"This is the farm that we cultivated last year!"

Translation: Hili ndilo shamba tulililima mwaka uliopita!

[CarelSchmit]

I don't see where 'ndilo' comes in ... 'hili ni shamba' ....

[YoungGreg1]

Hili ni Shamba = This is the farm.....
Hili ndilo shmabo = This is indeed the farm where....

The ndi- translates to the emphatic 'indeed' whilst the -lo is the locative word for 'where'.
So basically, the ndilo is used to tell someone that 'this is indeed the location of the farm we cultivated.'

[XanderVert]

I don't think the -lo in 'ndilo' has a locatival function. It rather marks agreement with the JI/MA-class word 'shamba', just like 'hili' does: 'ndi-' (emphatic marker) + -lo (JI/MA-class agreement marker).

[dsimonds]

I agree. No locative function. Suppose the subject were a person. "Huyu ndiye mtu tuliyemwona jana." This is (indeed) the person (that) we saw yesterday. Emphatic marker + -ye (singular M/WA class agreement).

[dsimonds]

Perhaps the exclamation point is intended as a hint to use "ndilo". [??] My issue is with the "tulililima" -- I get that an "object" infix is being used for emphasis, but what about the relative construction? The "that" in this context implies a relative infix is probably needed. Hili ndilo shamba tulilolima mwaka uliopita. You could even have "tulilolilima" -- both relative and object infix.

[XanderVert]

This puzzles me as well. Perhaps the relative clause is a way in English to translate the emphatic value of ndi- (apart from using 'indeed', which is cumbersome).

[MfonUdoiny]

So why must the correct answer have 3 -li syllables instead of 2, as in "hili ndilo shamba tu-li-li-li-ma..." and not "hili ndilo shamba tulilima..."
I know the 1st -li is a past tense marker and the 2nd -li is a the marker for shamba which is in li/ya noun class. But I don't get what the 3rd -li represents. Any ideas, please?

[dsimonds]

The third -li- just happens to be the first syllable of the verb -lima, to cultivate, etc. Use a different verb that still makes sense in the sentence, maybe -nunua, to buy. That should help. Actually my preferred version of the sentence uses a relative infix rather than an object infix: "Hili ndilo shamba tulilonunua mwaka uliopita." -- "This is (indeed) the farm (that) we bought last year." If you wanted both infixes (which is not required but is still grammatically correct) -- "tulilolinunua"

[Angela34194]

There is a typo on 'tulililima' which should be 'tulilolima'.

[RudolfJan]

Can we please have a clarification form the course contributors?

[ABCSxW]

Wouldn't the grammatical construction be more clearly stressed if the English translation read 'This is indeed the farm that we cultivated last year'?

[MfonUdoiny]

That'd be the perfect English translation indeed!

[Kas334864]

After reading the thread I am not yet sure if we can/must use the relative -lo- instead of or in addition to the -li- object infix.

[jemef]

Compare:

Gari, ninaLInunua - I buy it.
Gari, niliLInunua - I bought it.

Shamba, ninaLInunua - I buy it.
Shamba, niliLInunua - I bought it.

Shamba, ninaLIlima - I culivate it.
Shamba, niliLIlima - I cultvated it.

'LI' is the direct object, not 'LO,' this latter not detachable from 'ndilo';

thus,

[ni li] - [li] - [lima]:

[past, 'I did'] - [direct object, 'it'] -

[verb, 'cultivate'],

nilililima.