Lesson 4

Class 2: umu- imi-

Vocabulary

Note: umutsima is a sort of doughy porridge, the only bread known before the coming of Europeans. Most people now use umugati (from Swahili) for the European kind of bread.

8. Class 2. This class is not used for people, as the first class, though the singular prefix is the same. You do not need to confuse the two classes, for if it is a person it is first class; if not, it is second. The plurals are not alike.

Prefixes: Singular: umu-, Plural imi- :: e.g. umutima - heart, imitima - hearts

Possessive prefixes: wa-, ya- :; e.g. wanjye umutwe we - his head, yanjye imitwe yabo - their heads

9. Conjunction na - and. This word na is used for joining nouns, but it does not connect clauses. It elides n’ before words beginning with a vowel, e.g. umugabo n’umugore - a man and a woman.

So, when thus elided, in speaking there is no difference between na and ni, but the context will usually indicate which is intended. In writing, na elides, but ni does not.

Words in a series in Kinyarwanda are always connected by n. Though in English one would say “A man, woman, and child,” in Kinyarwanda it is: “Umugabo n’umugore n’umawana”.

Exercises:

I. Give plurals and meanings of the following: (When necessary for the sense, make the suffix of the possessive plural, e.g., my heart, our hearts.)

II. Translate into Kinyarwanda: (Do not translate words in parentheses.)

1. The boy and the girl have their bread. 2. Jesus is my Savior. 3. The old man has salt and bread. 4. Your (pl.) children work well. 5. His daughter and your (s.) son are going. 6. My teacher has a fire. 7. The workmen and the pupils are hoeing. 8. The people are speaking. 9. Your (pl.) teachers have some salt. 10. The workman has bread and (some) salt. 11. Is your (pl.) child a boy? No, it’s a girl.