Kita tinggal di Bumi.

Both kita and kami can mean we, but they are used differently:

• kita = we, including the person being spoken to
• kami = we, excluding the person being spoken to

So Kita tinggal di Bumi means We live on Earth, with the listener included. It is like saying you and I and others live on Earth.

In this sentence, tinggal means to live or to reside.

So:

• tinggal di Bumi = live on Earth

Be aware that tinggal can also have other meanings in different contexts, such as to stay or to remain, so context matters.

Di is a preposition meaning in, at, or on, depending on context.

Here it marks location:

• di Bumi = on Earth

Indonesian uses di for many kinds of location, where English may choose in, on, or at.

Literally, di is just a general location marker, so Indonesian does not always match English prepositions exactly.

In natural English, di Bumi in this sentence is translated as on Earth.

So even though di is often taught as in/at/on, you should choose the English preposition that sounds natural in context.

Bumi is capitalized because it is a proper noun here: Earth as the name of the planet.

If you are talking about earth/soil/ground in a general sense, Indonesian may use bumi or more commonly other words depending on context, but when referring to the planet, Bumi is normally capitalized.

No. Indonesian does not have articles like the or a/an in the same way English does.

So:

• Bumi can mean Earth
• there is no separate word for the Earth

You understand it from context.

This follows the normal Indonesian word order:

• Kita = subject
• tinggal = verb
• di Bumi = location

So it is:

• Subject + Verb + Place

This is similar to English:

• We live on Earth

Grammatically, yes. It would still mean We live on Earth, but it would sound different in meaning because kami excludes the listener.

So:

• Kita tinggal di Bumi = We all, including you, live on Earth
• Kami tinggal di Bumi = We live on Earth, but not you

Because the sentence is a general statement about humans, kita is the natural choice.

It can absolutely be used for a planet. Tinggal is used for where someone lives or resides, whether that place is:

• a house
• a city
• a country
• a planet

Examples:

• Saya tinggal di Jakarta. = I live in Jakarta.
• Mereka tinggal di Indonesia. = They live in Indonesia.
• Kita tinggal di Bumi. = We live on Earth.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

• kita ≈ KEE-tah
• tinggal ≈ TING-gahl
• di ≈ dee
• Bumi ≈ BOO-mee

So the whole sentence sounds roughly like:

• KEE-tah TING-gahl dee BOO-mee

Indonesian pronunciation is usually quite regular, much more regular than English spelling.

It could in some contexts, because tinggal can also mean stay. However, in a general sentence like Kita tinggal di Bumi, the natural meaning is We live on Earth.

If the context were temporary, then tinggal might be understood as staying. Context tells you which meaning is intended.

This is a very important point.

• di written separately is a preposition meaning in/at/on
  • di Bumi = on Earth
• di- written together with a verb is a prefix used in passive verbs
  • for example, ditulis = written / is written

So in this sentence, di Bumi must be written as two words, because di is a preposition, not a verb prefix.