Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda saya. - My family comes to the campus for my graduation ceremony.

Putting saya before the noun (saya keluarga) is not how possession is expressed and sounds wrong.
Saya before a noun can sometimes work in special cases (e.g. saya guru = I am a teacher), but not for “my X.” Possession normally comes after the noun.

Why is saya repeated? Could I just say Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda?

Both are grammatically correct, but there is a nuance:

Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda saya.
- Explicitly:
  - The family is mine
  - The graduation ceremony is also mine
- Very clear, a bit more explicit/emphatic.
Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda.
- The family is definitely “my family.”
- Whose graduation? Usually understood from context as mine, but it’s not stated.

In normal conversation, if it’s already clear you’re talking about your own graduation, people might drop the second saya and just say:

Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk wisuda.

So:

Repeating saya: more explicit, slightly more formal/clear.
Omitting the second saya: more natural when context already makes it obvious.

What’s the difference between ke and di here? Why is it ke kampus, not di kampus?

ke and di are different prepositions:

ke = to / towards (movement)
di = in / at / on (location, no movement implied)

In this sentence:

datang ke kampus = come to campus (movement towards campus)
di kampus = at campus (already there)

Compare:

Keluarga saya datang ke kampus.
My family comes / came to the campus.
Keluarga saya sudah di kampus.
My family is already at the campus.

So ke kampus is correct because the verb datang (“come”) involves movement toward a place.

There’s no past tense word like “came” or future like “will come” in datang. How do I show tense in Indonesian?

Indonesian verbs don’t change form for tense. Datang can mean:

come
came
is coming
will come

Context and time expressions carry tense/aspect. You can add time markers:

Kemarin keluarga saya datang ke kampus…
Yesterday my family came to campus…
Besok keluarga saya akan datang ke kampus…
Tomorrow my family will come to campus…
Sekarang keluarga saya sedang datang ke kampus.
Right now my family is coming to campus.

Other common markers:

sudah = already (past/completed)
tadi = earlier (today, recent past)
akan = will (future)
sedang = in the process of (progressive)

So you keep datang the same, and adjust meaning with context or these markers.

Can I use buat instead of untuk in this sentence?

Yes, in many everyday contexts you can. The difference is mostly formality:

untuk = for / in order to (neutral, slightly more formal; fine in speech and writing)
buat = for (casual, spoken, informal writing)

So:

Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda saya.
Neutral, good for written or formal situations.
Keluarga saya datang ke kampus buat upacara wisuda saya.
More casual, common in informal speech.

In a formal essay or official speech, untuk is safer. Among friends, buat is completely natural.

Do I really need the word upacara? Can I just say untuk wisuda saya?

You can say both:

untuk upacara wisuda saya
- Literally: “for my graduation ceremony”
- Emphasizes that it’s a ceremony/event.
untuk wisuda saya
- Literally: “for my graduation”
- Still clearly means the graduation event.

In everyday conversation, people often drop upacara and just say:

Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk wisuda saya.
Or even … untuk wisuda., if it’s clear it’s your own.

Using upacara sounds slightly more formal or explicit, but both are correct.

What’s the difference between keluarga saya and orang tua saya? When would I use which?

keluarga saya = my family
- This usually includes parents, and may also include siblings, possibly other close relatives (depending on context).
orang tua saya = my parents (literally “my old people”)
- Specifically mother + father (or parental figures), not siblings.

So:

If you mean parents only, say orang tua saya.
- Orang tua saya datang ke kampus untuk wisuda saya.
  My parents came to campus for my graduation.
If you mean parents + maybe siblings, etc., say keluarga saya.
- Keluarga saya datang ke kampus…
  My family came to campus…

Is this sentence formal, neutral, or informal? How would it sound in casual daily speech?

Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda saya. is:

Grammatically correct
Neutral to slightly formal
Perfect for writing, presentations, or polite speech

In casual conversation, people often:

Shorten words
Use aku / gue instead of saya
Use buat instead of untuk
Sometimes drop upacara or the second saya

Possible casual versions:

Keluarga aku dateng ke kampus buat wisuda aku. (very informal, Jakarta style)
Keluarga saya datang ke kampus buat wisuda. (informal but still using saya)

So your original sentence is on the polite/neutral side and widely acceptable.

Can I drop the verb datang and just say Keluarga saya ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda saya?

In standard, clear Indonesian you should keep the verb datang:

Keluarga saya datang ke kampus… ✅ correct and complete

Saying:

Keluarga saya ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda saya.

…sounds incomplete or ungrammatical in careful Indonesian, because you normally need a verb like datang (come), pergi (go), etc.

Very informally, in some dialects or relaxed speech, people might sometimes drop such verbs, but it’s better (and more widely correct) to include datang:

Keluarga saya pergi ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda saya.
Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda saya.

Could I say ke universitas instead of ke kampus? Is there any difference?

Yes, you can say ke universitas, but there’s a nuance:

kampus = the physical campus area (buildings, grounds)
universitas = the institution (the university as an organization)

Often, in practice, they overlap:

datang ke kampus = go to the campus (where the university is)
datang ke universitas = go to the university (often meaning the same place)

For your sentence, both are acceptable:

Keluarga saya datang ke kampus untuk upacara wisuda saya.
Keluarga saya datang ke universitas untuk upacara wisuda saya.

Ke kampus may sound a bit more concrete/physical (the actual campus grounds), while ke universitas sounds a bit more institutional, but in everyday speech the difference is usually small.

How do you pronounce keluarga and wisuda? Where is the stress?

Indonesian has fairly regular pronunciation and typically even stress, though many speakers slightly stress the second-to-last syllable.

keluarga

Syllables: ke-luar-ga
Approximate sounds:
- ke = “ke” in “kernel” but shorter (like a schwa)
- luar = “loo-ar” (said smoothly, like “luar” in “boulevard” without the “b”)
- ga = “gah” (short a, like “ga” in “gala” but quicker)
Natural stress: often a slight stress on luar: ke-LUAR-ga

wisuda

Syllables: wi-su-da
Approximate sounds:
- wi = “wee”
- su = “soo”
- da = “dah”
Natural stress: usually a slightly stronger SU: wi-SU-da

All vowels are pronounced clearly and do not change quality like in English; each letter is usually sounded.