Chapter 2: People and Numbers
The Prefix Ja-: People, Origins and Jobs
Use the Dholuo prefix ja- (plural jo-) to say where people come from, what they do and what they’re like: jaluo, jakenya, jatelo.
📚 Use of the prefix ‘ja’ in dholuo.
In Dholuo, the prefix ‘ja-‘ is used to indicate a person associated with or a person who does something. It’s similar to using ‘person of’
📚 Use of ‘ja’ to indicate a person’s origin.
You can use the prefix ‘ja’ to indicate a person’s origin. It changes to ‘Jo’ for its plural form.:
| Dholuo (Singular) | English (Singular) | Dholuo (Plural) | English (Plural) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jaluo | A luo | Joluo | Luos |
| Jaseme | A person from a place called ‘Seme’ | Joseme | People from Seme |
| Jagem | A person from a place called ‘Gem’ | Jogem | People from Gem |
| Jakenya | A Kenyan | Jokenya | Kenyans |
| Jaamerica | An American | Joamerica | Americans |
| Japiny | A person of the world | Jopiny | People of the world. |
📚 Nouns and Their Plurals
You can also use the prefix ‘ja’ to indicate a person’s profession
| Dholuo (Singular) | English (Singular) | Dholuo (Plural) | English (Plural) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jalweny | A soldier (‘lweny’ means ‘war’) | Jolweny | Soldiers |
| Ja ohala | A businessman (‘ohala’ means ‘business’) | Jo ohala | Businessmen |
| Ja ng’ad bura | A judge. | Jo ng’ad bura | Judges |
| Jatelo | A leader (‘telo’ is ‘to lead’.) | Jotelo | Leaders |
| Jathieth | A doctor (‘thieth’ is ‘to cure’.) | Jothieth | Doctors |
| Jaot | A spouse (‘ot’ means ‘house’). So you’re literally saying ‘the person of my house’ to refer to your spouse. | Joot | Spouses |
📚 Nouns and Their Plurals
You can also use the prefix ‘ja’ to describe a person’s characteristics
| Dholuo (Singular) | English (Singular) | Dholuo (Plural) | English (Plural) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jarachar | A white person (‘rachar’ meaning ‘white’) | Jorochere | White people. (Here ‘ja’ turns to ‘jo’ and ‘rachar’ turns to ‘rochere’ to make the plural form. It’s a double plural.) |
| Jarateng’ | A black person (‘rateng” meaning ‘black’) | Jorotenge | Black people. (Another double plural) |
| Jarikni | A fast/hurried person (‘rikni’ meaning ‘to hurry’) | Jorikni | Hurried people. |
| Jasamwoyo | A lazy person (‘samwoyo’ is ‘laziness’). | Josamwoyo | Lazy people |
💬 Conversation Practice
📚 Vocabulary from the Conversation
| Dholuo | English | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tiyo | To work | Verb | |
| Tich | Job | Noun | |
| Mane | Which | Pronoun | |
| Ja ng’ad bura | Judge | Noun | It literally means ‘The person who cuts the meeting’ |
| Adier | Truly? | Adverb | Used to express disbelief or shock or excitement when someone says something interesting/nice. |
🎯 Practice Exercises
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