Learn Hardcore Malay: Kedatangan ramai peminat menjadi bukti populariti penyanyi tersebut. - The arrival of many fans is proof of that singer's popularity.

Kedatangan means “the arrival” or “the coming.” It’s formed by adding the prefix ke- and suffix -an to the root datang (“to come/arrive”), turning the action into a noun that denotes the event of arriving.

Why doesn’t peminat take a plural marker like peminat-peminat, and how do we know it’s plural here?

Malay nouns are generally unmarked for number. Context or quantifiers indicate plurality. In this sentence, ramai (“many”) tells us that peminat is plural. Reduplication (peminat-peminat) can mark collectivity or emphasis, but it’s not needed when you already have a quantifier like ramai.

Why is ramai placed before peminat, and could we use banyak peminat instead?

When describing people, ramai (“many”) is the natural quantifier and is placed before the noun: ramai peminat = “many fans.” You can say banyak peminat, but banyak is more general for countable items and sounds less idiomatic than ramai when referring to people.

Could we rephrase ramai peminat as peminat yang ramai, and is there any nuance?

Yes. Peminat yang ramai uses a relative clause with yang (“who/that are many”). It means the same thing but feels slightly more formal or wordy than the concise ramai peminat.

What function does menjadi serve, and how is it different from adalah, merupakan, or sebagai?

Menjadi means “become” or “serve as” and links the subject to its complement.

Adalah is a copula meaning “is”/“are” in formal contexts.
Merupakan is similar to adalah with a nuance of “constitutes.”
Sebagai means “as” in the sense of a role or capacity.
You could say: • Kedatangan ramai peminat adalah bukti …
• … merupakan bukti …
• … sebagai bukti …
But menjadi emphasizes that the arrival effectively became/served as proof.

Why is there no word for “of” between bukti and populariti, and how do you express “proof of the singer’s popularity”?

Malay often indicates relationships by placing nouns side by side: bukti populariti literally “proof [of] popularity.” You could use prepositions like daripada or bagi (bukti daripada populariti penyanyi), but direct juxtaposition is concise and very common.

What is tersebut, and why use it instead of itu or ini?

Tersebut is a formal demonstrative meaning “aforementioned” or “said.” It follows the noun: penyanyi tersebut = “the aforementioned singer.”

Itu is a more colloquial “that”: penyanyi itu.
Ini means “this.”
Writers choose tersebut in formal or written Malay to refer back to something already mentioned.

Can we replace kedatangan with kehadiran, and what’s the nuance between them?

Yes. Both come from different roots—datang vs. hadir—and are often interchangeable when talking about people showing up.

Kedatangan (“arrival”) highlights the act of coming.
Kehadiran (“attendance”) emphasizes being present.
Either kedatangan ramai peminat or kehadiran ramai peminat works, with only a slight shade of difference.

How is the sentence structured? Which part is the subject and which part is the predicate?

The sentence follows a Subject-Predicate (S-P) order:
• Subject: Kedatangan ramai peminat (“the arrival of many fans”)
• Predicate: menjadi bukti populariti penyanyi tersebut (“served as proof of the singer’s popularity”)
There’s no direct object—menjadi simply links the subject to its complement (the proof).

How might you say this in a more informal spoken register?

Informally, you could simplify and use colloquial words:
“Banyak peminat datang, jadi bukti penyanyi tu memang popular.”
Here:

Banyak peminat instead of kedatangan ramai peminat
datang instead of kedatangan
jadi instead of menjadi
penyanyi tu instead of penyanyi tersebut