Afaan Oromo/Chapter 02

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Chapter 2: Word Order
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Greeting Conversation[edit | edit source]

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About this sound Play all
Girma: Tariku, akkam bulte? About this sound play
Tariku: Akkam bulte? Fayyaa dha? About this sound play
Girma: Fayyaa, galata Waaqaa. Akkam jirta? About this sound play
Tariku: Nagaa, galata Waaqaa. Eessa deemta? About this sound play
Girma: Amma gara mana barumsaan deema. About this sound play
Tariku: Har'a galgala maal goota? About this sound play
Girma: Edana qo'achuun qaba. About this sound play
Tariku: Tole. Wal agarra. About this sound play


[For translation see here]

Basic Sentence Structure[edit | edit source]

Afaan Oromo follows Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) format. But because it is a declined language (nouns change depending on their role in the sentence), word order can be flexible, though verbs always come after their subjects and objects. Typically, indirect objects follow direct objects. Oromo has both prepositions and postpositions, though postpositions are more common.

SOV ok, but what about

Anan namicha arga = I see the man Namicha anan arga = I see the man

Both ok?


Examples:

“I threw the ball to you” → “I ball to you threw” → “Ani kubbaa siif nan ha'e

“She came from America” → “She America from came” → “Isheen Ameerikaa irraa dhufte

Modifiers[edit | edit source]

Adjectives come after the nouns they modify. Adverbs that modify adjectives go before the adjective. Adverbs that modify verbs, adverbial clauses, and relative clauses tend to go at the beginning of the sentence before the subject.

Examples:

“your blue pen is in my room” → “pen blue your room my in is” → “biirii dooqee kee kutaa koo keessa jira

“I don't know where it is” → “Where that it is I don't know” → “Eessa akka ta'e ani hin beeku

“How far is the post office” → “How post office is far?” → “Hagam manni postaa fagaata?

“What are you doing tonight?” → “Tonight what will you do?” → “Edana maal gotta?

Chapter Vocabulary[edit | edit source]

Akkam bulte?” / “Akkam bultani?”

“Good morning” [lit. “How did you spend the night?”]

Fayyaa dha?”

“Are you well?”

Galata Waaqa

“Thank God”

nagaa

fine

Akkam jirta?” / “Akkam jirtu?”

“How are you?”

Eessa deemta?”

“Where are you going?”

amma

now

godhuu

to do, make

Maal goochaa jirta?”

“What are you doing?”

hojii

work

hojjachuu

to work

Maal hojjatta?”

“What are you working on?”

gara

to, toward

mana barumsaa

school

har'a

today

har'a galgala, edana

tonight

qo'achuu

to study

Qo'achuun qaba

“I have to study”

hojii manaa

homework

Wal agarra

“See you”


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