Afaan Oromo - Chapter 09 - Wikibooks, Open Books For An Open World

10/11/21, 10:30 PM Afaan Oromo/Chapter 09 - Wikibooks, open books for an open world
Afaan Oromo/Chapter 09
< Afaan Oromo
Chapter 9: Jussive
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Narrative
Better Health Begins with You!(Fayyaan gaariin si irraa jalqaba!)
[Adapted from the Nutrition Education for New Americans Project of the Department of
Anthropology and Geography at Georgia State University. Funded by the USDA Food and Consumer
Service.]
Play all
1. play Guyyuma guyyaatti daabboo waan dhadhaa hedddu hin qabne; akayi, ruzza yookin
paasta dhiheessaa jaha hanga kudha tokko nyaadhu. Fakkeenyaaf, ganama matajaboo, guyya
sandwich galgala immoo ruzza duwwa nyaadhu.
2. play Ija mukkatti fi kuduraa dhiheessaa shan nyaadhu. Fakkenyaaf, cuunfaa birtukaanii dhugi,
salaaxaa nyaadhu, galgala immoo dinnichaa affeelama fi ija wayinii nyaadhu.
3. play Guyyaatti yoo xinnaate bishaan burcuqqo saddeet dhuuggi.
4. play Foon diimaa kan baay'ee cooma hin qabne isaa akaa hanqaaqoo yookiin qurxummii
nyaadhu.
5. play Waan sa'a kan dhadhaa yartuu qabu kan akka aanaan raafamaa fi itittuu filadhu.
6. play Nyaata waan mi'aawaa fi dhugaatii alkoolii hin baay'isiin.
7. play Guyyaa hunda sosocho'a godhi. Dirree keessa adeemi, yookiin sirba bu'i, taphadhu.
https://en.m.wikibooks.org/wiki/Afaan_Oromo/Chapter_09# 1/10
8. play Nyaata kolestrol hin qabne fi, zayitii waan sa'a fi kan cooma horii irra hojjatamu mana
zayitii kuduraa filadhu.
[For translation see here]
The Imperative
The 2nd person jussive, better known as the imperative, is used for issuing commands. In Oromo,
there are two forms for the imperative, the singular (ati) and the plural/polite (isin). For all verbs
except -chuu verbs, the pattern for forming imperatives is as follows:
Formation of Imperatives
Affirmative Negative
suffix prefix suffix
ati -i hin -in
isin -a hin -ina
For -chuu verbs, where the verb stem is the infinitive minus the -chuu ending, the imperatives are
formed as follows:
Imperatives for -chuu verbs

Affirmative Negative
suffix prefix suffix
ati -dhu hin -tin
isin -dha hin -tina
Examples:
English Ati Isin
sit taa'i taa'a
don't sit hin taa'in hin taa'ina
eat nyaadhu nyaadha
don't eat hin nyaatin hin nyaatina
go deemi deema
don't go hin deemin hin deemina
give kenni kenna
don't give hin kennin hin kennina
Exceptions
The main exception is “come” (“to come” – dhufuu) which is koottu, kootta (not dhufi, dhufa) in the
affirmative. The negative imperative (“don't come”) follows the standard pattern, hin dhufin, hin
dhufina. The imperative “go” can also be beenu, beena in addition to the regular forms deemi,
deema.
“Please”
The standard word for “please” is maaloo, though in conversation this is used mostly for making
requests and as a response, as in “yes, please”. Adaraa (“in the name of”) is also sometimes used as
“please” in this context. For imperatives and other jussive forms, mee is most commonly used.
Examples:
“Koottu mee” — “come here, please”
“Mee waa'ee obbolaawwan kee natti himi” — “Please tell me about your brothers”
“Mee nama sun gaafadhu” — “Please ask that person”
“Mee suuta dubbadhu” — “Please speak slowly/slower”
“Mee irra naa deebi'i” — “Please repeat for me”
“Mee guddisii dubbadhu” — “Please speak loudly/louder”
More Indirect Objects: The Dative
The dative case is used to indicated recipients and benefactors, where in English we would use “to”
or “for”. The dative may be formed by one of the following methods:
1. For nouns that end in a short vowel (in their dictionary form), the vowel will be lengthened and,
optionally, an -f suffix added. “Give it to the boy” can thus be expressed as “isa ilmaa kenni” or
“isa ilmaaf kenni”.
2. For nouns ending in a long vowel, either -f or -dhaa(f) suffixes may be attached. “It's good for
eating” can be expressed as “nyaachuuf gaarii dha”, “nyaachuudhaa gaarii dha”, or
“nyaachuudhaaf gaarii dha”
3. For nouns ending in a consonant, the suffix -iif will be attached. For example, “give it to Jim”
would be “isa Jimiif kenni”.
The dative forms for the personal pronouns are given below.
Subject Pronouns Dative Pronouns

I ani to/for me naa, naaf
we nuti to/for us nuu, nuuf
you ati to/for you sii, siif
you (pl.) isin to/for you (pl.) isinii, isiniif
he, it inni to/for him, it isaa, isaaf
she isheen to/for her ishee, isheef
they isaan to/for them isaanii, isaaniif
The locative -tti suffix can sometimes be used in a dative-like manner. For instance, “tell him” would
be “isatti jedhi” [lit. “say at him”] rather than “isaaf jedhi” [lit. “say for him”].
Double Imperatives
Where English would use an adverb to modify an imperative, Oromo most often uses two
imperatives in a row, with the first modifying the second. The first imperative is given a long final
vowel.
Examples:
“Speak loadly/loader” — “Guddisii dubbadhu” (sg.) or “Guddisaa dubbadha” (plu./pol.)
“Run faster” — “Baay'isii fiigi” (sg.) or “Baay'isaa fiiga” (plu./pol.)
“Work harder” — “Cimsii hojjadhu” (sg.) or “Cimsaa hojjadha” (plu./pol.)
The adverbal imperatives are almost always causatives (discussed in Chapter 16). Guddisuu is “to
make big”, baay'isuu is “to make many/much”, and cimsuu is “to make strong”.
To express a sequence of commands, imperatives are simply put together. For example, “go (and)
eat” is deemi nyaadhu (no elongation of the final vowel on the first imperative).
The Jussive Forms
The 1st and 3rd person jussive forms express suggestions, translated roughly as the English “let”.
The jussive forms would thus be “let me”, “let us”, “let him”, etc. The jussive forms use the preverb
haa and attach a suffix to the verb stem.
Formation of the Jussive

Prefix Suffix Suffix (for -chuu verbs)
ani haa -u -dhu
nuti haa -nu -nnu
inni haa -u -tu
isheen haa -tu -ttu
isaan haa -anu/ani/an -tanu/tani/tan
Examples:
haa ta'u — okay [lit. “let it be”]
haa nyaannu — “let's eat”
inni haa deemu — “let him go”
si haa gargaaru — “Let me help you”
For irregular verbs, the verb stem changes just as it does in the present and past tenses. The
example of taa'uu (“to sit”) is given below.
Oromo English
ani haa taa'u let me sit
inni haa taa'u let him sit
(nuti) haa teenyu let us sit
(isheen) haa teessu let her sit
(isaan) haa taa'anu let them sit
Note that only the regular stem is used in imperatives, even for irregular verbs (e.g., the imperative
“sit” is taa'i/taa'a, not teessi/teessa which mean “she sits”/“you sit” as declaratives).
The 1st person jussive, while understood, is not common, especially in the singular. It is more
common to use the present-future tense, as in “ofi koon of barsiisa” (“I will introduce myself”)
rather than “ofi koon haa of barsiisu” (“let me introduce myself”), or “achitti wal agarra” (“we will
meet there”) rather than “achitti wal haa agarru” (“let's meet there”).
In a question, the jussive works like the English “shall”, as in “haa deemnu?” for “shall we go?”.
Other Forms of Requests
Other than using imperative or jussive forms, it is often polite to use the infinitive with danda'uu
(“to be able, possible”). Forms using the subordinate tense and if-then clauses (“could you…”, “would
you…”, “I would appreciate it if…”) are discussed in Chapter 17.
Examples:
“Can you lend it to me, please” — “Isa naa ergisuu dandeessa, maaloo?”
“Can you (pl.) please help me?” — “Maaloo, naa gargaaruu dandeessu?”
“Can I open a window?” — “Foddaa banuu danda'a?”
Responding to Commands and Suggestions
The receiver of a command or suggestion has a variety of ways to accept or refuse.
Some Common Responses
Okay tole, haa ta'u

Sure sirritti, dhuguma
Of course dhugaadhuma
All right, fine bayeessa
Sorry dhiifama, nan gadda
Sorry, I can't dhiifama hin danda'u
It's possible danda'ama
It's not possible hin danda'amu
I don't have time yeroo hin qabu
“I can't, I have to go” “Hin danda'u, deemuun qaba”
“Another time. Now I must go” “Yeroo biraa. Amma deemuutu narra jira.”
“No, I need to go” “Lakki, deemuun barbaada”
Expressing Needs
The last three examples above show excuses by expressing needs. There are a number of ways of
doing this. The four main ways are:
Method 1: <infinative> + <present tense qabuu>, as in “xumuruu qabti” for “she has to finish”.
Method 2: <infinative> + <present tense barbaaduu>, as in “nyaachuu barbaanna” for “we need
to eat” (also means “we want to eat”)
Method 3: <acc. pers. pronoun> + barbaachisa, as in “birciqqoo isa barbaachisa”, which literally
means “a glass is necessary for him”. For plural needs, barbaachisu is used to mean “are
needed/necessary”, as in “birciqqooleen isaani barbaachisu” (“glasses are necessary for them”).
Method 4: <infinative>+tu + <acc. pers. pronoun>+rra + jira. This construction works like the
English “must” or “should”, as is “barachuutu sirra jira” for “you should/must learn” [lit. “it's on you
to learn”].
Chapter Vocabulary
jedhi/jedha bye
(informal) [lit. “speak”]
of
eeggadhu/eeggadha be
careful
daabboo bread
dhadhaa butter
waan
dhadhaa hedddu hin qabne low-fat
akayi cereal
ruzza rice
dhiheessaa serving
fakkeenyaaf “for
example”
matajaboo oatmeal
duwwaa blank,
empty, plain
ija
mukka, fuduraa fruit
kuduraa vegetable
cuunfaa juice
birtukaanii Orange
(color and fruit)
dhuguu to
drink
dhugaatii drink,
beverage
salaaxaa salad
dinnichaa potato
affeelama boiled
ija
wayinii grape
yoo
xinnaate “at
least”
burcuqqo glass,
cup
foon meat
cooma fat
isaa
akaa “such
as”
hanqaaqoo chicken
qurxummii fish
sa'a cow
yartuu few,
small amount
aanaan milk
aanaan
raafamaa skim
milk
itittuu yogurt
filachuu to
choose
mi'aawaa sweet
baay'isuu to
make many
socho'uu moving,
active
godhuu to
do
dirree field
adeemuu to
walk
sirba
bu'uu to
dance
taphachuu to
play
zayitii oil
cooma
horii animal
fat
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10/11/21, 10:30 PM Afaan Oromo/Chapter 09 - Wikibooks, open books for an open world

This book includes inline links to audio files. If you

Better Health Begins with You!(Fayyaan gaariin si irraa jalqaba!)

3. play Guyyaatti yoo xinnaate bishaan burcuqqo saddeet dhuuggi.

6. play Nyaata waan mi'aawaa fi dhugaatii alkoolii hin baay'isiin.

[For translation see here]

Imperatives for -chuu verbs

“Koottu mee” — “come here, please”

“Mee nama sun gaafadhu” — “Please ask that person”

“Mee suuta dubbadhu” — “Please speak slowly/slower”

“Mee irra naa deebi'i” — “Please repeat for me”

“Mee guddisii dubbadhu” — “Please speak loudly/louder”

More Indirect Objects: The Dative

Subject Pronouns Dative Pronouns

“Speak loadly/loader” — “Guddisii dubbadhu” (sg.) or “Guddisaa dubbadha” (plu./pol.)

“Run faster” — “Baay'isii fiigi” (sg.) or “Baay'isaa fiiga” (plu./pol.)

“Work harder” — “Cimsii hojjadhu” (sg.) or “Cimsaa hojjadha” (plu./pol.)

The Jussive Forms

Formation of the Jussive

haa ta'u — okay [lit. “let it be”]

haa nyaannu — “let's eat”

inni haa deemu — “let him go”

si haa gargaaru — “Let me help you”

Other Forms of Requests

you…”, “I would appreciate it if…”) are discussed in Chapter 17.

“Can I open a window?” — “Foddaa banuu danda'a?”

Responding to Commands and Suggestions

The receiver of a command or suggestion has a variety of ways to accept or refuse.

Some Common Responses

Okay tole, haa ta'u

Continue to Next Chapter

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