Learn Hardcore Malay: Selepas kedatangan tetamu, saya tunjukkan cermin antik yang menjadi bukti sejarah keluarga. - After the guests' arrival, I show an antique mirror that is evidence of the family's history.

Selepas means after, and kedatangan is the noun “arrival” formed from datang (to come) by adding ke-...-an. Tetamu means guests. So Selepas kedatangan tetamu literally reads “after the arrival of guests.” You can translate it as after the arrival of guests or more naturally in English, after the guests arrived.

Why is kedatangan used instead of the verb datang?

Kedatangan is a nominalized form (noun) of datang. It turns the action “to come” into the event “arrival.” After selepas, you can use either a noun phrase (kedatangan tetamu) or a verb clause (tetamu datang). The noun form sounds a bit more formal or succinct here.

Could we use ketibaan instead of kedatangan? What is the difference?

Yes, ketibaan also means “arrival.” The difference is register: ketibaan is more literary or formal, while kedatangan is neutral and common in speech and writing. Both convey the same basic idea.

I thought Malay verbs change for tense. How do we know saya tunjukkan is past tense here?

Malay verbs do not inflect for tense. Time is understood from context or time words. Here, selepas indicates the action happened first (guests arrived) and then the showing took place—in other words, past. To mark completion explicitly, you could add telah or sudah: saya telah tunjukkan or saya sudah tunjukkan.

Why is it saya tunjukkan and not saya menunjukkan?

The fully affixed form is menunjukkan (prefix meN- + root tunjuk + suffix -kan). In everyday spoken Malay, speakers often drop the meN- prefix, saying tunjukkan instead of menunjukkan. In formal writing, saya menunjukkan is preferred.

In saya tunjukkan cermin antik, why is there no explicit kepada tetamu?

The indirect object (the guests) is clear from the opening clause Selepas kedatangan tetamu, so Malay allows you to omit kepada tetamu. If you want to be explicit, you can say saya tunjukkan cermin antik kepada tetamu or in formal form saya menunjukkan cermin antik kepada tetamu.

What role does yang play in yang menjadi bukti sejarah keluarga?

Yang is a relative pronoun equivalent to English which or that. It introduces the clause menjadi bukti sejarah keluarga (“serves as proof of the family’s history”) and links it to cermin antik. Malay requires yang before a descriptive clause.

What does menjadi mean in yang menjadi bukti sejarah keluarga?

Here, menjadi means “to serve as” or “to become.” The phrase menjadi bukti sejarah keluarga means “serves as proof of the family’s history.” You could also say berfungsi sebagai bukti sejarah keluarga but menjadi is shorter.

Why is the adjective antik placed after cermin and not before it like in English?

In Malay, descriptive adjectives follow the noun they modify. So cermin antik is “antique mirror.” Placing antik before cermin (as in English) would sound unnatural in Malay.

In bukti sejarah keluarga, how do the nouns relate? Is an “of” missing?

Malay uses noun stacking instead of “of.” You read it as bukti (proof) + sejarah (history) + keluarga (family), i.e. “proof of the family’s history.” No extra word is needed to show possession or description.