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].

Ła’ ha’nitáhígíí ’éí biihidzóhí 50 entries

’Atsį’ísh ’éí doodaii’ łóó’ísh nínízin?

meat-Q or fish-Q 3-2-want.NI

Chidí daats’í bee hólǫ́ ’éí doodaii’ niísh chidí nee hólǫ́?

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

Chidí daats’í bee hólǫ́ doodaii’ niísh chidí nee hólǫ́?

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

Chidí naat’a’íísh hooghan yikáá’góó ch’éta’ ’éí doodago daats’í dził yąąhgóó ch’ét’a’?

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

Da’ chidíísh bee hólǫ́ doodaii’ ni daats’í chidí nee hólǫ́?

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

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

Da’ Ron saad nináánéíłkaah ya’?

Q Ron word 3-3-investigate.I Q

Da’ shééhonísin?

Q 1-2-know.NI

Dah díníilghaazhísh ’íilnilaa?

fry.bread-Q 3-2-make.P

Daniel hahgosh hidilníísh?

Daniel when-Q 3-start.work.I

Dichin nínízin ya’?

hungry 2-want.NI Q

Dichinísh doodaii’ dibáá’ísh dzinízin?

hunger-Q or thirst-Q 3-4-want.NI

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

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

Díkwíísh ninááhai?

how.many-Q 2-winter.NI

Díkwíísh ninááhai?

how.many-Q 2-winter.NI

Doo b bééhózin da ya’?

neg 3-with 3-know.CI neg Q

Díkwíí lá ninááhai?

how.many Q 2-winter

ha’át’éédę́ę́’

Ha’át’íí neidiyoołnih nínízin?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

haa níldííl

’íísíníłts’ą́ą́’loadingplaying

haa níłnééz

’íísíníłts’ą́ą́’loadingplaying

Hahgo lá tá’dinigizh?

When part 2-shear.F

Háadi lá ’ádeiit’į́?

where-at Q pl-3-be

Háadi lá dibé nidahaniih?

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

Háadish nichidí nííníłbą́ą́z?

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

Háágóóshą díníyá?

where-to.Q 2-go.F

Hádą́ą́’ Jáan bighan ’áyiilaa?

When-past John 3-hogan 3-3-make.P

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

Hái da shą’ tsinaa’eeł ’ájiilaa lá?

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

Háidíígíí lá neidiyoołnih?

which.one-ÍGÍÍ DISC 3-3-buy.F

Háí lá kintahgóó sh ’adoołbąs?

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

Háí lá sis łigai ’áyiił’įįh

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

Háísh ’ałhosh?

who-Q 3-sleep.I

Háísh yiską́ągo ’adoogis?

who-Q tomorrow 3-wash.F

Jáanísh naalnish?

John-Q 3-work.I

Na’azhǫǫshgi díkwíí shį́į́ shaa woobįįh?

hoop.and.pole.game-at how.much 1-to pass-win.I

Ni daats’í nił bééhózin ’éí doodaii’ nicheii daats’í bił bééhózin?

2 perhaps 2-with 3-know.CI TOP or 2-grandfather perhaps 3-with 3-know.CI

Nichidí lá háadi nííníłbą́ą́z?

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

Nichidí lá háadi nííníłbą́ą́z?

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

Nichidí háadi-sh nííníłbą́ą́z?

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

Nizhe’é ha’át’íísh yaa naaghá?

2-father what-Q 3-about 3-do.CI

Niłísh bééhosin doodaii’ biłísh bééhozin?

2-with-Q 3-know.CI or 3-with-Q 3-know.CI

Ńléí ’asdzą́ą́ sáníshą’ háí ’át’į́?

there woman old-Q what 3-be.N

Tł’éédą́ą́’ásh nahóółtą́ kééhót’ínígi?

night-past-Q rain.P 2-live.NI-at

Yiską́ągo Na’nízhoozhídi, háádish ’adeeshį́į́ł ninízin?

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