Gazeti hili linaanza kuandikwa asubuhi.

This newspaper starts to be written in the morning.

Breakdown of Gazeti hili linaanza kuandikwa asubuhi.

• asubuhi: in the morning
• hili: this
• kuanza: to start
• gazeti: the newspaper
• kuandikwa: to be written

Questions & Answers about Gazeti hili linaanza kuandikwa asubuhi.

What exactly does linaanza mean, and how is it built?

Linaanza means “is starting / begins” and is made of three parts:

• li- = subject prefix for class 5 nouns (like gazeti, “newspaper”)
• -na- = present tense marker (roughly “is …ing / does”)
• -anza = verb root “to start / to begin”

So gazeti hili linaanza… literally: “this newspaper it-present-starts …” → “this newspaper begins / is beginning …”

Why is the subject prefix li- used in linaanza instead of i- or ki-?

Because gazeti belongs to noun class 5 in Swahili, and class 5 takes:

• Subject prefix: li- (singular)
• Plural class (6): magazeti, subject prefix ya-

Examples:

• Gazeti hili linaanza… – This newspaper begins…
• Magazeti haya yanaanza… – These newspapers begin…

Forms like inaanza (class 9/10) or kinaanza (class 7/8) would be wrong with gazeti.

What does kuandikwa mean, and how is it formed?

Kuandikwa means “to be written”.

It’s composed of:

• ku- = infinitive marker (to … / -ing)
• -andika = root “to write”
• -w- → -kwa here: passive suffix (-w- + -a) = “to be …-ed”

So:

• kuandika = to write
• kuandikwa = to be written

In the sentence, linaanza kuandikwa = “(it) begins to be written.”

Why do we use the passive kuandikwa and not the active kuandika?

Because the focus is on the newspaper, not on the writer(s).

• Gazeti hili linaanza kuandikwa asubuhi.
  = This newspaper begins to be written in the morning.
  (We don’t say who writes it.)

Active version would need a subject who writes:

• Waandishi wanaanza kuliandika gazeti hili asubuhi.
  = The journalists begin to write this newspaper in the morning.

So kuandikwa is used when you want to talk about what happens to the newspaper itself, not what the writers do.

Why do we have two verbs in a row: linaanza kuandikwa?

This is very common in Swahili with verbs like anza (start), anza, anza ku-, endelea (continue), jaribu (try), etc.

Pattern:

• [main verb with subject + tense] + ku- + [second verb]

Here:

• linaanza (it begins) + kuandikwa (to be written)

So it works like English “begins to be written” or “starts being written”.
The second verb must be in its infinitive form with ku-.

Can I drop the ku- and say Gazeti hili linaanza andikwa asubuhi?

No, that would be ungrammatical in standard Swahili.

After verbs like anza, taka, penda, omba, etc., the following verb normally appears as an infinitive with ku-:

• linaanza kuandikwa – it begins to be written
• anapenda kuandika – he/she likes to write
• wanajaribu kusoma – they are trying to read

So kuandikwa must keep the ku- here.

What exactly does the tense -na- express in linaanza? Is it “is beginning” or “begins”?

The -na- tense marker can cover both English ideas:

• Ongoing present: “is beginning”
• General / near-present: “begins”

Context decides which English form sounds better.
In practice, linaanza can be translated as either:

• This newspaper is beginning to be written in the morning.
• This newspaper begins to be written in the morning.

If you clearly want future, you change -na- to -ta-:

• Gazeti hili litaanza kuandikwa asubuhi.
  = This newspaper will begin to be written in the morning.

How would I say this sentence in the plural: “These newspapers begin to be written in the morning”?

You change both the noun and the agreement:

• Gazeti hili linaanza kuandikwa asubuhi.
  → singular, class 5 (gazeti)

Plural, class 6 (magazeti):

• Magazeti haya yanaanza kuandikwa asubuhi.
  
  • magazeti – class 6 plural
  • haya – “these” for class 6
  • yanaanza – ya- (class 6 subject prefix) + -naanza

Why is hili used with gazeti, and can I omit it?

Hili is the demonstrative “this” for class 5 nouns:

• Class 5: gazeti hili – this newspaper
• Class 6: magazeti haya – these newspapers

You can omit hili if you don’t need to say “this” specifically:

• Gazeti linaanza kuandikwa asubuhi.
  = The newspaper begins to be written in the morning.

Including hili just makes it specific: this particular newspaper.

What does asubuhi do here, and why is there no preposition like “in” before it?

Asubuhi means “morning” / “in the morning” and here it functions as a time expression:

• Gazeti hili linaanza kuandikwa asubuhi.
  = This newspaper begins to be written *in the morning.*

For many time words in Swahili (jana, leo, kesho, asubuhi, mchana, jioni, usiku), you don’t need a preposition like “in / at / on”:

• Ninafika jioni. – I arrive in the evening.
• Anaondoka kesho. – He/She leaves tomorrow.

You can move asubuhi for emphasis:

• Asubuhi, gazeti hili linaanza kuandikwa. – In the morning, this newspaper begins to be written.