Nerding Out

Kinyarwanda is by far the most complicated language I have studied, which includes Russian and Homeric Greek. Here is an unadulterated presentation of tenses in Kinyarwanda taken from the grammar book I was given during training. Below are only 25 tenses, excluding the subjunctive, imperative and modals.

Simple Present

§  indicate an action that is currently occurring

§  Urarya umugati (You are eating bread)

§  describe a temporary situation

§  Barashaka amata (They want milk/they’re looking for milk)

subject prefix + simple present tense marker + verb root

Note: the simple present tense in Kinyarwanda often translates to the present progressive in English.

Habitual Present

§  indicate an action occurring in the present and continuing indefinitely

§  Akunda umugore wawe (He loves his wife)

subject prefix + verb root

Present Progressive

§  state an action that is currently occurring

§  Ndimo kuvuga (I am speaking)

kuba (to be) conjugated in the present, optionally adding –mo followed by the infinitive

Stative Present

§  express a state or condition in the present, such as to be happy, hot, late, tired, or waiting. Many of these verbs in Kinyarwanda translate in English as adjectives used with the verb “to be”

§  Ndasinze (I am drunk)

present subject prefix + present tense marker + past participle root

Dynamic Present

§  used by verbs which do not conjugate regularly in the present, but instead combine the present subject prefixes with the past participle. Verbs that take the dynamic are slightly random and do not fit a regular pattern

§  Ngiye (I am going)

present subject prefix + past participle

Simple Past

§  indicate an action that took place in the past

§  Ihene zararishije (The goats ate)

§  express a state or condition that occurred in the past

§  Nishimiye (I was happy)

past subject prefix + past participle (with object)

past subject prefix + ra + past participle (without object)

Near Past

§  indicate an action that happened today

§  Nabonye umukobwa (I saw the girl)

It is identical to the simple past in writing, but spoken with a soft stress on the first syllable of the past participle

Very Near Past

§  describe an action that has just been completed

§  Imvura irahise (The rain just stopped)

§  express an ation that is just about to be completed

§  Turariye (We were just about to eat)

Note: this tense is most commonly used with kuza to mean “just now coming” or “just about to come” though it might litereally translate as “have just come”. In practice, the near past of kuza is used whether or not the subject has even started to move, and it may take the subject anywhere from a minute to several hours to actually arrive.

present subject prefix + ra + past participle

Habitual Past (Imperfect)

§  an action that habitually took place in the past

§  Muri America twaryaga ifromagi buri munsi (In America we used to eat cheese very day)

§  a continuous action that occurred in the past and was discontinued

§  Nigaga muri university (I used to study at university)

§  a state that occurred continuously or habitually in the past and was discontinued

§  Warasindaga (You used to be drunk)

past subject prefix + root + tense marker (with object)

past subject prefix + ra + root + tense marker (without object)

Past Progressive

§  describe an action or a situation that was in progress at some point in the past and began before another action in the past

§  Narimo gukora igihe wantelefonnye (I was working when you called me)

kuba in the simple past + (-mo) followed by the infinitive

Past Perfect

§  indicate a past event that occurred before others in a sequence of events

§  Sinashatse kurya kuko nari nariye mbere yo kuza (I didn’t want to eat because I had eaten before coming)

kuba in the past tense followed by the verb conjugated in the simple past

Future-in-the-past

§  describe planned events or actions that did not take place

§  Nari ngiye kurya ariko… (I wasn’t going to eat but…)

kuba conjugated in the simple past + kujya (to go) conjugated in the stative present followed by the infinitive

Simple Future

§  indicate that an action is scheduled to take place in the future

§  Nzagusura ejo (I will visit you tomorrow)

§  predict an action or state that will occur in the future

§  Igi rizameneka (the egg will break)

present subject prefix + za + root

Immediate Future

§  indicate an action that is about to happen in the immediate future

§  Imvura igiye kugwa (It’s going to (about to) rain)

 kujya conjugated in the dynamic present followed by the infinitive

Near Future

§  an action that will happen sometime today, but not in the immediate future

§  Ndaza gutelefona n’ijoro (I am going to call tonight)

There is no precise equivalent to this tense in English and it can be translated either with “going to” or “will”

kuza conjugated in the simple present followed by the infinitive

kuba conjugated in the simple present + bu + root (minus A) + e

Future Habitual

§  an action that will habitually take place in the future

§  Nzaba ntelefona mama wanjye buri cyumweru (I will call my mother every week)

§  an action that will occur continuously in the future

§  Ntituzaba dufite umuriro (We will not have power)

§  a state that will be continuous or habitual

§  Bazaba batinya (They will be afraid)

kuba conjugated in the future followed by habitual present of the verb

Future Progressive

§  an action that will be in progress at some point in the future

§  Nzaba ndimo kuryama (I will be sleeping)

kuba conjugated in the future followed by kuba in the present (optionally adding –mo) followed by the infinitive

Future Perfect

§  an action that will be completed by a certain time in the future

§  Nzaba nariye (I will have eaten)

kuba conjugated in the future followed by verb conjugated in the simple past

Not-Yet Tense

§  describe an action that has not yet been done

§  Ibisi ntirägenda (The bus has not yet left)

negation prefix + present subject prefix + rä + root

Still/No longer Tense

§  convey the meaning “still” or in the negative “no longer”

§  Ndacyakora (I am still working)

subject prefix + racya + root

-ka- connecting tense

§  connect verbs in a sequence of actions when the second action depends on or results from the first

§  Ufata ibishyimbo, ukabirongo, ugabishira ku mashyiga (You take beans, you add them to water, you put it on the stove)

subject prefix + ka + root

gu- verbs: subject + ka => ga + root

kw- verbs: subject + ka => k + root

The first conditional: the possible

§  convey possible situations

§  Uriye cyane, waba munini (If you eat a lot, you will be fat)

1^st verb: present subject prefix + past participle

2^nd verd: past subject prefix + present root

The second conditional: the probably

§  convey probably situations

§  Iyo uryamye, uransinzira (When you go to bed, you fall asleep)

Iyo + 1^st verb: present subject prefix + past participle

2^nd verb: present subject prefix + ra (if no object) + present root

The third conditional: the potential

§  convey a potential occurrence in the future

§  Nindya cyane, nzahaga (If I eat a lot, I will be full)

1^st verb: ni + present subject prefix + present root

2^nd verb: present subject prefix + za (future) / ra (same day) + present root

The fourth conditional: the past impossible

§  discuss an event that would have happened if something else was true

§  Iyaba nari wowe, sinari gutembera n’ijoro (If I were you, I wouldn’t walk in the night)

IIyaba + 1^st verb: past subject prefix + past participle

2^nd verb: kuba conjugated in the past followed by the infinitive

Snacking

In the States there’s a big culture of snacking. I would snack simply out of boredom. Here it’s not that easy; it’s culturally unacceptable to eat or drink in public. If you want a quick snack it must be discreetly consumed. Even just walking down the road with food or drink in your hand prompts everyone from kids to old women demanding you give them whatever you have. A PCV in my region said he once saw two students sneaking away behind the school saying, “Do you have the stuff?” only to reveal they were talking about food. This lack of eating in public has created few opportunities for snack foods, though they do exist. Fruit, sambusas/samosas and peanuts are among my favorite Rwandan snack foods. Sometimes they turn from snack food to meal food. I mean if you start cutting into a pineapple then you might as well just finish the thing off. The best snack meal for my money is the avocado sandwich, preparation shown below.

Buy avocado (three for 100RWF, about five cents an avocado)

Cut avocado

Mash avocado

Season mashed avocado with salt, sriracha and lemon pepper

Buy and cut bread (25RWF, about four cents)

Spread faux-guacamole onto bread

Eat

Follow up with peanuts

Is Everyone Inherently Equal?

Like every Peace Corps Volunteer, I’ve had moments of sheer elation living in Rwanda and then two minutes later I find myself cursing the country in words that would make a pirate blush. Emotional depressions are usually brought about by differences in culture and can be what highlight a person’s experiences when abroad. It’s easy to focus on the negatives, the differences, because those are the things that draw attention to the contrasts of one’s beliefs and one’s culture. Reading my blog, it’s maybe hard to understand that in general I am happy in Rwanda but it’s true. Lots of people don’t understand that even though we sign up for 27 months of service we can end our service at any time for various reasons (medical, administrative differences, family/personal issues, or simply for not being happy here). I’ve come close a couple of times to calling it quits, but here I am. More cynical, more optimistic, more confused. This post isn’t meant to show how I’m happy here but it’s about something that brings to the light questions about equality. Who deserves it and where does it come from?

Many Rwandans see themselves as inferior to whites because of the differences in development between African countries and Western countries. They believe there to be a direct correlation between Rwanda’s development and their innate qualities. If they were truly as intelligent and talented as white people then they too would have the same quality of living. For whatever reason, they don’t want to see things differently. I’ve been told that when God created men and women (s)he created blacks first and then worked on whites. With the whites (s)he took care to improve on the mistakes made with blacks, which is why we’re more intelligent, have finer features and have more development. This isn’t just some isolated incident. My students have even made such claims to me, trying to explain away their faults as a result of their innate shortcomings. They fail to see themselves as anything but victims of innate failure from a higher source.

A big question I’ve had to answer a lot in my time here is why Africa suffers disproportionately higher rates of HIV infections compared to other continents. I’ve heard countless stories about the origins of the virus, with made in a laboratory in the US ranking in at the top. I’ve tried, usually in vain, to explain that science is quite certain of its origins coming from monkeys in central Africa somewhere and cultural behavior, like having unprotected sex with many partners, contributing significantly to the rapid spread. Overly simplified of course but if I even try to say something like this then I get all sorts of conspiracy theories thrown at me and I’m immediately on the defensive.

This highlights to me their unwillingness to accept, or at the least consider, the possibility of something opposite to their beliefs or ways of thinking. It’s not an introspective culture. They don’t reflect on the how or the why. They just accept, even if there’s no scientific proof to justify their beliefs. This culture is very much about maintaining the status quo. With simple behavioral changes they could greatly reduce the spread of HIV yet they fail to act on these things. It’s more important to maintain their lives as they are without thinking about the consequences or the results of their actions.

Regarding gender equality there are two opinions. One of the government which promotes women in the workforce, women in business, women as equals to men. Then there’s the opinion of everyone else, which promotes women in the kitchen, women raising children, women as servants to men. Rwandans jump on any opportunity to show how they are respecting gender equality but it’s all superficial. It’s not genuine. There’s almost always a smirk on their smiles and sarcasm in their voices. They sincerely don’t see women and men as the same. I was at a wedding yesterday and had a talk with a fellow teacher from my school. I forget how we got on the topic about respect and equality but he recited to me lines from the Bible about how women were created to serve men. Wives must respect their husbands but husbands aren’t obligated to reciprocate that respect. If physical force is required to make a wife respect her husband than the end justifies the means.

This is coming from both sides too, not just the male perspective. Girl students marginalize themselves in the company of boys. They don’t participate with the same frequency. They don’t make the same effort. That’s not to say that there aren’t some diamonds in the rough, there are, but they are quite the exception to the rule. Even at the all girls school that one person in my training group teaches at has similar experiences. Girls there are disenfranchising themselves, even without the company of boys. Girls at my school have commented that they wouldn’t respect their husbands if they made less money than their wives. How can a culture adopt a belief of equality when the ones who are supposed to be supported are espousing opposing beliefs that keep them marginalized?

We in the West have more development because, as Jared Diamond explains quite well in Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, of the environmental conditions, the flora, the fauna, which made quick development possible. We’ve had our struggles with equality, with race and gender, and we continue to have those struggles. But beliefs about equality aren’t pillars of development. They’re tied into cultural mores. People are all inherently talented the same as the other. The difference stems from the cultural beliefs that inhibit the development of one’s potential. Until people in any culture see, and believe, that women and men are equals they won’t be able to move beyond the superficial ideologies they’re told to adopt.

It’s very painful when a student approaches me and asks why he isn’t intelligent like the white man. Until they can break free from their self-defacing images of inferiority that perpetuate the image of African inadequacy and female inadequacy I don’t think they can genuinely believe in equality between whites and blacks and women and men. It’s the type of change that needs to come from a self started grassroots level, not from outsiders and not from top-down government mandates.