Learn Hardcore Malay: Saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku.

tulis = bare root verb
- Common in colloquial / casual Malay.
- Often used in simple sentences or instructions:
  - Tulis nama kamu. – Write your name.
- In spoken Malay, Saya tulis nama saya sounds natural.
menulis = verb with prefix meN-
- More formal or standard, especially in writing.
- Often used when talking about the general action or ability:
  - Saya menulis surat. – I write a letter / I am writing a letter.
  - Saya suka menulis. – I like writing.

In this sentence, you could also say:

Saya menulis nama saya di dalam buku. (more formal/standard)
The meaning is the same; the nuance is just formality and style.

Why is saya repeated? Can I say Saya tulis nama di dalam buku instead of Saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku?

You can say Saya tulis nama di dalam buku, and it is grammatically correct. However, there is a nuance:

Saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku.
- Explicitly says “my name”, so it’s very clear whose name you wrote.
Saya tulis nama di dalam buku.
- Literally “I write a name in the book” or “I write names in the book.”
- The owner of the name is not stated; it could be yours, someone else’s, or just “a name.”

Repeating saya makes the sentence more specific and clear: it is your own name.

How do we know the tense? Does Saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku mean “I wrote”, “I write”, or “I will write”?

Malay verbs do not change form for tense. tulis stays the same for past, present, and future.

Saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku can mean:

I wrote my name in the book.
I am writing my name in the book.
I will write my name in the book.

The tense is usually understood from context or from time words:

Past:
- Saya sudah tulis nama saya di dalam buku. – I already wrote my name in the book.
- Tadi saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku. – Earlier I wrote my name in the book.
Present (ongoing):
- Saya sedang tulis / menulis nama saya di dalam buku. – I am writing my name in the book.
Future:
- Saya akan tulis nama saya di dalam buku. – I will write my name in the book.
- Nanti saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku. – I’ll write my name in the book later.

What is the difference between di, dalam, and di dalam? Why use di dalam here?

They are related but not identical:

di = a general preposition meaning “at / in / on” (location).
- di rumah – at home
- di sekolah – at school
dalam = “inside / inside of / in”, focusing on interior.
- dalam kotak – inside the box
di dalam = combination, often translated as “inside (in)”.
- Slightly more explicit or emphatic than just di.
- di dalam buku – inside the book (e.g. on a page).

In everyday speech, you will often hear di dalam shortened to just dalam or just di, depending on the context:

Saya tulis nama saya dalam buku. – common, natural.
Saya tulis nama saya di buku. – can sound a bit more like “on the book” (on the cover) depending on context.

di dalam buku clearly suggests inside the book, usually on a page.

Could I say Saya tulis nama saya dalam buku without di? Is that correct?

Yes, Saya tulis nama saya dalam buku is correct and very common.

In everyday usage, di dalam and dalam often overlap in meaning.
di dalam is sometimes a bit more formal or explicit.
dalam alone is perfectly acceptable and widely used.

So you can say:

Saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku.
Saya tulis nama saya dalam buku.

Both are grammatical and natural; the meaning is essentially the same.

Is di here a preposition or a verb prefix? I learned di- can also mark passive voice.

In di dalam buku, di is a preposition, not a verb prefix.

Malay has two different “di”:

Preposition di (separate word)
- Shows location: di rumah, di sekolah, di dalam buku.
- It is always written separately from the next word.
Passive prefix di- (attached to a verb)
- Forms passive voice: dibaca (is read), ditulis (is written).
- It is written together with the verb: dibaca, not di baca.

In your sentence:

di dalam buku = di (preposition) + dalam
- buku.
There is no passive here; the verb is tulis.

Is the word order fixed? Can I say Saya tulis di dalam buku nama saya?

Malay word order is relatively flexible, but there are patterns that sound more natural.

The most natural order here is:

Saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku.
(Subject – Verb – Object – Place)

If you say:

Saya tulis di dalam buku nama saya.

this sounds awkward and potentially confusing, as if “di dalam buku” is splitting the object “nama saya”.

Better alternatives:

Saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku.
Di dalam buku, saya tulis nama saya. (placing the location first for emphasis)

So, the fixed idea is: keep the whole object “nama saya” together, and then add the location phrase.

Can I omit the subject Saya and just say Tulis nama saya di dalam buku?

Yes, but the meaning changes slightly.

Saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku.
- Statement: I write / wrote / will write my name in the book.
Tulis nama saya di dalam buku.
- Command: (You) write my name in the book.

Malay usually does not drop the subject pronoun in simple statements.
If you omit Saya at the beginning, listeners will normally interpret it as an imperative (an instruction).

How would I say “I wrote my name in the book” more clearly as a past action?

You can add a past-time or completion marker:

Saya sudah tulis nama saya di dalam buku.
– I already wrote my name in the book.
Tadi saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku.
– Just now / earlier I wrote my name in the book.
Semalam saya tulis nama saya di dalam buku.
– Yesterday I wrote my name in the book.

The verb tulis itself does not change; the time word or particle shows the past.

Is there any article like “a” or “the” in buku? How do I say “in a book” vs “in the book”?

Malay does not have articles like “a” or “the”. The word buku can mean:

a book
the book
books (in some contexts)

The exact meaning depends on context.

If you want to be more specific:

dalam sebuah buku – in a (single) book (using the classifier sebuah).
dalam buku itu – in that book / in the book (that one), using itu for “that”.

But in everyday speech, di dalam buku is usually enough and is interpreted by context.

What is the difference between nama saya and saya punya nama?

Both can mean “my name”, but they differ in style:

nama saya
- The standard and preferred form.
- Used in both formal and informal situations.
- Nama saya Ali. – My name is Ali.
saya punya nama
- Literally “the name that I have”.
- More colloquial, can sound wordy or less natural in many contexts.
- Often you would just use nama saya instead.

In this sentence, nama saya is the most natural and correct choice.

Could I say Saya menulis nama saya di dalam buku instead? Is there any difference?

Yes, you can, and it is fully correct:

Saya menulis nama saya di dalam buku.

Differences:

Saya tulis nama saya…
- Slightly more casual / conversational.
- Common in daily speech.
Saya menulis nama saya…
- More formal / standard.
- Common in formal writing, textbooks, essays.

Meaning-wise, both are the same: I write / wrote / will write my name in the book.

How would the sentence look in the passive voice, like “My name is written in the book”?

A natural passive version would be:

Nama saya ditulis di dalam buku.
– My name is written in the book / was written in the book.

Here:

Nama saya = subject (my name).
ditulis = passive verb “is/was written” (di- passive prefix + tulis).
di dalam buku = location (in the book).

This focuses on the name rather than on who wrote it.