"Nilienda shambani halafu nikavuna nyanya."

Translation: I went to the farm then I harvested tomatoes.

[billhatcher]

I don't see the conjunction "na" in the Swahili sentence, only "halafu."

[AGreatUserName]

It's not needed in Swahili. The -ka- indicates "and" or "and then".

The "and" is also not really necessary in English either, although some prescriptivists would claim that it is.

[CharlesMun575650]

I wrote "I went to the farm I then harvested tomatoes" I think its the same thing only needs a coma!

[cubieloobie]

I don't understand the need for -ka here. Wouldn't this sentence make mote sense as "nilienda shamba halafu nilivuna nyana". Why is this a habitual action?

[CharlesMun575650]

'Shamba' = farm or garden, 'Shambani' = at the farm, or (at the garden). What you have written "Nilienda shamba halafu nilivuna nyanya", literal translation is 'I went farm then harvested tomatoes'. -ka is like a transition of doing word. If you wrote 'Nilienda shambani halafu nilivuna nyanya' is okay but native speakers will notice you're not speaking like a native.

[Didou733570]

I thought halafu was only used with the simple past, and that with ka it’s redundant? Or is it like the ja tense where you can use the conjunction optionally (in that case bado)

[MorwennaGr1]

'kuvuna' can be translated 'to pick' as well as 'harvest'. So 'I went to the field and then I picked tomatoes' should be accepted.

[jemef]

Indeed 'pick' rather than 'harvest'

since 'halafu' connotes subsequence - like: now that I was at the farm, I gathered SOME tomatoes.

'Harvest'

implies an undertaking to reap ALL the fruit - if it were, say:

"Nilienda shambani kukavuna nyanya,"

but that's not what it says here.