Janga Wolof

Wolof has prepositions, but it has far fewer simple prepositions than English.

English has a large collection of short words such as:

• in
• on

• at

• to

• from
• for

• with
• under
• over
• behind
• beside
• between
• toward
• through
• without

Wolof does not have a separate simple preposition corresponding to every one of these words.

Instead, Wolof uses a small number of highly useful prepositions and particles, together with relational expressions and larger phrases. The most important of these is ci, which can introduce a wide variety of complements and can express relationships involving location, direction, and other meanings. ak is another important preposition, commonly meaning “with,” although it also functions as a conjunction meaning “and.” ngir can likewise have both prepositional and conjunction-like uses, including meanings such as “for,” “because of,” and “in order to.”

This means that learning Wolof prepositions is less about memorizing a long list of individual equivalents and more about understanding how Wolof builds relationships between things.

The most important preposition: ci

The single most useful Wolof preposition is:

ci

Depending on the context, ci can correspond to English:

• in
• at

• on

• to

• toward
• by

• about
• with regard to
• and various other relationships

It is therefore not useful to memorize ci = in and stop there.

For example:

Mu ngi ci néeg bi.
He is in the room.

But ci can also introduce other kinds of complements:

Waxal ci Wolof.
Speak in Wolof.

The exact English preposition changes, while the Wolof preposition remains ci.

This is one of the first places where a learner needs to resist translating English prepositions word-for-word.

Location with ci

The basic locative use of ci can express being:

• in a place
• at a place
• on or at a surface
• in or around a location

For example:

Mu ngi ci kër gi.
He is in the house.

The same basic preposition can participate in more specific expressions when a relational word is added.

This gives Wolof a flexible system for describing spatial relationships without requiring a separate simple preposition for every English spatial term.

Compound and relational prepositions

One of the most characteristic features of Wolof spatial expressions is the use of ci + a relational noun or spatial word.

Instead of having a completely separate word equivalent to English inside, behind, beside, or in front of, Wolof can construct these meanings from a basic locative preposition and a relational term.

For example:

ci biir — inside

ci kanamu — in front of

ci ginnaawu — behind

ci wetu — beside / next to

ci kaw — on / above

ci suufu — under / below

ci diggante — between

These expressions are sometimes called compound prepositions, prepositional phrases, or relational expressions, depending on the grammatical analysis.

The important thing for a learner is how they are constructed and used.

Spatial expressions often use body-part words

The structure becomes especially interesting because many of the words used in these expressions are ordinary nouns referring to parts of the body or physical regions.

For example:

• biir — belly, inside
• kanam — face, front
• ginnaaw — back, rear
• wet — side
• kaw — top, above
• suuf — ground, bottom
• digg — middle
• diggante — space between

Combined with ci, these words produce spatial relationships:

ci biir kër gi
inside the house

ci kanamu góor gi
in front of the man

ci ginnaawu woto bi
behind the car

ci wetu telefon bi
beside the telephone

This is not merely a collection of arbitrary expressions. It reflects a broader linguistic strategy in which spatial relationships are described in terms of physical regions or relationships.

Why “in front of” is not just one word

An English speaker may think of:

in front of

as a single preposition-like unit.

In Wolof, however, the equivalent can be analyzed as something closer to:

ci + kanam + relational form

where kanam literally refers to the face or front.

Likewise:

ci ginnaawu X

can express the space behind X, using ginnaaw, “back/rear.”

This is why it is often better to learn Wolof spatial expressions as patterns rather than as isolated vocabulary equivalents.

The final -u

You will frequently see a form such as:

ci kanamu

rather than simply:

ci kanam

The -u connects the relational word to what follows it and is associated with the relationship between the two elements.

For learners, it is useful to treat expressions such as:

ci kanamu góor gi

as a complete grammatical pattern meaning:

in front of the man

rather than trying to translate each individual piece according to English grammar.

Similar forms occur in expressions such as:

ci biiru kër gi
inside the house

ci wetu telefon bi
beside the telephone

ci ginnaawu woto bi
behind the car

The exact behavior of the connective element can vary according to the form of the relational word, so learning common expressions as complete patterns is helpful.

ak — “with” and “and”

Another extremely important relational word is:

ak

The basic prepositional meaning is:

with

For example:

Mu ngi wax ak man.
He is speaking with me.

But ak also means:

and

when it connects nouns or noun phrases.

For example:

Omar ak Sàmba

means:

Omar and Sàmba

This makes ak particularly interesting because the same word can express either accompaniment or coordination, depending on the construction.

Compare:

Wax ak man.
Speak with me.

with:

Omar ak Sàmba.
Omar and Sàmba.

Context and grammatical structure tell you which relationship is intended.

ak and te are not interchangeable

English uses and for many different kinds of connections, but Wolof distinguishes some of these relationships.

ak can connect nouns:

Omar ak Sàmba

while te is used to connect clauses or verbs:

Omar ak Sàmba dañu xiif te mar.

This means roughly:

Omar and Sàmba are hungry and thirsty.

Here ak connects the two people, while te connects the two verbal predicates.

This distinction will be covered more fully on the page about conjunctions, but it is useful to know because ak appears in both the preposition and conjunction systems.

ngir — “for,” “because of,” and “in order to”

Another important relational word is:

ngir

It can express meanings such as:

• for
• for the sake of
• because of
• in order to

For example, when followed by a verb, ngir can express purpose:

ngir jàng
in order to study

This is another example of a Wolof word whose English translation changes according to context.

The same general form can participate in causal or purposive relationships.

Direction and “to”

English uses to in several different ways:

go to Dakar

give it to him

want to eat

These are not necessarily the same grammatical relationship.

Wolof does not use one equivalent of English to in all of these situations.

For physical direction, ci can be used in appropriate contexts:

Dem na ci Dakar.

The precise interpretation depends on the construction and context.

But an infinitival English to, as in:

want to eat

belongs to a different grammatical relationship and should not automatically be translated using a locative preposition.

This is an important general principle:

English prepositions do not correspond to one universal Wolof equivalent simply because they are spelled the same way in English.

Time and prepositional expressions

Wolof also uses relational expressions to establish temporal relationships.

For example, ci, ba, and related forms can occur with temporal clauses and expressions.

Examples include constructions corresponding to:

• during
• while
• until
• since
• after
• before

Some of these are better analyzed as conjunctions or temporal particles rather than ordinary prepositions.

For example:

ba can introduce temporal relationships corresponding to “until” or “when,” depending on the construction.

Likewise, bi, bu, and related forms can introduce temporal or conditional clauses.

This is another reason that an English-style list of “Wolof prepositions” can become misleading.

Prepositions and conjunctions overlap

Some Wolof relational words do not fit neatly into one English grammatical category.

For example:

ak — with / and

ngir — for / because of / in order to

Other forms can similarly participate in relationships that English would express through separate prepositions, conjunctions, or subordinate clauses.

This is not unusual cross-linguistically. Grammatical categories are not necessarily divided in exactly the same way in every language.

For learners, the practical question is therefore:

What relationship does this word or construction establish?

rather than:

Is this exactly a preposition in the English sense?

Prepositions and pronouns

Prepositions can occur with pronouns, but Wolof uses its independent pronoun forms after these relationship words.

For example:

ak man
with me

rather than treating the pronoun as though it were an English object pronoun attached to the preposition.

This is particularly important with ak, because expressions such as:

ak man — with me

ak yaw — with you

ak moom — with him/her

are common and useful.

The independent pronoun system therefore deserves to be learned alongside the prepositions.

Prepositions and noun classes

The basic prepositions themselves do not behave like Wolof noun-class markers.

However, when a preposition introduces a definite noun phrase, the noun’s normal determiner still shows the noun’s class:

ci kër gi
in the house

ci xale bi
with/in relation to the child

ci xale yi
among/with the children

The preposition does not replace the noun-class system. Instead, the noun phrase retains its ordinary grammatical structure.

This is another example of how Wolof’s systems interact rather than operating as completely separate lists of rules.

Location versus direction

One thing that can be confusing for English speakers is that a single Wolof preposition may cover meanings that English separates.

English distinguishes:

in the house

from:

into the house

and:

at the house

and:

to the house

Wolof can use ci in several kinds of locative and directional relationships.

The surrounding verb and context help determine whether the expression describes:

• a location
• movement toward a location
• a destination
• another relationship involving the place

This is why ci should be learned as a broad relational marker rather than simply memorized as “in.”

Spatial relationships are often constructed rather than memorized

English speakers often memorize spatial words as separate items:

above
below
behind
beside
between
in front of

Wolof offers a more systematic way to understand many of these.

For example:

Meaning	Wolof expression
inside	ci biir
in front of	ci kanamu
behind	ci ginnaawu
beside / next to	ci wetu
above / on	ci kaw
below / under	ci suufu
between	ci diggante

The exact spelling and connective form can vary somewhat depending on the following expression, so these are best learned as patterns rather than rigid formulas.

The broader idea: relationship words

Some descriptions of Wolof use the term “relationship words” rather than simply “prepositions.”

This is useful because the Wolof system does not map neatly onto the traditional English categories of:

• prepositions
• conjunctions
• adverbs
• particles

For example, ak can mean “with” or “and,” while ngir can have prepositional and conjunction-like uses.

A learner can therefore think of these words as relationship markers: words or constructions that tell us how one element relates to another.

Learning Wolof prepositions

When learning a new Wolof preposition or relational expression, it is better to learn it through examples than as an isolated translation.

For example, do not learn only:

ci = in

Instead, learn several uses:

ci kër gi
in the house

ci kaw taabal bi
on the table

ci biir kër gi
inside the house

ci kanamu góor gi
in front of the man

This immediately shows you that ci is much broader than the English word in.

Likewise, do not learn only:

ak = with

Learn:

ak man
with me

and:

Omar ak Sàmba
Omar and Sàmba

The surrounding construction tells you what relationship the word expresses.

A useful way to organize them

For learning purposes, Wolof relational expressions can be grouped according to their function.

Basic relationship words

• ci — in, at, on, to, toward, etc.
• ak — with; and
• ngir — for; because of; in order to
• ba — to/until and related temporal uses

Spatial expressions

• ci biir — inside
• ci kaw — above / on
• ci suuf — below / on the ground
• ci kanamu — in front of
• ci ginnaawu — behind
• ci wetu — beside / next to
• ci diggante — between

Temporal and subordinate expressions

• bi — when / after or other temporal meanings depending on construction
• bu — when / if in appropriate constructions
• ba — until / when and related meanings

These categories are useful for learners, but they should not be treated as perfectly rigid grammatical classifications. Some forms belong to more than one functional category.

Why Wolof does not need dozens of simple prepositions

English has developed a very large inventory of simple prepositions and preposition-like words.

Wolof instead gets a great deal of mileage out of a small number of highly flexible forms—especially ci—combined with relational words.

This produces a system that is actually quite systematic once you recognize the pattern.

Rather than memorizing:

inside = one word
behind = another word
beside = another word
in front of = another word

you can begin recognizing:

ci + spatial relationship

For example:

ci biir — in the interior
ci kanam — at the front/face
ci ginnaaw — at the back
ci wet — at the side

The meanings then become much easier to remember.

The most important idea

The biggest adjustment for an English-speaking learner is this:

Do not expect every English preposition to have a separate Wolof equivalent.

Wolof uses a small number of highly flexible relationship words, especially ci, and combines them with nouns and other relational elements to express much more specific relationships.

So instead of thinking:

“What is the Wolof word for behind?”

it can be more useful to think:

“How does Wolof express the spatial relationship ‘behind’?”

The answer is:

ci ginnaawu …

Likewise, instead of memorizing in front of as an unrelated vocabulary item, recognize:

ci kanamu …

Once you see these as patterns, the system becomes considerably more predictable.

Key points to remember

• Wolof has relatively few simple prepositions compared with English.
• ci is one of the most important and versatile.
• ci can express a variety of locative, directional, and other relationships depending on context.
• ak commonly means “with” and can also mean “and.”
• ngir can express meanings such as “for,” “because of,” and “in order to.”
• Many spatial relationships are expressed through ci + a relational word.
• Relational words often come from nouns referring to physical regions or body parts.
• Examples include ci biir (“inside”), ci kanamu (“in front of”), ci ginnaawu (“behind”), and ci wetu (“beside”).
• The English prepositions in, at, on, to, etc. do not each have a single one-to-one Wolof equivalent.
• Temporal relationships are often expressed through particles and subordinate constructions rather than simple prepositions.
• Some Wolof relationship words overlap with what English would classify as conjunctions or other grammatical categories.
• It is often more useful to learn relational patterns and complete expressions than isolated English-to-Wolof translations.

Related topics

This page connects especially closely with:

• Wolof Nouns
• Wolof Noun Classes
• Wolof Pronouns
• Wolof Adverbs and Adverbial Expressions
• Wolof Conjunctions
• Wolof Time Expressions
• Wolof Locative Expressions
• Wolof Sentence Structure
• Wolof Possession