the genitive connector for this class is wa.

Very simplified rule:

For M-WA (people) class nouns like mtu, mwalimu, mtoto, use wa:
- mtu wa haki – person of justice
- mwalimu wa Kiswahili – Swahili teacher
For other classes, the connector changes, for example:
- kitabu cha Kiswahili – Swahili book (KI-VI class uses cha/vya)
- gari la mtoto – the child’s car (JI-MA class uses la/ya)

So wa is required here by mtu’s noun class.

Word-for-word, how would you gloss Mwalimu wetu ni mtu wa haki?

A fairly literal gloss would be:

Mwalimu – teacher
wetu – our
ni – is (copula)
mtu – person
wa – of (genitive)
haki – justice / righteousness

So: Teacher our is person of justice.
Natural English: Our teacher is a just/righteous person.

Is there any difference in emphasis between Mwalimu wetu ni mtu wa haki and saying something like Mwalimu wetu ni mwenye haki?

Yes, there is a small nuance difference.

mtu wa haki – literally a person of justice; a common idiomatic way to say a just / upright person.
mwenye haki – more literally one who has/possesses justice/rights.

Mwalimu wetu ni mtu wa haki sounds very natural and is probably the more common and straightforward way to describe someone’s character as just or righteous.

Mwalimu wetu ni mwenye haki is understandable and can be used, but it can lean slightly more toward having rights/entitlements or being in the right, depending on context.