Ayah saya lahir di desa itu.

My father was born in that village.

Breakdown of Ayah saya lahir di desa itu.

• itu: that
• di: in
• ayah: the father
• saya: my
• desa: the village
• lahir: to be born

Questions & Answers about Ayah saya lahir di desa itu.

Why is it ayah saya and not saya ayah for my father?

In Indonesian, the possessed noun usually comes first, and the possessor follows it:

• ayah saya = father my → my father
• rumah kamu = house your → your house

So the pattern is:

[thing owned] + [person who owns it]

Putting saya first (saya ayah) is incorrect for possession and does not mean my father.

Can I say ayahku instead of ayah saya? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say ayahku, and it has almost the same meaning as ayah saya.

• ayah saya – neutral, common, works in almost any context (spoken and written).
• ayahku – a bit more personal/intimate or literary; common in stories, songs, or when speaking emotionally.

Both mean my father. If you are not sure which to use, ayah saya is the safest and most neutral choice.

What is the difference between ayah and bapak?

Both can refer to father, but there are nuances:

• ayah

  • More like father as a family role.
  • Used when talking about your father to someone else.
  • Common in writing, stories, and neutral speech.

• bapak

  • Literally also father, but strongly linked to sir / Mr. in polite address.
  • You use Bapak to address an adult man politely:
    Bapak mau ke mana? = Where are you going, sir?
  • bapak saya can also mean my father, especially in more formal or polite speech.

In the sentence Ayah saya lahir di desa itu, ayah is perfectly natural and neutral.

What exactly is lahir? Is it a verb, and why is there no word for was?

lahir means to be born.

• It behaves like an intransitive verb:
  • Saya lahir di Jakarta. = I was born in Jakarta.
• Indonesian does not use a separate verb like to be (am/is/was) for this:
  • You do not say Ayah saya adalah lahir… – that is wrong.

There is no separate word for was here because Indonesian usually does not mark tense with a verb like English. Time is understood from context or from time expressions.

Where is the past tense in Ayah saya lahir di desa itu? How do we know it means was born, not is born?

Indonesian generally does not change the verb form to show tense. Instead, tense is:

• implied by the meaning of the verb, and/or
• clarified by time words if needed.

For lahir:

• Being born is normally a one-time event in the past.
• So Ayah saya lahir di desa itu is naturally understood as My father was born in that village.

If you need to talk about future birth:

• Anak itu akan lahir bulan depan.
  That child will be born next month.

Here akan marks the future, but for the past we usually rely on context.

Can I say Ayah saya dilahirkan di desa itu instead of Ayah saya lahir di desa itu? What is the difference?

Both are grammatically correct, but there is a nuance:

• Ayah saya lahir di desa itu.

  • Simple, neutral.
  • Literally: My father was born in that village.
  • Very common in everyday speech and writing.

• Ayah saya dilahirkan di desa itu.

  • Uses the passive form dilahirkan (from melahirkan = to give birth to).
  • Literally: My father was given birth to in that village.
  • Sounds a bit more formal, technical, or written; often used when you want to stress the action of someone giving birth, sometimes followed by an agent:
    • Ayah saya dilahirkan di desa itu oleh nenek saya.

In most situations, lahir is the more natural choice.

Why do we need di before desa itu? Could we say Ayah saya lahir desa itu?

You must use di because di is the basic preposition for in / at / on (for locations).

• di desa itu = in that village
• Without di, desa itu would just be a noun phrase (that village) without a preposition, so the sentence would be ungrammatical.

So Ayah saya lahir desa itu is wrong; you need:

• Ayah saya lahir di desa itu.

Why is it desa itu and not itu desa?

Indonesian typically puts demonstratives (this/that) after the noun:

• desa itu = that village
• desa ini = this village
• rumah itu = that house

The pattern is:

[noun] + [ini / itu]

Putting itu before the noun (itu desa) is not the normal pattern in modern standard Indonesian, and will sound wrong or at least very odd in this sentence.

What is the difference between desa itu, desa ini, and desa tersebut?

All three involve a village, but they differ in reference:

• desa itu – that village

  • Refers to a village that is not right here; could be physically far or just already known in the conversation.

• desa ini – this village

  • Refers to the village that is here, or very close / being directly talked about as the current location.

• desa tersebut – that village (aforementioned)

  • More formal.
  • Used when referring back to a village that has already been mentioned in writing or in a formal explanation. Similar to the said village or the aforementioned village.

In spoken, everyday language, desa itu and desa ini are much more common.

Can I drop saya and just say Ayah lahir di desa itu? Will people still understand my father?

You can say Ayah lahir di desa itu, and in many real situations people will understand my father from context, especially if you are already talking about your own family.

However:

• Ayah saya is explicit: clearly my father.
• Ayah alone could, in theory, mean:
  • my father, if you are talking about your family, or
  • (someone’s) father in a more general or third-person context.

For learners, it is safer to keep saya:
Ayah saya lahir di desa itu.