Bibi mkarimu anawapa wajukuu wake zawadi.

In Swahili, adjectives usually come after the noun they describe.

So:

• bibi mkarimu = generous grandmother
• literally: grandmother generous

This is normal Swahili word order for noun + adjective.

Examples:

• mtoto mdogo = small child
• watu wengi = many people

The m- shows agreement with a singular human/animate noun.

Even though bibi does not begin with m-, it behaves like a singular person noun, so the adjective agrees with it:

• bibi mkarimu = a/the generous grandmother
• compare:
  • mtu mkarimu = a generous person
  • watu wakarimu = generous people

So the adjective changes to match the noun class of bibi.

anawapa can be broken down like this:

• a- = he/she
• -na- = present tense
• -wa- = them
• -pa = give

So anawapa means roughly:

• he/she gives them
• he/she is giving them

In this sentence, because the subject is bibi, it is understood as she.

The verb prefix a- in Swahili means he or she. Swahili does not mark gender in the third-person singular verb.

So:

• anawapa = he gives them / she gives them / he is giving them / she is giving them

We know it is she here because the subject is bibi, which refers to a grandmother.

Great question. The -wa- is an object marker meaning them, and wajukuu wake is the full noun phrase her grandchildren.

In Swahili, it is very common to use both:

• the object marker in the verb
• and the full noun after the verb

This is especially common when the object is specific and especially when it is human/animate.

So the sentence is not awkward or redundant in Swahili. It is a very natural pattern.

Swahili often does not use a separate word like English to with the verb -pa (to give).

Instead, the recipient is built into the verb and/or shown directly as a noun phrase:

• anawapa = she gives them
• wajukuu wake = her grandchildren
• zawadi = gifts

So Swahili expresses give someone something directly, rather than necessarily using a separate to.

Yes. wake here means his/her/their, depending on context.

Swahili possessives do not show gender the way English does. So wake can mean:

• his
• her
• sometimes their in the right context

Here it means her because the possessor is bibi.

Also, the possessive agrees with the thing possessed, not with the owner. Since wajukuu is plural human, the form is wake:

• mjukuu wake = his/her grandchild
• wajukuu wake = his/her grandchildren

Swahili does not have articles like English a, an, and the.

So bibi can mean:

• a grandmother
• the grandmother

The exact meaning depends on context.

That is very normal in Swahili, and learners quickly get used to it.

zawadi can be singular or plural. Its form often stays the same.

So:

• zawadi = gift
• zawadi = gifts

Context tells you which meaning is intended.

If you want to make it clearer, other words can help:

• zawadi moja = one gift
• zawadi nyingi = many gifts

This is common with many Swahili nouns.

It can mean either, depending on context.

The tense marker -na- is often used for the present in a broad sense, so it may be translated as:

• she is giving
• she gives

English forces you to choose one, but Swahili is often a bit more flexible here.

So without extra context, both are possible.

The singular is mjukuu.

So:

• mjukuu = grandchild
• wajukuu = grandchildren

This is part of the common human noun pattern:

• singular often with m-
• plural often with wa-

That is also why you see -wa- in the verb and wake with the plural noun phrase.

A helpful way to see it is:

• Bibi mkarimu = subject noun phrase
• anawapa = verb
• wajukuu wake = recipient
• zawadi = thing being given

So the sentence is structured like:

[subject] + [verb] + [recipient] + [thing given]

That is a very natural way to say The generous grandmother gives her grandchildren gifts in Swahili.