Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi makanan dan cerita. - That tradition makes the children learn to share food and stories.

Tradisi itu can be translated as:
- “that tradition” (a specific one already known in the conversation), or
- “the tradition” (also specific/known in context).

Indonesian doesn’t have a separate word for “the,” so itu after a noun often fills that role of making the noun specific, not general.

Why is it tradisi itu and not itu tradisi?

In Indonesian, when itu is used to specify a noun (like “that/the”), it normally comes after the noun:

tradisi itu = that tradition / the tradition
buku itu = that book / the book
anak itu = that child / the child

When itu comes before something, it usually works more like “that is / that’s”:

Itu tradisi. = That’s a tradition.

So:

Tradisi itu = that/the tradition (noun phrase)
Itu tradisi. = That’s a tradition (full sentence)

In your sentence, you need a noun phrase as the subject, so tradisi itu is correct.

What is the literal structure of the sentence? Who is the subject and what is the object?

Sentence: Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi makanan dan cerita.

Breakdown:

Tradisi itu = that/the tradition → main subject
membuat = makes / causes → main verb
anak-anak = the children → subject of the inner clause
belajar = to learn → verb of the inner clause
berbagi = to share → verb complement (“learn to share”)
makanan dan cerita = food and stories → objects of “share”

Structure in English-like terms:

[That tradition] [makes] [the children] [learn [to share food and stories]].

So “anak-anak belajar berbagi makanan dan cerita” functions as the result clause (what the tradition makes happen).

I thought membuat means “to make” (like “to create something”). How does it mean “to cause” here?

Membuat has two common uses:

Create / produce something concrete
- Dia membuat kue. = He/She makes a cake.
Cause someone to be/do something (like “to make [someone] do [something]”)
- Berita itu membuat saya sedih.
  = That news makes me sad.
- Film itu membuat saya berpikir.
  = That movie makes me think.

In your sentence:

Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi…
= That tradition makes / causes children learn to share…

So here membuat means “to cause / to make (someone do/experience something)”, not “to physically create.”

What exactly does anak-anak mean? Is it just “children”? Why is the word repeated?

Yes, anak-anak means “children.”

The repetition is reduplication, a common way to indicate:

Plural:
- anak = child
- anak-anak = children

Reduplication can also show variety or collectiveness in other nouns (context-dependent), but here it’s straightforward plural.

In many contexts, anak (without reduplication) can also refer to children in general, but anak-anak makes the plural idea very clear.

Can I just say anak instead of anak-anak here? Would that still mean “children”?

You can say:

Tradisi itu membuat anak belajar berbagi makanan dan cerita.

Grammatically, it’s fine, but the nuance shifts:

anak-anak → clearly children (plural)
anak → could be:
- “a child” (singular), or
- “children in general” (generic, like “a child/the child” as a group concept)

In the context of habits / upbringing / values, Indonesians often use anak-anak because you’re obviously talking about children as a group.

So anak-anak is more natural and explicit for “children” in this type of sentence.

Why are there two verbs in a row, belajar berbagi? How does that work?

In Indonesian, it’s common to put one verb after another when one verb describes learning, wanting, trying, starting, etc. and the second verb is what you learn/want/try:

belajar makan = learn to eat
belajar membaca = learn to read
mulai bekerja = start to work
coba mengerti = try to understand

In your sentence:

belajar berbagi = learn to share

No extra word like “to” is needed between them. The pattern is:

belajar + [base verb]
= learn to [do something]

So anak-anak belajar berbagi = the children learn to share.

In English we say “learn to share.” Why is there no word like “to” before berbagi?

Indonesian doesn’t use an infinitive marker like English “to” (as in to share, to eat).

Instead, the bare verb directly follows verbs like belajar:

belajar makan = learn to eat
belajar berenang = learn to swim
belajar berbagi = learn to share

So the idea of “to” is built into the pattern “belajar + verb”; there is no separate word needed.

What does berbagi mean exactly? Do I need to say berbagi dengan… (share with) here?

Berbagi means “to share.”

Usage:

With a direct object (what is shared)
- berbagi makanan = share food
- berbagi cerita = share stories
With someone (often using dengan)
- berbagi makanan dengan teman-teman
  = share food with friends

In your sentence:

berbagi makanan dan cerita = share food and stories

The sentence talks about what they share, not with whom. So berbagi makanan dan cerita is perfectly natural; there’s no need to add dengan unless you want to specify with whom they share.

Why don’t we say makanan-makanan and cerita-cerita to show that it’s plural (foods and stories)?

Indonesian doesn’t always mark plural explicitly. Plurality is often clear from context.

makanan = food / foods
cerita = story / stories

Reduplicating (makanan-makanan, cerita-cerita) is possible but:

It can sound heavier or more emphatic, sometimes suggesting “various kinds of…”
In everyday sentences like yours, simple makanan dan cerita is more natural.

So:

berbagi makanan dan cerita = share food and stories (plural meaning understood from context + verb “share”)

You only need reduplication when you really want to emphasize plurality or variety.

Could I say Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak untuk belajar berbagi…?

That sounds unnatural/wrong in Indonesian.

With membuat in the sense of “cause/make,” you don’t insert untuk before the following verb phrase:

✔ Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi…
✘ Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak untuk belajar berbagi…

The usual pattern is:

membuat + [someone] + [verb/adjective]
- Berita itu membuat dia menangis.
  (That news made her/him cry.)
- Masalah ini membuat saya pusing.
  (This problem makes me dizzy / gives me a headache.)
- Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi.
  (That tradition makes children learn to share.)

How would I say “That tradition made the children share food and stories,” without the idea of “learn to”?

You would remove belajar and keep berbagi:

Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak berbagi makanan dan cerita.
= That tradition made the children share food and stories.

Compare:

membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi
→ makes children learn to share (focus on the learning process)
membuat anak-anak berbagi
→ makes children share (focus on the action itself)

What tense is this sentence? How do I know if it’s past, present, or future?

Indonesian verbs don’t change form for tense. The sentence:

Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi makanan dan cerita.

can mean:

That tradition makes children learn to share… (general truth / present, habitual)
That tradition made children learn to share… (past, with context)
That tradition will make children learn to share… (future, with context)

Tense is understood from context or from extra time words, e.g.:

dulu (in the past), sekarang (now), nanti (later), akan (will), etc.

For example:

Dulu, tradisi itu membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi…
= In the past, that tradition made children learn to share…

Is Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi makanan dan cerita formal, informal, or neutral?

This sentence is neutral to slightly formal:

Vocabulary like tradisi, membuat, belajar, berbagi is standard and suitable for:
- writing (essays, articles)
- formal or semi-formal speech
- everyday conversation as well

It’s not slangy, not very casual, but also not stiff. You can use it safely in most situations.

Can I drop itu and just say Tradisi membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi…? What changes?

You can, and it’s grammatical, but the meaning shifts slightly:

Tradisi itu membuat…
→ that specific tradition (which we both know)
Tradisi membuat…
→ tradition (in general) makes… / traditions make…

So:

Tradisi itu membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi…
= That particular tradition makes children learn to share…
Tradisi membuat anak-anak belajar berbagi…
= Tradition (as a concept, generally) makes children learn to share…

Use itu when you’re pointing to or talking about a specific tradition.