Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Di perpustakaan, ada macam-macam buku untuk anak dan orang tua. - In the library, there are various kinds of books for children and parents.

ada states existence: there is/are. Example: Di perpustakaan ada buku. = There are books in the library.
adalah links two noun phrases (like is/are = equals): Buku itu adalah kamus.
Negation: tidak ada (there is/are not), but for adalah-type sentences you use bukan: Buku itu bukan kamus.
To express possession, prefer punya/memiliki: Perpustakaan itu punya banyak buku. You’ll also hear Saya ada waktu (I have time), which is acceptable in everyday use, but punya is the clearest “have.”

Could I drop ada in this sentence?

Usually you keep ada to introduce existence. Alternatives that sound natural:

Di perpustakaan, terdapat berbagai buku… (more formal)
Di perpustakaan, tersedia bermacam-macam buku… (emphasizes availability) If you remove it without replacing it, the sentence feels incomplete.

Why is there a comma after Di perpustakaan? Is it required?

A comma after a fronted location/time phrase is common and stylistically neat, but not strictly required. Both are fine:

Di perpustakaan, ada…
Di perpustakaan ada…

What does macam-macam mean, and why is it reduplicated?

macam = kind/type. Reduplication (macam-macam) means “various, all kinds of.”
You can also say:
- bermacam-macam buku (very common, natural)
- berbagai buku (various books)
- berbagai macam buku (various kinds of books)
The hyphen shows reduplication; write macam-macam, not “macam macam.”

Why isn’t it buku-buku if it means “books”?

Plural is often unmarked in Indonesian. Context or quantifiers (like macam-macam, banyak, beberapa) already imply plurality. You can use buku-buku for emphasis on plurality, but here buku is sufficient:

Ada banyak buku. (There are many books.)
Ada buku-buku baru. (There are books—emphasizing the plural—new ones.)

Does anak mean “child” or “children” here? Should it be anak-anak?

Bare anak can be generic (children as a category). Anak-anak explicitly marks plural “children.” Both are possible; if you want to be crystal clear that it’s for children (plural), use anak-anak:

buku untuk anak-anak = books for children.

Does orang tua mean “adults,” “parents,” or “old people”?

In most contexts, orang tua means “parents.”
It can also mean “old/elderly people,” depending on context.
It does NOT normally mean “adults” (that’s orang dewasa). So the phrase untuk anak dan orang tua can be read as “for children and parents” (most likely) or “for children and the elderly.” If you mean “adults,” say orang dewasa.

How can I remove that ambiguity and clearly say “for children and adults”?

Say: untuk anak-anak dan orang dewasa. If you specifically mean “for children and their parents,” say: untuk anak-anak dan orang tua mereka. For “the elderly,” say: untuk anak-anak dan lansia (lansia = elderly).

Is orangtua (one word) correct, or should it be orang tua?

You will see both in real-life writing. Many style guides prefer orang tua (two words) for “parents” and also for “old people.” Some writers use orangtua to force the “parents” meaning. To avoid ambiguity, add a clarifier (e.g., orang tua siswa, “students’ parents”) or choose a different term (orang dewasa, lansia) when relevant.

Why is macam-macam placed before buku when adjectives usually come after the noun?

Adjectives like colors go after the noun (e.g., buku merah). But quantifiers/determiners typically go before the noun: banyak buku, beberapa buku, berbagai buku, (ber)macam-macam buku. Here macam-macam functions like a quantifier.

Could I say berbagai instead of macam-macam? Any nuance?

Yes:

Ada berbagai buku… is very natural and slightly more concise.
Ada (ber)macam-macam buku… emphasizes a wider variety.
Ada berbagai macam buku… explicitly says “various kinds of books.” All are fine; pick based on style and emphasis.

Is untuk the only way to say “for”? What about buat and bagi?

untuk: neutral, works everywhere. buku untuk anak
buat: informal/colloquial. buku buat anak
bagi: more formal/written, often when distributing or stating benefit. Bagi anak, buku itu bermanfaat.

How do I mark “the” vs “a” in Indonesian for perpustakaan and buku?

Indonesian has no articles. Use context or add determiners:

“the library”: perpustakaan itu / perpustakaan tersebut
“a book”: sebuah buku (optional; just buku is often fine)
“the books”: buku-buku itu (if you need to specify)

Can I change the word order to put the location at the end?

Yes. Both are fine:

Di perpustakaan, ada macam-macam buku…
Ada macam-macam buku… di perpustakaan. Fronting the location sets the scene; placing it at the end adds it as extra info.

What’s the difference between di, ke, and dari with perpustakaan?

di perpustakaan = at/in the library (location)
ke perpustakaan = to the library (direction)
dari perpustakaan = from the library (source) For “inside (the interior of) the library,” you can say di dalam perpustakaan.

How would I negate the sentence?

Use tidak ada:

Di perpustakaan, tidak ada buku untuk anak. (There are no books for children.) Or soften it:
Di perpustakaan, hanya ada sedikit buku untuk anak. (There are only a few books for children.)

Are there other natural rewrites of the original sentence?

Yes, for clarity and style:

Di perpustakaan, ada berbagai buku untuk anak-anak dan orang dewasa.
Di perpustakaan tersedia bermacam-macam buku untuk anak-anak dan orang dewasa.
Perpustakaan itu punya banyak buku untuk anak-anak dan orang dewasa.