How to Start Conversations in the Navajo Language

Video and Text by daybreakwarrior

 

When people want to learn conversational Navajo, they always want to learn how to say, “How are you doing?” There are ways to say this, namely:

Hait’áo naniná?
Haa lá ánít’é?

You can ask these but they’re not usually conversation starters. These are used if you know the person is not emotionally doing well or physically sick or something.

A better way to begin a conversation is to use the starter, “Áá'” This phrase literally means “open up,” but can also mean like, “tell me about it.” It can be used alone in the right scenario or used in combination with starter questions:

Áá’ ha’íí baa naniná?
What are you doing?

Áá’ ha’íí baa nídinídzá?
What will you be doing?

Áá’ ha’íí baa nisíníyá?
What were you doing?

Áá’ háágóó díníya?
Where are you going?

Áá’ háágóó nisíníyá?
Where did you go?

Áá’ háádé?é?’?
Where are you from?

Áá’ háádé?é?’ísh yínáál?
Where you coming from?

Áá’ ha’íí baa dahane’?
What’s the news?

Áá’ ha’íí daha’ní?
What’s the gossip?

Áá’ ha’íí hodoo’niid?
What was said?

Áá’ ha’íí?
What’s up?

Video and Text by daybreakwarrior

Conversational Navajo Lesson Video by DaybreakWarrior

Conversational Navajo Lesson: Emotion Vocabulary

 


This video is essentially a continuation of the previous video called, “How to Start Conversations in the Navajo Language.” Essentially, I introduced the phrase, “Haa ánít’é?” which means, “How are you doing?”

Of course it isn’t quite useful if you don’t know how to respond to this question. So in this video, I provided the different ways in which you can respond to this question along with providing some vocabulary words for various emotions in Navajo.

In addition to this, I’ve also included the basic ways you can respond to, “Haa lá ánít’é?” by responding with:

Bil nisin (sleepy)
Dichin nisin (hungry)
Dibáá’ nisin (thirsty)

Though, I’m grateful that someone took the time to translate the emotions on that “How Are You Doing Today?” chart in Navajo, it is more useful to have it in 1st person as opposed to 3rd person so you can learn the emotions. I hope you like this video… enjoy!

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