Meaning
Asking about someone's residence.
Cultural Background
Asking where someone lives is a very common 'icebreaker' and is not considered a privacy violation in most social contexts. In Jakarta, people often answer with the name of their neighborhood (e.g., 'Tebet', 'Kemang') rather than the city name. When speaking to elders, Javanese people might use the high-register Indonesian or even Javanese 'Dalemipun pundi?' to be extra polite. Young professionals often use 'Base-nya di mana?' (Where is your base?) as a modern alternative to 'Tinggal di mana?'.
Drop the Subject
In casual speech, just say 'Tinggal di mana?' instead of 'Kamu tinggal di mana?'. It sounds more natural.
The 'NG' Sound
Make sure to pronounce the 'ng' in 'tinggal' clearly. If you say 'tin-gal', it might be harder to understand.
Meaning
Asking about someone's residence.
Drop the Subject
In casual speech, just say 'Tinggal di mana?' instead of 'Kamu tinggal di mana?'. It sounds more natural.
The 'NG' Sound
Make sure to pronounce the 'ng' in 'tinggal' clearly. If you say 'tin-gal', it might be harder to understand.
Be Ready for 'Kepo'
If you ask this, be prepared for them to ask you back! Indonesians love to exchange this info.
Use 'Di Mana Tinggalnya?'
Adding '-nya' makes the question sound slightly softer and more idiomatic in casual conversation.
Test Yourself
Fill in the missing word to ask 'Where do you live?'
Kamu ______ di mana?
'Tinggal' is the verb for 'to live/reside'.
Which sentence is the most polite way to ask an elderly man where he lives?
Choose the best option:
Using 'Anda' and 'Pak' shows proper respect to an elder.
Match the Indonesian phrase with its English meaning.
Match the following:
These are standard translations for basic social inquiries.
Complete the dialogue.
A: Halo, saya dari London. B: Oh, sekarang ______ di mana?
The speaker is asking where the person is currently residing.
🎉 Score: /4
Visual Learning Aids
Tinggal vs Meninggal
Practice Bank
4 exercisesKamu ______ di mana?
'Tinggal' is the verb for 'to live/reside'.
Choose the best option:
Using 'Anda' and 'Pak' shows proper respect to an elder.
Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:
These are standard translations for basic social inquiries.
A: Halo, saya dari London. B: Oh, sekarang ______ di mana?
The speaker is asking where the person is currently residing.
🎉 Score: /4
Frequently Asked Questions
10 questionsNo, in Indonesia it is a standard friendly question used to build rapport.
Simply say 'Saya tinggal di...' followed by your city or neighborhood.
'Tinggal' is for residence (where you stay), 'hidup' is for being alive (biological).
Yes, it is very common to use 'tinggal' for temporary stays during travel.
Grammatically it should be two words ('di mana'), but in texting, people often write 'dimana'.
Just give the name of the general area or city. That is perfectly acceptable.
Use 'Anda tinggal di mana?' or 'Di mana Anda berdomisili?'.
No, Indonesian verbs do not change for tense. Context or time words tell you when.
It means 'Goodbye' (said by the person leaving to the person staying).
In very informal slang, 'di' is sometimes dropped, but it's better to keep it.
Related Phrases
Berasal dari mana?
similarWhere do you come from?
Menginap di mana?
specialized formWhere are you staying (overnight)?
Alamatnya apa?
similarWhat is the address?
Pindah ke mana?
builds onWhere are you moving to?
Tetangga
similarNeighbor
