ya-

See also: Appendix:Variations of "ya"

Chichewa

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *gɪ́á-. Cognate with Tumbuka ya-, Yao ja-, Northern Ndebele ya-, Southern Ndebele ya-, Xhosa ya- and Zulu ya-.

Prefix

ya-

1. Class 4 possessive concord.

Navajo

Etymology 1

Prefix

ya-

1. upward, vertically

Derived terms

Navajo terms prefixed with ya- (disjunct)

yadidiilnííh

yayiizííd

Etymology 2

Prefix

ya-

1. under

References

• Robert W. Young and William Morgan, Sr. (1987), The Navajo Language. A Grammar and Colloquial Dictionary, Albuquerque, New Mexico: University of New Mexico Press, page 37.

Northern Ndebele

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *gíá-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 4 possessive concord.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *jɪ̀á-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 9 possessive concord.

Northern Ohlone

Etymology

Compare Southern Ohlone haysa.

Pronoun

ya-

1. they(third-person, plural, subject proclitic pronoun)

Pronoun

ya-

1. their (third-person, plural, possessive pronoun)

See also

Northern Ohlone personal pronouns

	person	subject			object			possessive
		disjunctive1	proclitic	enclitic	disjunctive1	proclitic	enclitic
singular	first	kaana	ek-	-ek, -k	kiš, kaaniš	kiš-	-kiš	ek-, kaanak
	second	meene	em-, im-	-em, -im, -m	miš	emiš-, imiš-, miš-	-miš	em-, meenem
	third	waaka	Ø-2	-Ø2	wiš	Ø-2, eš-	-Ø2, -eš	i-, waakai-
plural	first	makkin	mak-	-mak	makkiš, makkinše	—	—	mak-, makkinmak
	second	makkam	kam-	-kam	makkamše	—	—	kam-, makkam
	third	waakamak	ya-	-ya	yaṭiš	—	—	ya-, waakamak

¹ Disjunctive is mostly used in copular sentences or for emphasis, either alone (eg. kaana) or with a clitic (eg. kaana-k ...-ek).
² Null morpheme. An unmarked verb implies a third person singular pronoun. The disjunctives waaka and wiš may also be used.
Note: Proclitic and enclitic forms can combine and undergo syncope, eg. ellešk (“let me do to him/her/it”) = elle +‎ -eš +‎ -ek

References

• María de los Angeles Colós, José Guzman, and John Peabody Harrington (1930s), Chochenyo Field Notes (Survey of California and Other Indian Langauges)‎, Unpublished

Southern Ndebele

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *gíá-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 4 possessive concord.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *jɪ̀á-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 9 possessive concord.

Swahili

Other scripts
Ajami	يَـ

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *gá-.

Prefix

ya-

1. it, they; ma class_(VI) subject concord
   • 18th century, Abdallah bin Ali bin Nasir, Al-Inkishafi‎, translation from R. Allen (1946), “Inkishafi—a translation from the Swahili”, in African Studies, volume 5, number 4, →DOI, pages 243–249, stanza 17:

     اَسِفِدِ يَبُ اِلاَّ شَقَوَا ، اِكَوَ مَيُتُ يَسِ مْسِيِ

     Asifidi yambo ila shaqawa, ikawa mayuto yasi msiye.

     he gains nought but trouble and endless regret

2. verb-initial form of -ya- (“them, ma class_(VI) object concord”)

See also

Swahili verbal concords (third person)

class	subject concord		object concord	relative
	affirmative	negative
m(I)	a-, yu-	ha-, hayu-	-m-, -mw-, -mu-	-ye
wa(II)	wa-	hawa-	-wa-	-o
m(III)	u-	hau-	-u-	-o
mi(IV)	i-	hai-	-i-	-yo
ji(V)	li-	hali-	-li-	-lo
ma(VI)	ya-	haya-	-ya-	-yo
ki(VII)	ki-	haki-	-ki-	-cho
vi(VIII)	vi-	havi-	-vi-	-vyo
n(IX)	i-	hai-	-i-	-yo
n(X)	zi-	hazi-	-zi-	-zo
u(XI)	u-	hau-	-u-	-o
ku(XV/XVII)	ku-	haku-	-ku-	-ko
pa(XVI)	pa-	hapa-	-pa-	-po
mu(XVIII)	m-, mw-, mu-	ham-, hamw-, hamu-	-mu-	-mo

For a full table including first and second person,
see Appendix:Swahili personal pronouns

Etymology 2

Prefix

ya-

1. contraction of i- + -a- (“mi class_(IV) and n class_(IX) gnomic”)
2. contraction of ya- + -a- (“ma class_(VI) gnomic”)

Swazi

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *gíá-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 4 possessive concord.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *jɪ̀á-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 9 possessive concord.

Tumbuka

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *gɪ́á-. Cognate with Chichewa ya-, Yao ja-, Northern Ndebele ya-, Southern Ndebele ya-, Xhosa ya- and Zulu ya-.

Prefix

ya-

1. Class 4 possessive concord.

Xhosa

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *gíá-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 4 possessive concord.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *jɪ̀á-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 9 possessive concord.

Zulu

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *gíá-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 4 possessive concord.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *jɪ̀á-.

Prefix

ya-

1. of; class 9 possessive concord.

References

• C. M. Doke; B. W. Vilakazi (1972), “ya-”, in Zulu-English Dictionary, →ISBN: “ya-”