Introduction to Navajo Questions

Any competent speaker of any language will be able to form questions. This resource is a combined grammar and lexicon of Navajo questions. We provide a description of three kinds of questions along with glossed examples and audio recordings of them. We think this resource will be useful to students and teachers of this language, and to professional linguists within and outside Navajo communities.

We distinguish three distinct kinds of questions: Yes/no questions, Content Questions, and Alternative Questions. We treat Tag Questions as a subtype of Yes/no questions. For this project we draw on previous work by Fernald & Perkins (manuscript), Young & Morgan (1987), Young, Morgan & Midgette (1992), and others cited in References [link].

The three kinds of questions are exemplified below:
(1)
Da’ Na’nízhoozhígóó díníyá?
Q Gallup-to 2-go.F
Are you going to Gallup?
(A yes/no question)
(2)
Mary ha’át’íí nayiisnii’?
Mary what 3-3-buy.P
What did Mary buy?
(A content question)
(3)
’Atsį́’ísh ’éí doodaii’ łóó’ísh nínízin?
meat-Q TOP or fish-Q 3-2-want.NI
Do you want meat or fish?
(An alternative question)

Example (1) is a yes/no question, which has ‛yes’ or ‛no’ as an answer. Questions like this are used to ask whether a particular statement is true or not. In this example, the statement being asked about is Na’nízhoozhígóó díníyá, which means ‛You are going to Gallup’.

Content questions, like example (2), do not have simply ‛yes’ or ‛no’ as an answer. Rather than supplying a statement and asking whether it is true or not, they have the effect of providing a statement with some missing information, and they ask what that information is. In (2), the idea is that Mary bought something, and the question asks what that something is.

Alternative questions present the addressee with a choice between two or more options. Note that the English gloss in example (3) can be understood as either a yes/no question (if the intonation is rising on fish) or an alternative question (if the intonation is falling on fish). In Navajo, the sentence is an alternative question for which the appropriate answer will indicate which one of the choices is desired.

Glossing conventions and a note on morphology are here [link].

An example search has returned 50 entries

Bá’ólta’íísh níyá?

3-for-3-teach-Q 3-come.P
listenloadingplaying

Has the teacher come yet?

Chidí naat’a’íísh hooghankáá’góó ch’ínísaal ’éí doodaii’ dziłghą́ą́’góó daats’í?

airplane house-over-along over-3-fly.P TOP or mountain-attached-along perhaps

Chidíísh bee hólǫ́ ’éí doodago ni daats’í ła’ nee hólǫ́?

car-Q 3-with 4-exist.N TOP or 2 maybe one 2-with 4-exist.NI

Chidíísh bee hólǫ́ doodaii’ ni daats’í chidí nee hólǫ́?

car-Q 3-with 4-exist.NI or 2 maybe car 2-with 4-exist.NI
listenloadingplaying

Does s/he have a car or do you have a car?

Da’ Cubadę́ę́’ tsinaa’eeł nił ní’éél?

Q Cuba-from boat 2-with 3-float.P

Da’ dibé nee hólǫ́?

Q sheep 2-with 3-exist.NI
listenloadingplaying

Do you have sheep?

Da’ Ron saad nináánéíłkaah ya’?

Q Ron word 3-3-investigate.I Q
listenloadingplaying

Ron’s investigating words again?

Daniel hahgosh hidilníísh?

Daniel when-Q 3-start.work.I
listenloadingplaying

When does Daniel go to work?

Dichin nínízin ya’?

hungry 2-want.NI Q

Díidí háísh bichidí?

this who-Q 3-car

Díí yihahígíí biyi’, háísh tówónaanígóó ch’aa deeyá?

this year.IGII within who overseas.GOO travel 3-going.F-Q

Díkwíí jį́ nanilnish?

how.many-Q day 2-work.I

Díkwíí shą’ ninááhai?

how.many-Q 2-winter.NI

Díkwíísh ninááhai?

how.many-Q 2-winter.NI
listenloadingplaying

How old are you?

Gohwééh t’áá bizhání ’éí doodaii’ ’abe’ bgo daats’í nínízin?

coffee only TOP or milk perhaps 3-with 3-2-want.NI

Ha’át’éegishą’ nich’ah nííní’ą́?

where-at-Q 2-hat 3-2-set.down.SRO.P
listenloadingplaying

Where did you leave your hat? Where did you set your hat down?

Ha’át’éegosh náníldzid?

why-Q 2-fear.I
listenloadingplaying

Why are you afraid?

Ha’át’íí biniinaa náníldzid?

what 3-cause 2-fear.I

Ha’át’íí neidiyoołnih nínízin?

who 3-3-buy.F 2-think.NI

Ha’át’íísh Mary nayiisnii’?

What-Q Mary 3-to.buy.I

listenloadingplayingSpeaker: Natalie R. DesideriolistenloadingplayingSpeaker: Linda Platero

What did Mary buy?

Ha’át’íísh náádaadi’ní?

what-Q again-pl-3dpl-say.I

Ha’át’ííshą’ hastiin dóó ’at’ééd ’áyiilaa?

what-Q man and girl 3-3-make.P
listenloadingplaying

What did the man and the girl make?

haa nízah

listenloadingplaying

how far is it, how much time

Haa nízahdę́ę́’ hoołtį́į́ł?

how 3-long-from rain.Prog

Haa’ísh neezgai?

where-Q 3-hurt.N
listenloadingplaying

Where does it hurt?

Haaʼísh niʼnisʼbąąs?

where-Q 3-1-park.F
listenloadingplaying

Where should I park?

Hahgo hooghan ’ádíílííł?

when hogan 3-2-make.F

Hastiin dóó ’at’ééd ha’át’íí ’áyiilaa?

man and girl what 3-3-make.P
listenloadingplaying

What did the man and the girl make?

Hastiin dóó ’at’ééd lá ha’át’íí ’áyiilaa?

man and girl Q what 3-3-make.P
listenloadingplaying

What did the man and the girl make?

Háadi lá dibé nidahaniih?

where-at Q sheep pl-3-pass-sell.CI

Háágóósh díníyá?

where-to-Q 2-go.I
listenloadingplaying

Where are you going?

Hádą́ą́’sh Mary ’ólta’dę́ę́’ nádzá?

when-past-Q Mary school-from 3-return.P

Hái da shą’ tsinaa’eeł ’ájiilaa lá?

who DA Q boat 3-4-make.P DISC
listenloadingplaying

(I wonder) who made this boat?

Háí lá kintahgóó sh adoołbąs?

who-Q town-to 1-me 3-drive.F

Háí lá sis łigai ’iił’įh

who-Q belt silver 3-3-make.U
listenloadingplaying

Who makes silver concho belts?

Háísh ’ałhosh?

who-Q 3-sleep.I

Háísh yiską́ągo ’adoogis?

who-Q tomorrow 3-wash.F

Háíshą’ tsinaa’eeł ’áyiilaa?

who-Q boat 3-3-make.P

Háish dooda ní?

who-Q NEG 4-said.P
listenloadingplaying

Who said no?

Kin Łánídiísh ’éí doodago Bee’eldííldahsinildi daats’í naniná?

Flagstaff-at-Q TOP or Albuquerque-at perhaps 2-go.around.CI

Kwe’éshą’ haa nízah nináhálzhishgo nináháltį́į́h?

here-Q how 3-long.N-up.to time.move.R-GO rain.R
listenloadingplaying

How often does it rain here?

Mary ha’át’íí nayiisnii’?

Mary what 3-3-buy.P
listenloadingplaying

What did Mary buy?

Na’nízhoozhígóósh díníyá?

Gallup-to-Q 2-go.SP

Nichidísh háadi nííníłbą́ą́z?

2-car-Q where-at 3-2-park.P

Nichidí háadish nííníłbą́ą́z?

2-car where-at-Q 3-2-park.P
listenloadingplaying

Where did you park your car?

Nidlóóhísh doodaii’ doo daats’í nidlóoh da?

2-cold.I-Q or neg perhaps 2-cold.I neg
listenloadingplaying

Are you cold or not?

Ńléí ’asdzą́ą́ sáníshą’ háí ’át’į́?

there woman old-Q what 3-be.N
listenloadingplaying

Who’s that old lady over there?

ya’

listenloadingplaying

particle for tag questions

Yiską́ągo Na’nízhoozhídi háadish ’adeeshį́į́ł ninízin?

tomorrow Gallup-at where-Q 2-eat.F 2-want.CI