Formal Relators: menurut, terhadap, bagi, and demi | Indonesian Grammar

Formal Indonesian often distinguishes relations that English compresses into according to, toward, for, or a vague prepositional phrase. Menurut names a viewpoint source, terhadap a target of an attitude or effect, bagi the stakeholder from whose perspective something matters, and demi a purpose treated as an overriding interest.

These are not ornamental synonyms for untuk. Their value in academic, legal, administrative, and public-service prose is precisely that they assign different semantic roles.

This page focuses on the relators and the phrases they introduce. Full subordinate-clause syntax and the paradigms of derivational affixes are left to dedicated adjacent pages.

The four-way map

Relator	Role	Core question	Typical genres
menurut	viewpoint or authority source	According to whom or what?	academic, journalistic, legal
terhadap	target of attitude, policy, or effect	Directed at or affecting what?	academic, legal, bureaucratic
bagi	beneficiary or stakeholder perspective	For whom does this matter?	public service, analysis, recommendations
demi	purpose framed as an interest or principle	For the sake of what?	legal, official, rhetorical

The categories overlap at the edges because real events can involve several roles. A policy may be menurut undang-undang “according to the law,” have an effect terhadap pekerja “on workers,” bring benefits bagi keluarga “for families,” and be defended demi kepentingan umum “for the sake of the public interest.” Replacing every phrase with untuk would erase those distinctions.

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Formal style is clearest when each relator earns its place by identifying a specific role. A rarer word is not automatically a more elegant word.

Menurut: the source of a viewpoint or standard

Menurut attributes a claim, assessment, rule, or classification to a person, document, body of evidence, or normative standard. It does not say that the writer personally endorses the source.

Menurut peneliti tersebut, perubahan suhu memengaruhi pola migrasi burung.

According to that researcher, temperature changes affect birds’ migration patterns. (academic)

Menurut laporan tahunan, jumlah pengguna angkutan umum meningkat dua belas persen.

According to the annual report, the number of public-transport users increased by twelve percent. (formal)

Menurut Pasal 7 peraturan tersebut, pemohon wajib melampirkan bukti identitas.

Under Article 7 of the regulation, applicants must attach proof of identity. (legal)

Menurut saya, bagian kesimpulannya masih perlu diperjelas.

In my opinion, the conclusion still needs to be clarified.

Menurut saya is neutral in discussion, not exclusively bureaucratic. At the beginning of a clause, the phrase normally takes a comma when it frames the whole proposition. Compare it with a true participant: Peneliti itu menjelaskan hasilnya makes the researcher the subject, whereas Menurut peneliti itu, ... merely attributes the following claim.

Do not use menurut to introduce the object of agreement or opposition. Sikap terhadap kebijakan is an attitude toward a policy; menurut kebijakan means according to the policy.

Terhadap: a target under consideration or effect

Terhadap marks the entity at which an attitude, treatment, evaluation, obligation, or effect is directed. It is common after abstract nouns and in nominal style (formal/academic).

Penelitian ini mengkaji sikap masyarakat terhadap transportasi listrik.

This study examines public attitudes toward electric transportation. (academic)

Peraturan itu memberikan perlindungan terhadap data pribadi pengguna.

The regulation provides protection for users’ personal data. (legal)

Kenaikan harga bahan bakar berdampak langsung terhadap biaya distribusi.

The fuel-price increase has a direct impact on distribution costs. (formal)

Petugas dilarang melakukan diskriminasi terhadap pemohon layanan.

Officers are prohibited from discriminating against service applicants. (public service)

English uses toward, against, on, and to across these examples. The Indonesian constant is a target exposed to an attitude, measure, or consequence. Terhadap can sound heavy in everyday conversation; a direct object or another ordinary preposition is often better when the verb already supplies the relation.

Tim membahas usulan baru itu dalam rapat pagi.

The team discussed the new proposal at the morning meeting.

Because membahas is transitive, its topic is a direct object: membahas usulan, not membahas terhadap usulan. By contrast, the derived noun pembahasan terhadap usulan is possible in formal nominal style because terhadap links the noun to its target.

Bagi: beneficiary and stakeholder perspective

Bagi can identify a beneficiary, but formal prose especially uses it to establish the person or group from whose perspective a fact, duty, or recommendation is relevant. Initial bagi + group often means “as for/in the case of that stakeholder.”

Program ini menyediakan pendampingan hukum bagi pekerja migran.

This program provides legal assistance for migrant workers. (public service)

Akses internet yang stabil sangat penting bagi sekolah di daerah terpencil.

Stable internet access is very important for schools in remote areas. (formal)

Bagi peserta yang belum terdaftar, layanan bantuan tersedia di meja informasi.

For participants who are not yet registered, assistance is available at the information desk. (public service)

Bagi peneliti, temuan tersebut membuka pertanyaan metodologis baru.

For researchers, that finding raises new methodological questions. (academic)

Untuk and bagi can both translate for, but their profiles differ. Beasiswa untuk mahasiswa baru presents the students as the intended destination or purpose of the scholarship. Beasiswa itu penting bagi mahasiswa baru evaluates the scholarship from the students’ perspective. In many beneficiary contexts both are possible, but they are not interchangeable in every construction.

Panitia menyiapkan panduan untuk peserta baru; panduan itu sangat berguna bagi mereka.

The committee prepared a guide for new participants; the guide is very useful to them.

Demi: purpose as an overriding interest

Demi means “for the sake of” and presents its complement as a valued interest, principle, or goal that justifies effort, restriction, or sacrifice. It is forceful and frequent in public rhetoric and legal formulas (formal/legal).

Demi keselamatan penumpang, pintu harus tetap tertutup selama perjalanan.

For passengers’ safety, the door must remain closed during the journey. (public-service announcement)

Pemerintah menunda proyek tersebut demi melindungi kawasan konservasi.

The government postponed the project in order to protect the conservation area. (formal)

Setiap pembatasan hak harus dapat dipertanggungjawabkan demi kepentingan umum.

Every restriction of rights must be justifiable in the public interest. (legal)

Ketentuan yang bertentangan dengan undang-undang dapat dinyatakan batal demi hukum.

A provision that conflicts with the law may be declared null and void by operation of law. (legal)

The fixed legal expression batal demi hukum does not mean that someone cancels something “for the purpose of law.” It means null automatically as a consequence of the law. Learn this expression as a conventional legal unit.

Demi + verb can introduce a strongly framed purpose, as in demi menjaga kepercayaan publik. Neutral tools and everyday intended uses normally take untuk: alat untuk membuka kaleng, not alat demi membuka kaleng.

Lembaga itu menerbitkan laporan lengkap demi menjaga kepercayaan publik.

The institution published a complete report in order to maintain public trust. (formal)

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Use demi when “for the sake of” genuinely fits—especially where a principle, protected interest, or sacrifice motivates the action. Use neutral untuk for ordinary purpose.

Genre and sentence design

These relators help dense prose remain interpretable, but stacking too many abstract phrases can make a sentence bureaucratic. Use verbs when agency matters and nominal structures when the genre genuinely foregrounds policies, effects, or standards.

Menurut hasil evaluasi, pelatihan itu bermanfaat bagi petugas dan meningkatkan kepedulian mereka terhadap keamanan data.

According to the evaluation results, the training benefits officers and increases their awareness of data security. (formal)

The sentence assigns three roles cleanly: the evaluation is the viewpoint source, officers are beneficiaries, and data security is the target of concern.

Spelling and word boundaries

Write each relator separately from its complement: menurut laporan, terhadap kebijakan, bagi warga, demi keselamatan. Free di and ke are also separate before noun phrases (di kantor, ke pengadilan), while verbal di- and derivational ke- attach (ditetapkan, ketentuan). Preserve normal capitalization in official names and legal titles.

Common Mistakes

1. Using menurut for an attitude target

❌ Sikap warga menurut kebijakan baru itu masih beragam.

Incorrect — the policy is the target of attitudes, not their viewpoint source.

✅ Sikap warga terhadap kebijakan baru itu masih beragam.

Residents’ attitudes toward the new policy remain varied.

2. Adding terhadap after a transitive verb

❌ Komisi membahas terhadap laporan tersebut.

Incorrect — membahas takes its topic directly as an object.

✅ Komisi membahas laporan tersebut.

The commission discussed the report.

3. Treating bagi as a universal purpose marker

❌ Mesin ini dirancang bagi memotong logam tipis.

Incorrect neutral purpose construction — a verb purpose takes untuk here.

✅ Mesin ini dirancang untuk memotong logam tipis.

This machine is designed to cut thin metal.

4. Using demi for an ordinary intended recipient

❌ Saya membeli hadiah ini demi Ibu.

Wrong for an ordinary intended recipient — demi adds a marked ‘for the sake of’ meaning.

✅ Saya membeli hadiah ini untuk Ibu.

I bought this gift for Mom.

5. Joining a relator to its complement

❌ Menurutlaporan itu, biaya operasional menurun.

Incorrect spelling — menurut is separate from its complement.

✅ Menurut laporan itu, biaya operasional menurun.

According to that report, operating costs declined.

Key Takeaways

Menurut attributes a proposition to a viewpoint, source, or standard.
Terhadap marks the target of an attitude, policy, treatment, or effect.
Bagi frames a beneficiary or stakeholder perspective.
Demi presents a purpose as an overriding interest or principle.
These distinctions clarify formal prose; they are not decorative replacements for untuk.

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