khalayak

Khalayak is a Malay and Indonesian term meaning the public or the audience. It is used to refer to the general population as a collective, or in media and communication contexts, to the intended audience of a message or program. In formal and journalistic language, khalayak often designates the group that content is meant to reach or influence.

In usage, khalayak appears in phrases such as khalayak ramai (the general public), khalayak pembaca (the readership), and khalayak sasaran (the target audience). The term helps distinguish the people being spoken to from the institution producing information or policy, and it is common in government statements, public relations, marketing, and media discussions.

Etymologically, khalayak is part of the Malay and Indonesian lexicon with roots influenced by Arabic-derived vocabulary common in the region. It functions as a collective noun and can be treated as a unit in discourse, though quantification or qualifiers may be added to reflect specific subgroups within the audience.

Related terms include masyarakat (society), orang ramai (the crowd), and audiens or penonton in more specific contexts (listeners, viewers). While khalayak and these terms overlap, khalayak emphasizes the audience or public aspect of a message, rather than the broader social fabric alone. In contemporary usage, qualifiers are often used to address the diversity within the khalayak and to tailor communications to particular segments.