Learn Hardcore Swahili: Ujumbe wa sauti uliomfikia jana usiku ni mfupi. - The voice message that reached her last night is short.

ujumbe = “message”
- Noun class: u‑/ (class 11/14)
To say “message of voice” (= voice message), you use a possessive connector that agrees with the head noun (ujumbe).

Possessive connectors:

Class 1 (mtu): wa
Class 3 (mti): wa
Class 7 (kitu): cha
Class 11/14 (ujumbe, uzuri, utoto, etc.): wa

So:

ujumbe wa sauti = “message of voice” → “voice message”
kitabu cha Kiswahili = “Swahili book”
habari za leo = “today’s news” (class 10, so za)

You use wa because ujumbe belongs to a class whose possessive form is wa.

How is uliomfikia formed exactly? What are all the parts of this word?

uliomfikia is a relative verb form. Broken down:

u‑li‑o‑m‑fik‑i‑a

u‑ = subject marker for class 11/14 (agrees with ujumbe)
‑li‑ = past tense marker (“did / ‑ed”)
‑o‑ = relative marker (“that / which”)
‑m‑ = object marker for him/her (3rd person singular)
fik = verb root of fika (“to arrive; to reach”)
‑i‑a = applicative extension ‑ia, roughly “reach to/for (someone)”

Literal structure:
ujumbe u‑li‑o‑m‑fik‑ia = the message that (it‑past‑rel‑him‑reach‑to)

Natural English:
“the message that reached him/her”.

Why is there an ‑o‑ in uliomfikia? What does it do?

The ‑o‑ is the relative marker. It turns a normal verb form into a relative clause (“that / which / who …”).

Compare:

ulimfikia = u‑li‑m‑fik‑ia
- “it reached him/her” (full clause, not relative)
uliomfikia = u‑li‑o‑m‑fik‑ia
- “that reached him/her” (relative form describing a noun)

So:

Ujumbe wa sauti uliomfikia jana usiku…
“The voice message that reached him/her last night…”

Without ‑o‑, it would no longer be a relative clause modifying ujumbe.

What exactly does mfikia (from uliomfikia) mean compared to just fika?

fika = “to arrive” (intransitive, no direct object)
- Treni imefika. = “The train has arrived.”
fikia = “to reach (a place/point/person)” (more transitive / directional)
- Habari hii itamfikia lini? = “When will this news reach him/her?”
- Tulifkia mwisho wa barabara. = “We reached the end of the road.”

Then you add an object marker:

mfikia = m‑fik‑i‑a → “reach (to) him/her”

In our sentence, ulio‑m‑fikia → “that reached him/her”.

What does the m‑ in uliomfikia stand for?

The m‑ is the object marker for 3rd person singular (him/her).

Object markers in Swahili:

ni‑ = me
ku‑ = you (sg.)
m‑ = him/her
tu‑ = us
wa‑ = them

So:

alimwona = a‑li‑m‑wona → “he/she saw him/her”
alimfikia = a‑li‑m‑fik‑ia → “he/she reached him/her”

In uliomfikia:

u‑li‑o‑m‑fik‑ia
= it‑past‑rel‑him/her‑reach‑to
= “that reached him/her”.

Why is the verb uliomfikia right after wa sauti instead of at the end of the sentence like in English?

In Swahili, a relative verb usually comes right after the noun phrase it describes.

Structure here:

Ujumbe wa sauti → “the voice message”
uliomfikia jana usiku → “that reached him/her last night” (relative clause)
ni mfupi → “is short” (main clause)

So the pattern is:

[Noun phrase] + [relative verb phrase] + [main predicate]

Compare:

Mtu aliyekuja jana ni mwalimu.
“The person who came yesterday is a teacher.”

Same pattern: mtu + aliyekuja jana + ni mwalimu.

In English, we tend to push the relative clause after the entire noun phrase as well, so this part is actually quite parallel, just that the relative marking is inside the verb in Swahili.

Why is it mfupi and not just fupi?

Adjectives in Swahili agree with the noun class of the noun they describe. The adjective ‑fupi (“short”) uses different forms depending on the class:

Class 1: mfupi – mtu mfupi (a short person)
Class 3: mfupi – mti mfupi (a short tree)
Class 11/14 (ujumbe): also mfupi – ujumbe mfupi (a short message)
Class 7: kifupi – kifungu kifupi (a short passage)
Class 10: fupi – barua fupi (a short letter)

Since ujumbe is in a u‑ class that takes the m‑ agreement pattern for adjectives, we say:

ujumbe mfupi = “a short message”

So mfupi is the correct agreement form of the adjective for ujumbe.

What is the role of ni in ni mfupi? Why not use a verb like kuwa?

ni is the copula “to be” used in equational sentences (X is Y).

In the present tense and simple statements, Swahili normally uses ni, not kuwa, for “is/are”:

Yeye ni mwalimu. = “He/She is a teacher.”
Jiji hili ni kubwa. = “This city is big.”
Ujumbe huu ni mfupi. = “This message is short.”

The verb kuwa (“to be, to become”) is used:

With other tenses/aspects:
- alikuwa mwalimu = “he/she was a teacher”
- atakuwa mrefu = “he/she will be tall”
In certain constructions (e.g., infinitives, kuwa na = “to have”).

In this simple present descriptive sentence, ni mfupi is the natural choice.

Could I also say Ujumbe wa sauti alioupokea jana usiku ni mfupi? Is that equivalent?

Yes, that sentence is also grammatically correct, but there are two main differences:

Different verb and perspective
- uliomfikia = “that reached him/her”
- alioupokea = “that he/she received”
uliomfikia focuses on the message reaching him/her.
alioupokea focuses on his/her act of receiving the message.
Different subject of the relative verb
- uliomfikia
  - Subject: ujumbe (class 11) → u‑
  - Object: m‑ (him/her)
- alioupokea
  - Subject: he/she → a‑
  - Object: ‑u‑ (it = the message)
Breakdown of alioupokea: > a‑li‑o‑u‑poke‑a
> he/she‑past‑rel‑it‑receive‑fv
> “that he/she received (it)”

So they are very close in meaning and often interchangeable in context, but the grammatical focus is slightly different.

Can mfupi be used for both things and people, or only for lengths?

mfupi is fairly flexible and can be used for:

Physical height (people/animals/plants)
- mtoto mfupi = a short child
- mti mfupi = a short tree
Length / duration (things and time)
- ujumbe mfupi = a short message
- filamu fupi = a short film
- likizo fupi = a short holiday

In this sentence, it describes the length of the message, not a person. Context usually makes the meaning clear.

Can jana usiku move in the sentence, and is there any difference with usiku wa jana?

Yes, jana usiku is a time phrase meaning “last night”, and it is fairly flexible in position:

Ujumbe wa sauti uliomfikia jana usiku ni mfupi.
Jana usiku, ujumbe wa sauti uliomfikia ni mfupi.
Ujumbe wa sauti, uliomfikia jana usiku, ni mfupi. (more written/formal with commas)

All are possible; changes are mainly in emphasis and style, not basic meaning.

As for jana usiku vs usiku wa jana:

jana usiku = last night (everyday, very common)
usiku wa jana = literally “the night of yesterday” → also “last night”, a bit more explicit/”formal-sounding” in some contexts.

Both can be understood as “last night”, and in this sentence jana usiku is the most natural, conversational choice.