-ye-

The Class 1 relative marker -ye- is unique. While other noun classes form their relative markers using a regular '-o of reference', Class 1 uses the irregular form -ye- as its version of the '-o of reference' paradigm. Remember that -ye- is strictly singular. For plural animate nouns, you must use the Class 2 relative -o- (e.g., watu ambao..., watu wanaosoma). It functions as an agreement affix (not a standalone pronoun) and attaches in several distinct ways. Crucial reminder for subject relatives: Because the Class 1 subject prefix and relative marker look completely different, remember the formula a-...-ye-... (e.g., a-na-ye-soma 'he/she who reads'). For subject relatives, the verb must begin with the Class 1 Subject a-. However, if the Class 1 noun is the object ('whom'), the verb begins with the subject prefix of the person doing the action (e.g., ni-li-ye-mw-ona 'whom I saw').

1. Infixed (Tensed Relative)
You can place -ye- directly between the tense marker and the verb root. However, this is limited to three affirmative tenses: -na- (present), -li- (past), and -taka- (future). (For negative relatives, see Section 4 below).
Note: The standard future tense marker -ta- must change to -taka- when a relative marker is infixed (e.g., atakayesoma, never *atayesoma).

2. Attached to amba-
You can attach -ye- to the root amba- to form the independent word ambaye. This strategy is extremely common in everyday speech and can be used with any tense. It is mandatory for tenses that cannot take an infix, such as the -me- perfect tense or the hu- habitual tense, or when you need to explicitly negate a specific past or future tense. When using ambaye for negation, the following verb simply takes standard main-clause negation (e.g., ambaye hakusoma 'who did not read', ambaye hatasoma 'who will not read').

3. Suffixed (Tenseless Relative)
You can attach -ye- to the very end of a verb that has dropped its tense marker entirely (e.g., asomaye). This expresses habitual actions or timeless truths. While formal, it is regularly used in standard written Swahili, such as newspapers and news broadcasts. Note that this tenseless relative cannot be made negative with a suffix (e.g., never *asomayesi); you must use the -si- negative relative instead.

4. Negative Relative (-si-)
For negative relatives, the marker -si- replaces the tense marker entirely (e.g., asiyesoma). This acts as a general negative relative that can apply to past, present, or future contexts. You only need to use amba- if you must explicitly specify the past or future tense.

5. Attached to Copulas and Conjunctions
The relative marker -ye- can attach directly to the subject prefix to form relative copulas, as well as to specific conjunctions and emphatic copulas. For example, aliye means 'he or she who is', and its negative is asiye ('he or she who is not'). To express 'who has', you use aliye na (literally 'he or she who is with'). Additionally, it attaches to the emphatic copula ndi- to form ndiye ('it is he/she who') and to the conjunction na to form naye ('with him/her' or 'and he/she').

Subject vs. Object Relatives
When the Class 1 noun is the subject ('who'), -ye- agrees with it. When the Class 1 noun is the object ('whom'), -ye- is still used as the relative marker, but the verb must also include a Class 1 object marker (like -m- or -mw-) to track the object (e.g., mtu niliyemwona 'the person whom I saw').

Crucial Rule: Animacy
Swahili requires human agreement for all animate nouns. This means any singular person or animal (like kipofu 'blind person' or mbwa 'dog') must use the Class 1 relative -ye-, regardless of their original noun class prefix.